TNAG-0985-FCO40-1204-Immigration-from-China-to-Hong-Kong-1980 — Page 16

CONFIDENTIAL

251A

布政司署

香港下亞畢道

***OUR REF.: SCR 30/2091/74 VIII Nick 34111

來函檔號 YOUR REF.:

GOVERNMENT SECRETARIAT

LOWER ALBERT ROAD

HONG KONG

18th December 1980

RAJZIVED IN REGISTRY NO. 5Į

06 JAN1981

DESK OFFICER

INDEX

PA

dor More or.

REGISTRY

Action Taken

Aw 61

P.J. Williamson, Esq.,

Hong Kong & General Department,

F CO.

25%

Yes

Dear Patrick,

Illegal Immigration from China

(245

Thank you for your letter of 5 December (not copied to Peking). You will see that we have met your point about distinguishing between illegals arrested on entry and those repatriated when found after entry in our telno. 391 Saving, covering the figures from 9-15 December. We shall follow the same format in our future monthly Sitreps. The breakdown for November was 1,008 illegals repatriated after arrest on entry and 90 after they had subsequently surfaced.

2.

I assume that you and Peking would like to continue to receive the Weekly Saving Sitreps on immigration. We will continue these unless you or Peking indicate that they are no longer needed.

3.

It is more difficult to answer your point on evasion ratios. As you know, we now no longer have the principal data on which the ratios have been calculated in the past, i.e. the numbers who have subsequently surfaced and registered. The special registration period during Champion produced fewer registrations than had been allowed for in the earlier estimates on which Census and Statistics Department had based their evasion ratios. As a result, we have recalculated the evasion ratio from January to October 1981 at 1:0.6. However we do not feel that we can simply assume that this ratio would apply in the post Champion period since those still attempting to come are likely to be more determined and resourceful. It is also inevitably less easy for the Security Forces to maintain vigilance when little is happening, particularly on the land border. For the moment we have decided to work on the rather arbitrary assumption that the present evasion ratio is about 1 to 1. However, I should emphasise that this is purely an internal working tool and we do not wish to give any publicity to this figure since it is inherently unreliable and we do not wish it thought in China that there is any chance of getting through.

/We

CONFIDENTIAL