TNAG-1277-FCO40-1627-Resettlement-of-Vietnamese-refugees-from-Hong-Kong-1983 — Page 104

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CONFIDENTIAL

HKK 243/2

14

(184)

FM HONG KONG 110605Z NOV 83

TO PRIORITY TOKYO

TELEGRAM NUMBER 38 OF 11 NOVEMBER 1983

INFO PRIORITY FCO

ROUTINE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT OFFICE LONDON

VIETNAMESE REFUGEES IN HONG KONG

No

PA (resetlent?)

1. FURTHER TO OUR TELNO 87, WE MET SUGIMOTO TODAY. WE OUTLINED

HONG KONG'S VR PREDICAMENT, NOTED THAT JAPAN HAD ANNOUNCED THE RAISING OF ITS REFUGEE CEILING FROM 3,000 TO 5,000 PLACES, AND

ASKED IF SOME OF THESE PLACES COULD BE USED TO RELIEVE US OF PART

OF OUR BURDEN. SUGIMOTO EXPLAINED THAT JAPAN HAD ALREADY TAKEN

NEARLY 3,000 INDOCHINESE AND THE NEW CEILING WAS INTENDED TO ABSORB MOST OF THE 1,900 Ship RESCUE CASES NOW STRANDED IN JAPAN WITHOUT

PROSPECT OF RESETTLEMENT ELSEWHERE. HOWEVER, HE UNDERTOOK TO PASS

ON OUR CONCERN, AND OUR REQUEST FOR ANY RESETTLEMENT HELP THE

JAPANESE COULD PROVIDE, TO CONSUL GENERAL FUJIH AND THE AUTHORITIES

IN TOKYO. HE SAID THAT FUJNN WOULD CONTACT US FOR A FURTHER DIS-

CUSSION SOON.

see (186)

2. THIS IS DISAPPOINTING, BUT WE BELIEVE THAT IT IS STILL WORTH

PUSHING HONG KONG'S CASE WITH THE JAPANESE GOVERNMENT AT A HIGH

LEVEL, IN THE HOPE THAT WE GAIN SOME BENEFIT FROM THE NEW CEILING.

SUGIMOTO DID SAY THAT THERE WOULD BE FURTHER VISITS BY JAPANESE

RESETTLEMENT TEAMS, BUT HE DID NOT KNOW WHEN. SINCE THE LAST TEAM,

WHICH VISITED HERE IN SEPTEMBER, HAS REFERRED BACK TO TOKYO ONLY

24 OF THE 208 INDVDUAL CASES WHICH UNHCR PRESENTED TO THEM, WE

WOULD HOPE THAT A FURTHER TEAM COULD VISHT SOON.

YOUDE

THIS TELEGRAM WAS NOT ADVANCED

BOAT PEOPLE

LIMITED

SEAD

HKD

UND

FED

PUSD

NEWS D MAED PS

PS/LADY YOUNG PS/MR LUCE PS/PUS

MR WRIGHT MR GIFFARD

MR DONALD

MR ADAMS MR URE

ADDITIONAL DISTRIBUTION

BOAT PEOPLE

COPIES Toi

HONG KONG GOVT. OFFICE,

CONFIDENTIAL

LONDON