TNAG-1420-FCO40-1903-Hong-Kong-Parliamentary-Sub-Committee-on-Race-Relations-and--1985 — Page 156

CONFIDENTIAL

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MANY OF THE COMMITTEE'S RECOMMENDATIONS.

PART I

WHILE ACKNOWLEDGING THAT BRITAIN'S RECORD IN ACCEPTING

VIETNAMESE REFUGEES WAS A GOOD ONE, THE COMMITTEE MADE A NUMBER

OF RECOMMENDATIONS DESIGNED TO REVIVE THE INTERNATIONAL

RESETTLEMENT PROGRAMME: TO REDUCE THE BURDEN ON HONG KONG AND TO

REUNITE THOSE IN THE CAMPS WITH THEIR FAMILIES HERE. THE

GOVERNMENT WILL TAKE ACTION ON THESE POINTS. THE FAMILY REUNIONTM

CRITERIA FOR VIETNAMESE AT PRESENT IN CAMPS IN COUNTRIES OF

TEMPORARY ASYLUM IS TO BE RELAXED RESULTING IN ABOUT 500

VIETNAMESE REFUGEES, MOST OF THEM IN HONG KONG, BEING ELIGIBLE TO

COME HERE. THE GOVERNMENT IS ALSO PREPARED TO CONSIDER ACCEPTING

FURTHER LIMITED NUMBERS OF VIETNAMESE REFUGEES FROM HONG KONG.

BUT A DECISION ON THIS WILL BE TAKEN IN THE LIGHT OF THE

WILLINGNESS SHOWN BY OTHER RESETTLEMENT COUNTRIES TO RESPOND TO

HONG KONG'S NEEDS AND OF ALL THE CIRCUMSTANCES AT THE TIME. THE

HONG KONG GOVERNMENT WILL ALSO BE PREPARED TO CONSIDER ACCEPTING

FOR RESETTLEMENT IN HONG KONG A LIMITED NUMBER OF ETHNIC CHINESE

IF THE RESETTLEMENT FORMS PART OF A PACKAGE AIMED AT REDUCING

DRASTICALLY THE SIZE OF HONG KONG'S VIETNAMESE REFUGEE POPULATION

AND RESETTLING ALL THOSE WHOSE STAY IN CAMPS HAS BEEN PROLONGED.

THE FCO WILL ACTIVELY PRESS OTHER RESETTLEMENT COUNTRIES TO TAKE

ADDITONAL REFUGEES FROM HONG KONG IN THE LIGHT OF THESE

DECISIONS.

THE GOVERNMENT HAS NOT, HOWEVER, BEEN ABLE TO ACCEPT IN

PRESENT CIRCUMSTANCES THE SELECT COMMITTEE'S RECOMMENDATION THAT

THE CLOSED CAMP POLICY BE ENDED. THE GOVERNMENT BELIEVES THAT

THIS POLICY IS THE MOST HUMANE MEANS OF DISCOURAGING FURTHER

LARGE-SCALE ARRIVALS OF REFUGEES FROM VIETNAM, AND HAS BEEN

EFFECTIVE IN ACHIEVING THIS AIM. IN ITS VIEW IF THE CLOSED CAMPS

WERE ABOLISHED THE LIKELY CONSEQUENCE WOULD BE THAT HONG KONG

WOULD AGAIN BECOME THE MAGNET FOR PEOPLE FROM VIETNAM THAT IT WAS

BETWEEN 1979 AND 1981, CAUSING AN UNACCEPTABLE AND UNMANAGEABLE

RISE IN THE POPULATION OF THE CAMPS IN HONG KONG.

.ART II

IN PART II THE SELECT COMMITTEE ANALYSED THE POSITION OF

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CONFIDENTIAL