TNAG-1794-FCO40-2554-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-refugees-repatriation--including-Opera-1988 — Page 105

CONFIDENTIAL

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MDHIAN 6695

CONFIDENTIAL

RECEIVE

7. Y

FM HONG KONG

11 JUL 1988

TO DESKBY 11120OZ FCO

TELNO 2658

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OF 11100OZ JULY 88

AND TO IMMEDIATE HANOI

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INFO PRIORITY BANGKOK, KUALA LUMPUR, SINGAPORE, MANILA INFO PRIORITY JAKARTA, BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, WASHINGTON

INFO PRIORITY CANBERRA, OTTAWA, TOKYO, UKMIS GENEVA, PEKING

478

YOUR TELNO TOT: VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE IN HONG KONG : VIETNAMESE REQUEST FOR TALKS.

1. WE LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR SEPARATE TELEGRAM ON STRATEGY FOR THE TALKS. MEANWHILE IT MIGHT BE HELPFUL IF I SET OUT HOW WE SEE THE

AIMS AND LIMITATIONS FROM THE HONG KONG POINT OF VIEW.

2. I FULLY UNDERSTAND MINISTERS' CONCERN THAT THE TALKS SHOULD BE HANDLED WITHIN THE WIDER CONTEXT OF INDO-CHINESE PROBLEMS, AND THE RISKS OF OUR APPEARING TO AROUSE UNDUE EXPECTATIONS, EITHER WITH THE VIETNAMESE OR THE MEDIA. WITH THIS IN MIND I SUGGEST THAT OUR OBJECTIVES FOR THIS EXPLORATORY ROUND SHOULD BE:

A) TO IMPRESS ON THE VIETNAMESE THE SERIOUSNESS OF THE PROBLEM OF

BOATE PEOPLE FOR HONG KONG:

B) TO PRESS FURTHER FOR THEIR COOPERATION IN STOPPING THE OUTFLOW:

C) TO IMPRESS ON THE VIETNAMESE THEIR RESPONSIBILITY TO TAKE

ECONOMIC MIGRANTS BACK AND TO EXPLORE WAYS IN WHICH THIS COULD BE

DONE.

3. ON (B) WE WOULD URGE THE VIETNAMESE TO GIVE MORE PUBLICITY TO OUR NEW POLICY AND WOULD COME READY WITH PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS FOR LINES TO BE TAKEN ON THE RADIO ETC. WE WOULD EMPHASISE THE POLITICAL PROBLEMS WHICH THE OUTFLOW WAS CAUSING FOR VIETNAM'S IMAGE IN THE REGION. ON (C) WE SHOULD CERTAINLY MAKE CLEAR THAT WE WERE TALKING ABOUT INVOLUNTARY AS WELL AS VOLUNTARY RETURNS. I KNOW THAT THE

VIETNAMESE HAVE TOLD UNHCR THAT THEY ARE ONLY PREPARED TO CONTEMPLATE A VOLUNTARY SCHEME BUT WE MUST ARGUE THAT WE NEED TO

DISCUSS ALL VIETNAMESE WHO HAVE LEFT VIETNAM AND ENTERED HONG KONG

ILLEGALLY. WE ARE MUCH ENCOURAGED BY THE FACT THAT FAEEUDDIN AHMED

ROBUSTLY TOLD THE VIETNAMESE THAT THEY MUST BE PREPARED TO ACCEPT

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