TNAG-1273-FCO40-1623-Vietnamese-refugees-in-Hong-Kong-1983 — Page 140

BACKGROUND

CONFIDENTIAL

Our policy is to accept the general view that boat-people should

be treated as refugees and to support the United Nations High

Commission for Refugees' leading role in supervising their asylum

in countries of the region and promoting their eventual resettlement

elsewhere. At the Conference on boat refugees in 1979 it was

agreed that regional states would provide first asylum and not be

expected to provide permanent homes for the refugees who would

eventually be resettled elsewhere. Although there are serious

problems thrown up by the continuing, if much diminished, outflow

of boat-people this general arrangement for the moment remains in

place and is the basis for our current policy.

But resettlement countries are now rejecting many boat-people as

having been driven by economic rather than political motives.

Resettlement opportunities are thus diminishing. For this reason

consideration is still being given to Hong Kong's recommendation that

we explore the possibility of arranging the repatriation to Vietnam

of future arrivals of boat-people in the territory.

Repatriation

would, of course, only be considered if the Vietnamese Government

offered satisfactory assurances concerning the treatment of any

repatriates.

CONFIDENTIAL