TNAG-1068-FCO40-1318-Resettlement-of-Vietnamese-refugees-from-Hong-Kong-in-the-UK-1981 — Page 148

CONFIDENTIAL AND PERSONAL

HKK 243/2

Foreign and Commonwealth Office London SW1A 2AH

RECEIVED

Telephone 01-

L M Davies Esq CMG OBE Secretary for Security Government Secretariat HONG KONG

Your reference

BRY NO. Si

19 FEB 1981

DESK OPACE

INDEX

PA

REGISTRY

Action Taken

No IMS it for 1912

HKK 243/2

Our reference

Date

18 February 1981

Dear Dim,

VIETNAMESE REFUGEES UK QUOTA

1.

see

31+14

When you were here in January I promised to let you know the numerical position on the UK resettlement quota of 10,000 Vietnamese refugees agreed at the 1979 Geneva Conference.

2.

So far, some 8,500 have arrived here from Hong Kong. plus 600 rescued by British boats. There are also commitments to a further 150 rescued at sea.

3.

I understand that a further Home Office selection team will go to Hong Kong next week with a view to choosing candidates for the balance of the quota.

4.

You asked about the proposals of having ship rescues treated separately from the 10,000. We have examined this but our assessment is that we would get nowhere by making such a suggestion now (it would have to go to the top). Indeed, it might encourage a premature move to decide now that there would be no further quota- obviously a bad move. There is also a chance that most of the 750-800 boat rescues will simply get lost in the figuring: allowing for those still awaiting movement from Hong Kong out of previous 'selections' the Home Office's target for their next trip would produce a gross total of around 10,500 against the 10,000 quota (including boat rescues).

Jours

Dich

R D Clift

,

1

Hong Kong and General Department

сс

UKMIS GENEVA

Mr Stitt, SEAD/FCO

CONFIDENTIAL AND PERSONAL

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1