BY BAG
HKK 341|1
*Y NO. 51
ISTRY
SCR 6/2091/55 INDEX
Action Taken
CO Hum Esq PEKING
AW
12/12
252A
5 December 1979
RA
LEGAL IMMIGRATION FROM CHINA
You may be interested to have the enclosed table prepared by our Immigration Department showing the breakdown of arrivals this year on Chinese exit permits and the period of validity which these have had on arrival. The salient points are that on average just under 40% of those arriving have been in family groups and for the last 6 months 75% of those arriving here have had permits valid for a further 7 months or longer from their date of arrival. Both points indicate that the Chinese are making no effort to ensure that only genuine short visits are intended. We shall raise this when the Chairman of the Guangdong Provincial Revolutionary Committee meets Sir Jack Cater on Friday.
2.
As
You may also find it useful to have the full table of arrivals and departures at Lowu up to the end of November (for ease of reference I also enclose a copy of the 1978 table). you can see it remains true that only a tiny proportion of arrivals from China return within the period of validity of their Chinese travel documents and that there is no net outflow to China of travellers on Hong Kong travel documents. I enclose the breakdown for November of the 'green' and 'pink' permits.
3.
Finally, I enclose a table covering both legal and illegal immigration since 1972 showing the estimated total number of arrivals from China (together with 3 copies of an illustrative bar graph). If the numbers in the past 2 years are translated into extra houses, schools, transport facilities etc. (an exercise on this is under way) the results would appal any urban planner. A point worth bearing in mind is that about 80% of the illegals are fairly unskilled males between 15 and 29 years of age: not the easiest group to absorb.
cc P J Williamson Esq HK&GD FCO
R C Fursland Esq FED FCO Research Dept FE Section FCO
C.
(I C orr)
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.