TNAG-0974-FCO40-1193-Resettlement-of-Vietnamese-refugees-from-Hong-Kong-in-other--1980 — Page 18

SAVING TELEGRAM BY BAG

Unclassified

From

TO:-

Hong Kong 21st July, 1980

The Foreign & Commonwealth Office

Telegram Number Saving 222 of 21 July, 1980

Info:- Saving to Hong Kong Government Office London,

Buenos Aires Brussels

Bonn

Rome

Oslo

Washington

Reykjavik.

Ukmis Geneva

Ottawa

Athens

Tokyo

Madrid

Caracas

Vietnamese Refugees: Resettlement from Hong Kong.

NICK 24315

RECEIVED IN 7635MY NO. 14 - 4 A00 1980

TO

DESK ACER

INDEX

nuo Canbeure! Copenhagen Dublin

REGISTRY

Action Taken

82.8 Awizla

Mexico City

Stockholm Helsinki

Vienne

Paris Tel Aviv

Wellington Berne

Brasilia, and

акад

boa

AKGD to ente

lat Caby

Suss

6/8

1. The Political Adviser had a meeting on 18 July with local missions representing actual or potential resettlement countries. The major points made were:

(a) Although nearly 40,000 refugees have been settled from Hong Kong since the meeting

in Geneva in July 1979, there were still over 34,000 awaiting resettlement from Hong Kong.

(b) This was only part of the global and regional refugee burden. Nevertheless, Hong

Kong now had a larger share of the burden of boat refugees than she had had a year ago.

(c) We hoped that the generous response of resettlement countries would continue and

that there would be renewed quotas to match the needs of refugees.

(d) The major programmes in Hong Kong (The U.S., Canada and the U.K.) were crucial. We

hoped that these would continue. But smaller programmes were also important. In 1979 15 per cent of resettlement from Hong Kong had been to places other than the top three; but this had dropped to 10 per cent this year.

(e) For resettlement to places which refugees here were unfamiliar it was essential that

the UNHCR's counselling should be backed up by the countries concerned.

2. The meeting was also attended by representatives of ASEAN countries (as observers) and of the UNHCR and ICEM offices. Miss Brissimi, Chief of the Counselling, Educational and Resettlement Section of UNHCR's Assistance Division in Geneva was also present. She spoke briefly, reminding those present that throughout the region there were 235,000 refugees (both boat refugees and land refugees in UNHCR camps in Thailand) awaiting resettlement but that at present outstanding quotas only amounted to 125,000. Renewed quotas were urgently needed for Hong Kong and for the region.

3. We hope posts concerned can take any opportunity which arises to reinforcs this appeal.

CATER

FILES

SEAD

HK & GD

UND

FED

ECD

PUSD

OID

IPD

NEWS D MAED

LEGAL ADVISERS

(MR RUSHFORD)

PS

PS/LPS

PS/MR BLAKER

PS/MR RIDLEY

PS/PUS

SIRE YOUDE:

SIRA ACLAND

MR DONALD

LORD NG LENNOK

ADDITIONAL DISTRIBUTION BOAT PEOPLE

THIS TELEGRAM

WAS NOT

ADVANCED