TNAG-1633-FCO40-2249-Ministerial-visits-from-the-UK-to-Hong-Kong--including-visit-1988 — Page 71

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FM HONG KONG

TO DESKBY 20090OZ FCO

TELNO 3538

OF 19170OZ SEPTEMBER 87

AND TO DESKBY

20010OZ

MANILA

AND TO DESKBY 21010OZ PEKING

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100365 MDHIAN 3702

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FINAL PART OF FOUR

Q.

(MARGARET NG, INDEPENDENT JOURNALIST): SORRY, I AM A BIT

COULD CONCERNED ABOUT THE BREAKDOWN OF INFORMATION AND ALL THAT.

FIRST APPROACH TO YOU TELL US WHEN THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT MADE THE

THE HANOI GOVERNMENT ABOUT THESE VIETNAMESE REFUGEES WHEN YOU SAID THERE WAS OUTDATED PEICE OF INFORMATION, WHEN DID YOU START TO MAKE THAT APPROACH?

A:

I CAN'T GIVE YOU AN ABSOLUTE DATE. THE IMPORTANT THING IS THAT WE IN FACT MAINTAIN CONTACT AND HAVE DONE FOR YEARS. I KNOW OF NO

DATE IN MIND.

Q.

AM

(MARGARET NG): YES, PERHAPS I SHOULD MAKE MYSELF CLEAR WHY I CONCERNED. BECAUSE THE QUESTION WAS ASKED OF THE HONG KONG ADMINISTRATION IN LEGCO ABOUT WHETHER AN APPROACH HAD BEEN MADE

'NO, WITH THE HANOI GOVERNMENT AND WE WERE TOLD QUITE CLEARLY NO APPROACH HAS YET BEEN MADE' SO EITHER IT CAN BE A PIECE OF OUT-DATED INFORMATION OR WE ARE BEING DELIBERATELY KEPT IN THE DARK. THAT IS WHY I AM ASKING YOU THE DATE.

A:

YOU ARE NOT DELIBERATELY BEING KEPT IN THE DARK. I CAN'T PROVIDE A SPECIFIC DATE BECAUSE WE HAVE BEEN MAINTAINING CONTACT WITH THE VIETNAMESE AUTHORITIES ON A WHOLE RANGE OF ISSUES FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS, AND WE'VE BEEN DISCUSSING, AS I HAVE SAID, FOR SOME TIME WITH OTHER COUNTRIES AND WITH THE UNHCR LONG-TERM

. SOLUTIONS TO THIS PARTICULAR PROBLEM AND WE HAVE INTENSIFIED OUR CONTACTS WITH THE VIETNAMESE AUTHORITIES ON THE ISSUE OF THEIR REFUGEES AND WE HAVE DIRECTLY BY DOING SO WE HAVE DIRECTLY SOUGHT THEIR VIEWS ON THE WHOLE ISSUE, INCLUDING THE ISSUE OF

REPATRIATION.

(MARGARET NG): WELL, IF SO, COULD YOU EXPLAIN WHY WE WERE TOLD NO APPROACH HAD BEEN MADE?

Q.

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