TNAG-0898-FCO40-1108-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 241

CONFIDENTIAL

CONFIDENTIAL

FM SECUL 9467182 OCT 79

TO PRIORITY FCO

TELEGRAM NUMBER 216 OF 4 OCTOBER

INFO PRIORITY HONG KONG

HKK243

YOUR TELNO 164 AND HONG KONG TELNO 1352 MV ALARIC

P.A

GOZA

VIETNAMESE REFUGEES,

1733A

1746

1 HONG KONG'S TUR PUTS ME IN A DIFFICULT SITUATION.

€41756

2. THE QUESTION OF HONG KONG'S POLICY WAS RAISED BY THE MFA ÎN THE FIRST DISCUSSIONS ON 21 SEPTEMBER (OUR TELNO 207),

IT ALSO CAME UP IN MY CALL ON VICE MINISTER RHEE. WHEN REPLYING

TO THEIR QUESTIONS WE WERE NOT AWARE THAT HONG KONG'S POLICY WAS

NOW TO REQUIRE A GUARANTEE OF RESETTLEMENT BY THE FLAG COUNTRY.

ON BOTH OCCASION OUR REPLY WAS THAT HONG KONG HAD ACCEPTED ALL

GENUINE REFUGEES FROM SHIPS ARRIVING THERE AS THEIR SCHEDULED

FIRST PORT OF CALL. AS WE HAD NO MEANS OF KNOWING THAT THE

GOVERNMENT OF HONG KONG HAD CHANGED THEIR POLICY (PRESUMABLY WITH THE CONCURRENCE OF OF HMG) WE LEFT THE KOREANS WITH THE

IMPRESSION THAT HONG KONG'S ACCEPTANCE WAS NOT SUBJECT TO A

GUARANTEE ON RESETTLEMENT AND WE URGED THE KOREANS TO ACT

LIKEWISE. I AM DISMAYED AND EMBARRASSED TO FIND THAT WE HAVE

INADVERTENTLY MISLED THEM.

3. IN TALKİNG WITH THE KOREANS WE BASED OURSELVES ON THE NOT INCONSIDERABLE NUMBER OF PAPERS, INCLUDING MINISTERIAL STATEMENTS, WHICH WE HAVE RECEIVED ON THE VIETNAMESE REFUGEE PROBLEM THIS YEAR, PARTICULARLY SINCE MAY, AND ON THE IMPLICATIONS OF CORTAZZI’S STATEMENT TO DR HAN THAT HMG'S RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE REFUGEES ON THE ALARIC WOULD END WHEN THEY LANDED IN KOREA. SINCE WE

ASSUMED THAT THIS REFLECTED CURRENT PRACTICE IN HONG KONG. }

HAVE LOOKED THROUGH THE FILE AGAIN AND CAN FIND NO REFERENCE TO

HONG KONG'S CHANGE OF POLICY.

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140

IT WOULD