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on how soon the 7-point-programme could be implemented. Mr Blaker pointed out that not many people had so far left Vietnam in this way. Mr de Haan claimed that there had been substantial progress on this scheme. UNHCR's office in Ho Chi Minh City was to open soon, perhaps this week. He emphasised that continuation of the moratorium depended on the 7-point-programme. Mr Murray said he understood that at the Geneva meeting in July the question had been raised that those people who were taken direct from their country of origin might not have refugee status by law in their new resettlement country. Mr de Haan said that the UNHCR was aware of this problem, but appealed to governments to be flexible and generous regarding this scheme. Haan then asked how HMG viewed the prospects for the moratorium. Mr Blaker said that the signs were encouraging. The number of refugees recently arriving in Hong Kong had dropped. Mr Murray noted that recent de-briefings of Indo-Chinese refugees had revealed that there might be more people leaving Vietnam. Mr de Haan thought that a lot depended on the political climate. Mr Blaker agreed. Renewed hostili- ties between China and Vietnam might well prompt a fresh exodus of refugees.
Vietnamese Refugees in Hong Kong
Mr de
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Mr Blaker then turned to the question of Vietnamese refugees in Hong Kong and described Hong Kong's special problems. It seemed as if the refugee problem in Hong Kong would last much longer than elsewhere in South-East Asia at the present rates of uptake. Hong Kong would therefore be grateful to UNHCR if some refugees were allowed to go to the new Island Processing Centre proposed in the Philippine Island of island. Bataan. It was important to reduce the number of refugees in Hong Kong.
Mr Murray added that the number of refugees in Malaysia had dropped 8.
dramatically. They were now down to 45,000. Mr de Haan explained that he thought there was no question but that refugees in Hong Kong should be eligible to go to the Island Processing Centre and he had publicly said so. How it was worked out was another question. It was up to the ASEAN countries, although, as Mr Murray pointed out, these would be UNHCR camps. Mr Blaker said he had recently spoken to the Philippine authorities about this. They had promised to consider the request. Mr de Haan thought that the Scheme would be under way by early January 1980. The planned capacity was 50,000. Mr de Haan envisaged the Centre's becoming a staging base for the Orderly Departure Scheme. was also the UNHCR's hope that these camps would prove to be some kind of rehabilitation centre.
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Mr de Haan said that the UNACK placed great importance on the fact that there should of equitable distribution of refugees.
However, there was sometimes a need to focus on one particular country, for example, Malaysia, and then as conditions changed to focus on another. Mr Blaker said that we would not like to see a situation when Hong Kong was to be next on the list and a new situation emerged which meant that Hong Kong's needs were ignored. Mr de llaan agreed and said that he thought that everyone was aware of Tong KAHE'S PROVIBES. quota of 10,000 taken mainly from Hong Kong would help Hong Kong's
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