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Miss Slater or (429)
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Your reference
P Millett Esq
UND
FCO
HID 243/8
Our reference
UN 243/518/1
Dear Peter,
Date 27 June 1988
VIETNAMESE REFUGEES IN HONG KONG: RESETTLEMENT
X
306
1. The last sentence of paragraph 3 of Copenhagen telno 169 suggested that UNHCR had not given the Danish authorities details of their priorities for the resettlement of Indo-Chinese refugees.
2. In their document "Assessment of Global Refugee Resettlement Needs and Priorities 1988" presented to the main resettlement countries in March, UNHCR recommend that the first resettlement priority for Indo-Chinese refugees should be long-stayers and within this category higher priority should be given to long- stayer Vietnamese refugees detained in closed camps in Hong Kong and holding centres in Thailand. This was confirmed at a meeting on 25 March when UNHCR said that they were trying to make Hong Kong's long-stayers their first priority. (My letter UN 243/10 of 31 March (not to all) refers). Mr Staur of the Danish Mission was present at this meeting.
3.
On receipt of Copenhagen telno 169 I spoke to Mr Issaka, the Head of UNHCR's Resettlement Service, who told me that the Danes would not agree to allocate places to anywhere except Turkey. Of the Danish quota of 250 places, 175 were for Iranians in Turkey, 50 for Rescue at Sea (RASRO) and 12 had been used in 1987 so the 1988 quota was virtually fully committed. Mr Issaka said that he was in Denmark a few weeks ago when it had been made clear to him that the Danes could do nothing further for 1988.
4. On the credit side, Mr Issaka said that Norway had accepted UNHCR's priority for Hong Kong: out of the 300 places for Vietnamese refugees in the Norwegian quota 150 were for Hong Kong A Norwegian selection mission would visit Hong Kong in August.
Yours sincerely, Delia.
DJ Walker (Miss)
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