TNAG-1523-FCO40-2087-Hong-Kong-Parliamentary-Sub-Committee-on-Race-Relations-and--1986 — Page 84

CONFIDENTIAL

8858 1

-

OCMIAN 8858

CONFIDENTIAL

DD 20170OZ GEMIS

FM FCOLN TO GEMIS

201100Z JAN

GRS 500

CONFIDENTIAL

FM FCO

TO DESKBY 201700Z UKMIS GENEVA

TELNO 16

OF 20110OZ JANUARY 86

AND TO IMMEDIATE HONG KONG

22

HKK 243/1

RECEIVED IN REGISTRY

2 1 JAN 1986

DESK OFFICER

INDEX

STAY

PA

ting Taken

HONG KONG TELNO 175 AND YOUR TELNO 9: UNHCR RESETTLEMENT MEETING

1.

FOLLOWING IS BRIEFING ON HONG KONG ISSUES FOR 21 JANUARY

MEETING. WE UNDERSTAND THAT UND ARE BRIEFING YOU ON OTHER

MATTERS MENTIONED IN UNHCR'S LETTER OF 8 JANUARY AND BRIEFING

NOTES.

UK OFFTAKE

2.

IN 1985 UK ACCEPTED 44 REFUGEES FROM HONG KONG FOR

RESETTLEMENT. ALMOST ALL OF THESE LEFT IN NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER

UNDER THE RELAXED CRITERIA FOR FAMILY REUNION ANNOUNCED BY THE

HOME SECRETARY IN SEPTEMBER.

3.

THE RATE OF RESETTLEMENT FROM HONG KONG TO UK SHOULD FROM

THIS MONTH REACH OUR PROJECTED MONTHLY RATE OF 40, NOW THAT OUR RESETTLEMENT PROCEDURES INVOLVING VOLUNTARY AGENCIES, HMG AND HONG KONG ARE IN PLACE. (DEFENSIVE) THE FIGURE OF 40 WAS CHOSEN

AS THIS IS THE MAXIMUM MONTHLY NUMBER OF REFUGEES THAT THE

VOLUNTARY AGENCIES IN UK CAN HANDLE EFFECTIVELY.

4.

WE ESTIMATE THAT ABOUT 420 REFUGEES IN HONG KONG WILL

QUALIFY UNDER THE RELAXED CRITERIA. (DEFENSIVE) WE SHOULD

ACCEPT ALL THOSE WHO QUALIFY UNDER THE CRITERIA.

5.

HMG ARE PREPARED TO CONSIDER ACCEPTING, IN ADDITION TO

THE FAMILY REUNION CASES, FURTHER LIMITED NUMBERS OF VIETNAMESE

REFUGEES FROM HONG KONG. A DECISION ON THIS WILL BE TAKEN IN THE

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