TNAG-0974-FCO40-1193-Resettlement-of-Vietnamese-refugees-from-Hong-Kong-in-other--1980 — Page 224

FA 24319

Сенкад

UND

3

de Sheddy,

INDE

Mr I C Orr

Government Secretariat'

HỘI KONG

Dave Or

VIETNAMED REFUGLES:

Taken

HKK 243/5

Mo 817.1

NO. 51

BRITISH MENJAMI

DUBLIN

8 January 1980

Your ref: CR 13/581//7?

BY

taken

RESETTLEMENT FROM HONG KONG

1. I am sorry for the delay in responding to your letter of 9 November.

2.

3403

FA 243/, /1974)

The Irish programme for the acceptance and settlement of Vietnamese refugees is based on ad hoc arrangements. No quote for 1980 has been laid down but in 1979, 212 refugees were accepted (109 from Hong Kong and 103 from Malasia), Officials at the Department of Foreign Affairs have told me that any decision to accept more refugees would have to be taken by the Irish Cabinet and, whilst they did not rule out acceptance of a further number, there are as yet few signs that this is contemplated. They had to admit, however, that Mr Lenihan, the new Minister for Foreign Affairs, had been reported as saying that Ireland might take another 100 refugees at some stage. One of the two resettlement camps is at Blanchardstown which is in the Minister's own constituency so he has taken a personal interest in the plight of the refugees.

3. I gave the desk officer, Mr Harmon, a copy of your November 1979 fact sheet and drew his attention to the fact that Hong Kong was lagging behind the resettlement rate of other countries and I expressed the hope that if Ireland did accept any more refugees that they would take them from Hong Kong. Mr Harmon said that he would certainly bear this in mind and admitted that the decision to accept the 109 refugees from Hong Kong had been influenced by our earlier approach and by the Department's appreciation of Hong Kong's problems.

riverely Pets for the

P Johnstone

сс

C Stitt Esq v CLAD/FCO

?