TNAG-0972-FCO40-1191-Vietnamese-refugees-in-Hong-Kong-1980 — Page 74

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CONFIDENTIAL

GRS 340

FM PEKING 10030OZ JUN 80

CONFIDENTIAL

TO PRIORITY HONG KONG

TELEGRAM NUMBER 68 OF 10 JUNE

[CH COPY

Akk 243/4

LIVED IN REGIN

17 JUN. 200

VISK OF

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no i Jr.?

شاة

INFO ROUTINE FCO, HONG KONG GOVERNMENT OFFICE LONDON,

UKMIS GENEVA.

SAVING TO MODUK (DS11), HANOI, WASHINGTON, UKMIS NEW YORK.

See (51

Wh

47

YOUR TELNOS 734 TO FCD AND 154 TO PEKING:

VIETNAMESE REFUGEES IN HONG KONG FROM CHINA.

+

1. FIRST SECRETARY CALLED ON ZHENG YAOWEN OF WESTERN EUROPEAN

DEPT, MFA ON 9 JUNE TO SPEAK AS REQUESTED IN PARA 5 OF

YOUR FIRST TUR, MAKING USE ALSO OF THE INFORMATION IN YOUR

SECOND TUR.

2. ZHENG WAS ALREADY AWARE OF YOUR APPROACH TO NCNA ABOUT THIS. HE UNDERSTOOD THE REASON FOR THE RECENT INCREASE IN ESCAPE ATTEMPTS WAS THE GROWING RUMOUR OF A NEW WAVE OF REFUGEES LEAVING DIRECTLY FROM VIETNAM: THOSE SETTLED IN CHINA BELIEVED THAT GREATER NUMBERS TRAVELLING DIRECTLY WOULD GIVE THEM A BETTER CHANCE OF REMAINING UNDETECTED. ASKED WHETHER (ESPECIALLY IN VIEW OF TWO RECENT NCWA REPORTS 060631 AND 060637) THE CHINESE WERE THEMSELVES EXPERIENCING AN INCREASED INFLOW OF REFUGEES FROM VIETNAM, OR A GREATER PROPOSRION OF ETHNIC CHINESE,

ZHEN ANSWERED NO TO BOTH COUNTS.

3. SULLIVAN SUGGESTED THAT THE DELAY IN ACCEPTING BACK GROUPS OF REFUGEES FROM VIETNAM MIGHT BE AN EQUALLY IMPORTANT FACTOR IN ENCOURAGING RECENT ESCAPES AND ASKED WHEN WE MIGHT EXPECT A FURTHER GROUP TO BE ACCPETED BACK. HE UNDERSTOOD THAT THE DELAY WAS CAUSED BY THE REFUGEES HAVING GIVEN FALSE DETAILS ABOUT PLACES OF SETTLEMENT IN CHINA: GETTING THE FACTS SORTED OUT WAS A LENGTHY PROCESS. THE MFA WERE HOWEVER PRESSING FOR THE

ENQUIRY PROCESS TO BE SPEEDED UP. IN THE MEANTIME THE INFORM-

ATION BEING PASSED ON BY THE HONG KONG AUTHORITIES COULD /BE PUT

CONFIDENTIAL