TNAG-1275-FCO40-1625-Resettlement-of-Vietnamese-refugees-from-Hong-Kong-1983 — Page 133

45

NOFO 032/30

T/L WASHINGTON

T/L FCO

T/L HONGAID

T/L UKMIS GENEVA

GR 230

CONFIDENTIAL

TELELETTER

FROM: D.G. JEAFFRESON, HONG KONG

0849

HKK 243/2

& APR 1983

NO 1/4 CM 111

Пер

See HACK 243/1 @@

Then enter on VIC resettle the

T45113

8/4

FILE REF: NIL

DATED: 30

MARCH 1983

FOLLOWING FOR : S.J. GOMERSALL, WASHINGTON

COPIED TO :

R.D. CLIFT, HKGD, FCO

K.F.X. BURNS, SEAD, FCO

SIR J. CATER, HONG KONG GOVERNMENT OFFICE LONDON C.W. LONG, UKMIS GENEVA

VIETNAMESE REFUGEES IN HONG KONG

HKK 243/1

1. FURTHER TO MY TELELETTER OF 4 MARCH, U.S. CONSUL GENERAL LEVIN INFORMED ME YESTERDAY THAT THE STATE DEPARTMENT HAD NOW AGREED TO INS REVIEWING TWO GROUPS OF **RESIDUALS' ON WHOM YOU AND WE HAVE BEEN PUSHING THEM FOR SOME TIME: SO-CALLED 'UK NO SHOW'' CASES, AND RPC REFUSALS. LEVIN SAID JVA AND UNHCR HAD NOW IDENTIFIED FROM THE 2,220 UK CASES'' 1,775 WHO HAD NOT ACTUALLY REFUSED A UK OFFER. OF THESE 321 MET U.S. PRIORITIES ONE TO FIVE. OF THE 608 RPC REFUSALS, 259 MET PRIORITIES ONE TO FIVE. INS WILL NOW REEXAMINE THESE 580 CASE BY CASE. I THANKED LEVIN FOR HIS PERSONAL EFFORTS.

2. THIS IS A STEP FORWARD, LESS IN NUMBERS THAN IN GETTING THE STATE DEPARTMENT AND INS TO RECOGNISE THAT A VERY REAL PROBLEM OF RESIDUALS'' EXISTS. WE SHALL SEE HOW THE INS REVIEW GOES, AND PARTICULARLY ITS ACCEPTANCE RATE WHICH SHOULD BE HIGH GIVEN THAT MOST ''RESIDUALS'' ARE ETHNIC CHINESE FROM 1979, AND THEREFORE EVEN IN INS TERMS ARE ''REFUGEES''. WE SHALL THEREAFTER CONSIDER HOW TO PUSH FOR RECONSIDERATION OF THE BALANCE OF 1,803 WHO ARE PRIORITY SIX. THIS WILL CERTAINLY MAKE A DENT IN OUR CURRENT VR POPULATION OF 12,200. BUT THERE IS A GROWING FEELING AMONG U.S. AGENCIES HERE THAT 1983/84 WILL BE THE LAST YEAR OF THE U.S. REFUGEE PROGRAMME.

3. THE AMERICANS WANT NO PUBLICITY FOR THIS CURRENT MOVE ON ''RESIDUALS'' AND WE SHALL GIVE IT NONE.

4. THANK YOU ALSO FOR YOUR EFFORTS.

SIGNED. D.G. JEAFFRESON

NNNN

HAÇO PLEASE PAM Ropy to SERO AND copy to Hong Kong SOVERNMENT OFFICE LONDON

Regs for pussy Ms. Houve

D