TNAG-1790-FCO40-2550-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-refugees-resettlement-in-third-countri-1988 — Page 4

Fco 40/2550

CONFIDENTIAL

MDHOAN

.ε

124177 77

THEY ARE GENUINE REFUGEES. THE RESULTS OF SCREENING SO FAR INDICATE THAT ONLY A VERY SMALL PROPORTION OF ARRIVALS ARE LIKELY TO QUALIFY AS REFUGEES (38 OUT OF SOME 400 SCREENED SO FAR HAVE BEEN GIVEN REFUGEE STATUS). THE FIGURE OF 15,000 IS THUS A VIRTUALLY FINITE ONE.

5. PRIOR TO THE INTRODUCTION OF SCREENING, ONE POWERFUL ARGUMENT AGAINST A MAJOR NEW RESETTLEMENT EFFORT WAS THAT THIS WOULD ACT AS A PULL FACTOR WHICH WOULD ENCOURAGE EVEN GREATER NUMBER OF DEPARTURES FROM VIETNAM. THE PUTTING IN PLACE OF A FAIR AND EFFECTIVE SCREENING MECHANISM, AND THE EARLY START WHICH WE EXPECT TO MAKE WITH THE REPATRIATION OF THOSE WHO WISH TO RETURN TO VIETNAM, SHOULD SERVE AS AN EFFECTIVE DETERRENT TO FURTHER LARGE SCALE DEPARTURES. CONCERN ABOUT THE PULL FACTOR IS THEREFORE NO LONGER RELEVANT IN THIS CONTEXT.

6. MANY OF THE 15,000 REFUGEES IN HONG KONG HAVE BEEN LIVING IN CAMPS IN THE TERRITORY FOR A VERY CONSIDERABLE PERIOD. THE HUMANITARIAN CASE FOR A NEW INTERNATIONAL RESETTLEMENT EFFORT IS SELF EVIDENT.

IT HAS BEEN VERY WIDELY ACCEPTED SINCE THE GENEVA CONFERENCE OF 1979, THAT THE BOAT PEOPLE PROBLEM IS A MATTER OF INTERNATIONAL CONCERN AND ONE WHICH THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE

HAS THE RESPONSIBILITY TO SOLVE. THE DIFFICULTIES FACED BY HONG KONG ARE ACUTE AND ARE ONES FOR WHICH HMG HAS A PARTICULAR CONCERN, GIVEN OUR RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE TERRITORY.

BUT THE SCALE OF THE PROBLEM IN HONG KONG MEANS THAT ONLY ACTION ON AN INTERNATIONAL SCALE CAN TACKLE IT EFFECTIVELY. BRITAIN ALONE WOULD BE UNABLE TO MAKE MORE THAN A MODEST IMPACT. THAT IS WHY, IN ANNOUNCING OUR READINESS IN PRINCIPLE TO TAKE AN ADDITIONAL 1,000 REFUGEES FROM HONG KONG, WE HAVE SOUGHT TO MAKE IT CLEAR TO OTHER GOVERNMENTSD THAT WE MUST BE SURE THAT COMMITMENTS TO TAKE SUBSTANTIAL ADDITIONAL NUMBERS FROM HONG KONG WILL BE FORTHCOMING FROM THE INTERNATIONAL CUMMUNITY BEFORE WE CAN CONFIRM OUR DECISION. WE HOPE THAT GOVERNMENTS WILL RESPOND GENEROUGLY AS THEY HAVE DONE IN THE PAST, AS PART OF AN INTERNATIONAL EFFORT COMMENSURATE WITH THE SCALE OF THE PROBLEM IN HONG KONG. 8. (FOR OTTAWA) WE AGREE THAT IN THE LIGHT OF THE DECISION ALREADY TAKEN BY THE CANADIANS, IT WOULD BE INAPPROPRIATE FOR YOU TO SPEAK ALONG THE LINES OF PARAS 3-7 ABOVE. YOU SHOULD THANK THE CANADIANS FOR THEIR GENEROUS OFFER AND SAY THAT IT WILL BE A VALUABLE BOOST TO THE WIDER INTERNATIONAL EFFORT WHICH WE ARE

ADVOCATING.

9. (FOR WELLINGTON) WE HAVE SEEN OF REPORTS THAT NEW ZEALAND HAS DECIDED TO DOUBLE ITS INTAKE. GRATEFUL FOR CONFIRMATION OF THIS.

2

PAGE

CONFIDENTIAL