TNAG-0897-FCO40-1107-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 26

GR 762

ONCLASSIFIED

1726

HKK 2431

RECEIVED IN POGEN NO. 5;

2 8 SEP 1979

DESK OFTA

FM HONG KONG 270323Z SEP 79

MIDEX

TO PRIORITY MANILA

TELNO.62 OF 27 SEPTEMBER,

INFO F.C.0.

PLEASE PASS FOLLOWING TO COLIN MUNRO, PRIVATE SECRETARY TO

MINISTER OF STATE:

1. FULL TRANSCRIPT OF PRESS CONFERENCE ON 25 SEPTEMBER HAS BEEN

SENT AIR MAIL TO F.C.O MARKED FOR MUNRO,

2. FOLLOWING IS SUMMARY WITH SOME ANSWERS VERBATIMI-

DURING QUESTION AND ANSWER SESSION AT THE NEWS CONFERENCE,

MINISTER SAID, IN RESPONSE TO QUERY ABOUT BRITAIN'S INTAKE OF VIETNAMESE REFUGEES FROM HONG KONG, THAT BY THE END OF THIS YEAR

U.K WOULD HAVE TAKEN 3,482.

THE PROBLEM WAS, HE SAID, BRITAIN DID NOT HAVE THE APPROPRIATE.

FACILITIES TO SPEED UP THE INTAKE. HE SAID THE VOLUNTARY AGENCIES

IN BRITAIN WERE WORKING HARD TO EXPAND THEIR FACILITIES.

COMMENTING ON A REPORT ATTRIBUTED TO NIM IN SINGAPORE, ABOUT THE 802,002 PEOPLE OF CHINESE ORIGIN STILL IN VIETNAM, MINISTER SAID IT WAS NOT QUITE THE EMPHASIS HE HAD INTENDED TO GIVE IN

SINGAPORE.

"IT

IT IS BELIEVED THAT THERE ARE STILL IN VIETNAM SOME 800,£38

PEOPLE OF CHINESE ETHNIC ORIGIN AND I THINK THERE WERE GROUNDS SOME MONTHS AGO FOR FEARING THAT IT MIGHT BE THE INTENTION OF VIETNAM EVENTUALLY TO FORCE ALL THOSE PEOPLE OUT. NOW THAT WOULD

BE VERY REGRETTABLE AND I HOPE THAT IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN. 1 DON'T WANT TO GIVE THE IMPRESSION THAT THAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN

AND CERTAINLY NOT THAT IT IS INEVITABLE.

''THE POINT THAT I WANTED TO MAKE WAS THAT WE HAVE PERSUADED

VIETNAM AND I THINK VERY LARGELY BY PRESSURE OF INTERNATIONAL OPINION TO SLOW DOWN THE FLOW OF REFUGEES VERY DRAMATICALLY.

THE NUMBER