GPS 215
1850)
UNCLASSIFIED
DESKBBY 130915Z FCO
DDESKBY 133400Z UKMIS N.Y
FM HONG KONG 130845Z NOV 79
TO IMMEDIATE FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE
TEL NO.1602 OF 13 NOVEMBER,
AND TO IMMEDIATE UKMIS NEW YORK,
INFO PRIORITY: UKMIS GENEVA,
1.
2.
ROUTINE : HONG KONG GOVT OFFICE LONDON.
1849
UKMIS N. Y. TEL NO.1521 TO YOU :
THIRD COMMITTEE: S.E.ASIA REFUGEES.
HKK 243
243/1
та
AS BACKGROUND FOR THE CURRENT DEBATE YOU MAY FIND IT USEFUL
TO HAVE THE LATEST REFUGEE STATISTICS HERE.
AS OF 3900 LOCAL TODAY THE NUMBER OF BOAT REFUGEES IN
HONG KONG WAS 61,796. ARRIVALS SINCE 1 JANUARY HAVE BEEN 73,153
AND DEPARTURES 17,409.
3. BASED ON RECENT BUT NOT QUITE COMPLETE UNHCR FIGURES, WE ESTIMATE THAT UP TO 31 OCTOBER THE TOTAL NUMBER OF BOAT REFUGEES WHO HAVE ARRIVED IN PLACES OF FIRST ASYLUM IN 1979 TOGETHER WITH
REFUGEES ALREADY AWAITING RESETTLEMENT AT THE END OF 1978 WAS 267,500. THE RESPECTIVE PROPORTIONS OF THIS BURDEN BORNE BY HONG KONG, MALAYSIA AND INDONESIA WERE 30%, 38% AND 19%. WE ALSO
ESTIMATE THAT 97,000 BOAT REFUGEES WERE RESETTLED FROM THE REGION FROM JANUARY TO OCTOBER. THE PROPORTION OF PLACES GOING TO HONG KONG, MALAYSIA AND INDONESIA HAS BEEN 17%, 61% AND 10%. AS A RESULT OF THE SLOW RATE OF RESETTLEMENT FROM HONG KONG, WE NOW HAVE CONSIDERABLY THE LARGEST PROPORTION OF BOAT REFUGEES. AT THE END OF OCTOBER THE TOTAL REGIONAL BOAT REFUGEE POPULATION WAS ABOUT 165,000 WITH 38% IN HONG KONG, 26% IN MALAYSIA AND
25% IN INDONESIA.
CATER
ECON O
FILES
SEAD
UND
FRO
HRGD
010
FED
1PD
FID
NEWS O
EASO
Puso
PS
PSILPS
PSIMR BLAKER PS/MR HURD
Psipus
MR CORMAZZI MR MURRAY
LORD BRIDGES
LORD NG LENNOX
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