TNAG-0899-FCO40-1109-Refugees-from-Vietnam-in-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-boat-people-1979 — Page 70

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TELEGRAM NUMBER 1635 OF 23 NOVEMBER

INFO HONG AID

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UK VIETNAMESE RESETTLEMENT PROGRAMME.

WHEN WOODFIELD (DUS HOME OFFICE) WAS HERE WE ASKED IF THE MONTHLY

RESETTLEMENT FIGURE FOR THE UK COULD BE INCREASED FROM THE 500

WHICH WE HAD ORIGINALLY SUGGESTED IN JULY. THIS WAS BECAUSE THE

TOTAL DEPARTURE RATE FROM HONG KONG REMAINED DISAPPOINTINGLY LOW.

FURTHERMORE FROM TIME TO TIME CONSULAR MISSIONS HERE HAVE ASKED US

ABOUT THE NUMBERS GOING TO THE UK, WITH THE IMPLICATION THAT

THEIR GOVERNMENTS PROGRAMME FOR HK COULD BE INFLUENCED BY HOW THE

UK PROGRAMME PROGRESSED. UNTIL THE UK OFFTAKE REACHED OVER 1,000

IN OCTOBER WE HAVE FOUND SUCH QUESTIONS DIFFICULT TO PARRY: IN

JULY, AUGUST AND SEPTEMBER THE UK FIGURES 70, 52 AND 189 WERE LOW COMPARED E G WITH 431, 1624 AND 229 FOR CANADA IN THE

E MONTHS.

2. WOODFIELD UNDERTOOK TO TRY TO ENSURE A MONTHLY DEPARTURE RATE OF 737 FOR DECEMBER AND JANUARY AND TO SEE WHETHER THIS COULD BE INCREASED AT LEAST FOR THE NEXT FEW MONTHS.

3. WITH THE REDUCTION IN THE US PROGRAMME HERE (MY TELNO 1620) AND THE POSSIBILITY THAT THE TOTAL OUTFLOW EN ROUTE TO THE US FOR DECEMBER AND JANUARY MIGHT NOT REACH 4,900 (IF THE PHILIPPINES CENTRE IS NOT READY), IT WILL BECOME MUCH MORE DIFFICULT TO REACH OUR TARGET OF 4,000 DEPARTURE A MONTH. (EVEN AT THIS RATE, AND WITH NO NEW ARRIVALS, THERE WOULD STILL BE ABOUT 27,390 REFUGEES HERE BY THE END OF JULY 1983, A YEAR AFTER THE GENEVA CONFERENCE). IT WOULD HELP CONSIDERABLY TOWARDS ACHEIVING THIS GOAL IF THE

UK PROGRAMME COULD BE INCREASED FOR THE NEXT 3 MONTHS TO AT LEAST

1, A MONTH. AN INCREASED UK OFFTAKE COULD ALSO HAVE

CONSIDERABLE EFFECT ON THE AMERICANS WHEN THEY NEXT REVIEW THEIR

PEDORAMME: AND ON OTHER COUNTRIES, MANY OF WHICH HAVE STILL TO

DECINE HOW TO ALLOCATE THEIR QUOTAS SAD