TNAG-1279-FCO40-1630-Repatriation-of-Vietnamese-refugees-from-Hong-Kong-1983 — Page 43

Mr Clift HK&GD

CONFIDENTIAL

pa. (Repatriation)or y

2527/3 Mirte

I have made some Amendments to the diafr of the Jubrum to the Sofs.

VIETNAMESE REFUGEES IN HONG KONG

1.

D

28)

See (30)

2013.

Thank you for sending me this evening your minute of today's date about the forcible repatriation of Vietnamese refugees.

2.

I do not know whether it was by accident or design that the draft minute to the Secretary of State omits to mention our legal obligations. You may however like to consider whether to recommend to Lord Belstead to insert after paragraph 4 of the draft, a new paragraph in the following terms:-

3.

"5. The last point is important because we should ourselves be guilty of inhuman conduct contrary

to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights if we sent refugees back to Vietnam, and at the same time had reason to believe that the Vietnamese Government would fail to respect their human rights."

If this passage were inserted the present paragraph No 5 could begin with the words "It is also, however, important..."

J. Burrows

F Burrows

مر

Legal Counsellor

18 March 1983

cc: Mr Donald

PS/Lord Belstead

SEA Dept UN Dept

HKGP ḥowe

одиной

18/3

CONFIDENTIAL

tikk 243/5 нкк

No. 51

***VEJ 4 TË (31) NÚ

DESK

INDCA

2 2 MAR 1983

FA

CH22B