TNAG-1529-FCO40-2093-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-refugees-general-1986 — Page 68

FW 4AAA

DSR 11C

ANNEX C

POLICY EVALUATION : AID TO INDO-CHINESE REFUGEES IN

THAILAND

Background

1.

Since the Communist take-overs in Vietnam, Cambodia

and Laos in 1975, some 1.7m Indo-Chinese have fled those

The exodus reached its peak in 1978, when

countries.

200,000 refugees arrived in Thailand alone.

No!

2.

In response to the crisis, a conference was held in

Geneva in 1979 at which the international community

resolved that there should be a world-wide sharing of the

burden, covering both resettlement and support within the

region. At that conference, the UK pledged £5 million,

together with resettlement places for 10,000 Indo-Chinese

refugees. Besides the UK's general commitment to the

principles affirmed at the conference, British interests

were directly involved through the burden placed on Hong

Kong as

by boat.

place

country of first asylum for Vietnamese fleeing

Since 1979, the UK, in common with others, has

kept up its efforts to help solve the problem of

Indo-Chinese refugees through:

(a) financial support for international and voluntary

organisations (total aid to date £12.5 million);

(b) help with the resettlement of refugees (20,000 up to

1986, with a further 14,500 integrated into Hong

Kong); and

/(c)