TNAG-1275-FCO40-1625-Resettlement-of-Vietnamese-refugees-from-Hong-Kong-1983 — Page 177

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Thereafter,

with survival skills and an initial leunon into the community. responsibility passes in the local communities in which they are seilied and it is for the local services, both statutory and voluntary, to meet

the needs of the refugees so far as they are able within their resources. In this programme the Government support was, of course, concentrated at the reception stage including the provision of education for those in

reception. Without extra financial assistance to local authorities in settlement and with the hope that the Vietnamese might be able to integrate

with the host community, the policy of dispersal, as the report recognises,

made a deal of sense. Whether in any future programme, it would make more

scnse to aim at a different pattern of settlement and to spread Government support in ways which might ease and speed the refugees' settlement in the community would, of course, depend very much on the nature and problems of the refugees in question, and whether they could expect support from immigrate communities already in this country. The report does, however, make a number of cogent points about the effects of the policy pursued

for the Vietnamese and we shall be exploring these in our contingency

plans for any future refugee problem.

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The continuing needs of the Vietnamese

Dealing now with the report's recommendations on the problems which still face the Vietnamese, I entirely agree that the fact that the Vietnamese are now in housing does not mark the end of the settlement process and

that they face many other problems. It is as well to reiterate therefore

that the Government has made available funding to the refugee organisations during 1983/84 to give time for renewed efforts to put the support the

Vietnamese still need on a long-term basis. You have generously agreed

to continue as Chairman of the JCRV to coordinate this effort.

Turning to some specific areas of settlement need, as regards education, now that most of the Vietnamese children have been accepted into ordinary schools they will require a similar response to that made for other ethnic minority children with English language needs. Responsibility in Her Hajesty's Inspectorate of Schools for inspecting the provision made for them across the country now rests with the team of inspectors who specialise

in the needs of ethnic minority children. In addition to inspections of

schools attended by Vietnamese pupils, the Inspectorate run courses for

teachers of Chinese end Vietnamese pupils from time to time as the need arises. Mony Vietnamese children have come through a traumatic experience, but with the right educational response they should have their opportunity alongside others to be successful at school.

3.