TNAG-1790-FCO40-2550-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-refugees-resettlement-in-third-countri-1988 — Page 261

(3) in LM 2/87 to SRD 403/2/1/C

Mr Leif Erling Halvorsen Consul-General of Norway Rm 1401, AIA Building

1 Stubbs Road

Hong Kong.

9 November 1987

Dear Mr Halvorsen,

I refer to your meeting with the Secretary for Security on 20 October 1987 and our subsequent telephone conversation concerning the discrepancy between our resettlement statistics and those supplied to you by the UNHCR.

I am attaching a copy of the two sets of statistics for your reference. In fact, the figures in our respective statistics show different stages of the resettlement process. Our figures give the number of refugees who have actually left Hong Kong, whereas those given to you by the UNHCR show the number of refugees who are still in Hong Kong being processed for resettlement. The sum of the two sets of figures shows the total number of refugees accepted by the resettlement countries.

Your Government has accepted a total of 44 refugees from Hong Kong in 1987. The intake is similar to that of Sweden which has accepted 43 refugees (excluding ship-rescue cases). We are most grateful to your country for continuing to resettle refugees from Hong Kong and in particular for your acceptance of long-stayers and handicapped cases. We would however greatly appreciate it if your government could, as mentioned in Mr Jeaffreson's letter of 27 October, consider taking a further number of hard-to-settle cases from Hong Kong.

Yours sincerely,

(NJ French )

for Secretary for Security