TNAG-1532-FCO40-2096-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-refugees-closed-camp-policy-1986 — Page 19

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CONFIDENTIAL

UNHCR EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE (EXCOM): GENEVA, 6-13 OCTOBER

BRIEF NO 6(h)

Background

General

VIETNAMESE REFUGEES IN HONG KONG

1.

8,500 Vietnamese boat refugees are in Hong Kong

awaiting resettlement, the largest number of any place of

first asylum in South East Asia. They are spending increasingly long periods in Hong Kong because of diminishing resettlement prospects; Hong Kong's rate of

resettlement is the lowest in the region. 648 of the refugees have been there more than 3 years, representing by far the highest proportion of "long-stayers" in the region.

Recent Action by HMG

2.

1985 September

Paper

for

The Government announced in (SCORRI) a White

published in

that HMG will accept

resettlement some 500 Vietnamese refugees, almost all from

who have Hong Kong,

relatives in the

who UK but

would

normally fall outside the Home Office's criteria for family

reunion. Most of the refugees in

in Hong Kong who qualify

have now arrived.

3.

Denmark

To maximise the effect of this decision, we have mounted a diplomatic campaign to press other countries to resettle more refugees from Hong Kong. Many countries, including Australia (200 refugees), Canada (500), (50), Finland (80), the Netherlands (80), New Zealand (20), Norway (about 75) and Sweden (100) have offered a total of

over 1,000 new resettlement places.

CONFIDENTIAL