TNAG-1536-FCO40-2100-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-refugees-resettlement-in-third-countri-1986 — Page 53

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CONFIDENTIAL

7. HRONICALLY MANY OF THE P3 CASES WILL EVENTUALLY QUALIFY FOR IMMIGRATION TO THE UNITED STATES BECAUSE THEY HAVE

RELATIVES THERE, WHO IN THE PASSAGE OF TIME, WILL BE ABLE TO ACT AS SPONSORS. HOWEVER THIS WILL TAKE TIME, POSSIBLY UP TO TEN YEARS.

THE USCG HERE PROPOSED TO THE RAY PANEL THAT SINCE THESE REFUGEES WILL EVENTUALLY GO TO THE UNITED STATES MIT HAS FOOLISH TO FORCE

THEM TO WANT HERE AND BECOME MORE DIFFICULT TO HINTEGRATE WHEN

THEY DO EVENTUALLY QUALIFY AS IMMIGRANTS. WE HAVE ASKED WHETHER

HIIT WOULD BE POSSIBLE FOR THE AMERICANS TO DEVISE A SCHEME WHHICH

WOULD TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION THEIR LENGTH OF STAY IN HONG KONG AWAITING RESETTLEMENT, THE FACT THAT THEY MEET SOME (BUT NOT ALL) OF THE REFUGEE CRITERIA, AND THE FACT THAT AT SOME STAGE THEY WILL QUALIFY AS #MMIGRANTS. THE OBJECTANE WOULD BE TO ENABLE THEM

TO BE ACCEPTED FOR RESETTLEMENT WITHOUT THE US GOVERNMENT HAVING TO

CHANGE THEMR #IMMIGRATION LAW. THE USCG HERE ARE SYMPATHETIC TO THIS

MDEA BUT FEEL THAT IT WILL BE DIFFICULT TO DEVELOP MOMENTUM FOR

THIS PROPOSAL HAN WASHINGTON.

8. AS REGARDS P4 CASES, ALL WHO QUALIFY HAVE BEEN TAKEN. THE

AMERICANS TAKE A VERY RELAXED LINE WITH EVEN FAMILIES OF MILITARY

PERSONNEL AND THINK THAT THEY HAVE TAKEN ALL WHO HAVE OR MIGHT QUALIFY. AGAIN, VERY FEW MIN THIS CATEGORY ARRIVE WIN HONG KONG NOW.

9 AS REGARDS P5 CASES, THESE ARE THE SAME AS P3 CASES, EXCEPT THAT THE FAMILY RELATIONSHIP HIS MORE DISTANT. THE SAME ARGUMENTS

APPLY TO P5 AS APPLY TO P3 CASES.

10. AS REGARDS P6 CASES, THE AMERICANS HAVE STOPPED CONSIDERING REFUGEES #N THE GENERALLY HUMANITARIAN CATEGORY WHO ARRIVED HIN FIRST ASLYUM COUNTRIES AFTER 30 APRIL 1982. THIMS ADMINISTRATIVE DECHISMON COULD BE RELAXED BUT THE STAFF #N THE USCG ARGUE THAT EVEN IF THEY WERE TO RELAX THIS ADMINSTRATIVE DECHISMON AND CONSIDER A LARGE NUMBER OF THE CLOSED CENTRE REFUGEES (EXCLUDING THE NORTHERNERS) THEY STILL FEEL THAT BARELY 10 PERCENT WOULD MEET THE INS REFUGEE CRITERIA. THEY POINT OUT THAT THIS WOULD MEAN THAT, AT MOST, 100 REFUGEES MIGHT LEAVE HONG KONG. BUT THE RELAXATION OF THIS ADMINISTRATIVE CUT-OFF WOULD ACT AS A SIGNIFICANT PULL FACTOR. HONG KONG MIGHT FIND THAT HIT RECENNES MANY MORE ARRIVALS THAN THE 100

WHO DEPARTED.

11. # CONCLUSION WE THINK THAT THE ONLY PRODUCTIVE AVENUES FOR US TO PRESS THE AMERICANS TO DEVELOP ADMINISTRATIVE ARRANGEMENTS TO ENABLE THEM TO TAKE THE P3 AND P5 CASES. OF WE ARE SUCCESSFUL, THEN ABOUT 1600 REFUGEES COULD LEAVE HONG KONG. THIS WOULE MAKE THE EFFORT WORTHWHILE. WE DO NOT DOUBT THAT HIT WILL BE DIFFICULT TO PERSUADE THE AMERICANS TO RELAX THEIR CRITERIA.

CONFIDENTIAL - 2 –

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