TNAG-1274-FCO40-1624-Vietnamese-refugees-in-Hong-Kong-1983 — Page 273

GEMINI NEWS SERVICE NEWS

GN 31653 HONG KONG HOPES ITS UNWANTED GUESTS WILL TAKE THE HINT

In July a year ago Hong Kong dropped its open-arms policy for Vietnamese refugees and started putting boat-people into "closed camps" to discourage further arrivals. Now, as the prevailing winds usher in the peak season for refugees, Gemini News Service reports that Hong Kong officials are waiting to see whether the policy has worked.

By FRENA BLOOMFIELD

Hong Kong

1,300 words approx.

When a small group of Vietnamese "boat people" recently decided not to stop off at Hong Kong but merely to refuel and continue their voyage onwards, government officials in the British-ruled territory breathed a sigh of relief.

This was the sign they had been hoping for that their "closed camp" policy was paying off by discouraging boat people from making Hong Kong their first refuge outside Vietnam.

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The Hong Kong government imposed the closed camp policy which makes prisoners of people officially classified by the United Nations as refugees last July.

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The administration is not proud of the policy: it was a desperate measure to stop the flood of Vietnamese refugees.

Up to that point, Hong Kong had an outstanding record of humanity in a region where it was notably lacking towards the wretched boatloads of people coming out of Vietnam.

Over 110,000 were received and cared for in the colony, despite the fact that Hong Kong contains the most densely packed urban area in the world and was also accepting a continuous stream of legal and illegal arrivals from China.

The problem with having a good record for refugee care was two-fold. Firstly, it attracted even more boat people who had already heard that Hong Kong would receive them and that they would be able to work there freely while awaiting resettlement overseas.

Secondly, the pressure was taken off those countries of resettlement, which slowed down their intake.

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