CONFIDENTIAL
064034 MDLOAN 4536
CONFIDENTIAL
FM FCO
TO PRIORITY BANGKOK
TELNO 143
OF 111815Z APRIL 88
INFO PRIORITY HANOI, UKMIS GENEVA, OTTAWA, WASHINGTON,TOKYO
INFO PRIORITY CANBERRA, JAKARTA, KUALA LUMPUR, MANILA, SINGAPORE INFO PRIORITY BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, HONG KONG
INDO-CHINESE REFUGEES: ICG MEETING, OTTAWA 7-8 APRIL
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SUMMARY.
A DIFFICULT AND AT TIMES ACRIMONIOUS MEETING WITH MAJOR AND
LARGELY UNRESOLVED, DIFFERENCES BETWEEN AUSTRALIA AND US OVER HANDLING OF RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN THAILAND. BUT A USEFUL
MEETING FOR US, WITH LARGE MEASURE OF AGREEMENT ON NEED FOR TACKLING PROBLEM AT SOURCE, I.E. VIETNAM. PARTICIPANTS UNLIKELY TO OPPOSE TOUGHER DETERRENT MEASURES FOR THOSE WHO DO NOT MEET REFUGEE CRITERIA. ON HONG KONG THEY MADE IT CLEAR THEY ARE VERY
UNLIKELY TO INCREASE THEIR EFFORTS ON RESETTLEMENT UNLESS UK
FIRST IMPROVES ITS PERFORMANCE.
2. DETAIL.
THE LATEST MEETING OF THE ICG TOOK PLACE IN OTTAWA ON 7-8 APRIL. UK AGAIN ATTENDED AS OBSERVERS. THE MEETING WAS LONGER THAN NORMAL TO ALLOW A FULL DISCUSSION OF HOW TO RESPOND TO RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN THAILAND (BANGKOK TELNO 168 OF 17 MARCH). THE US WAS CONCERNED THAT THE THAIS WERE CONTINUING TO QUOTE PUSH OFF UNQUOTE NEW ARRIVALS, WITH CONSEQUENT LOSS OF LIFE, AND THAT THE NEW HARDLINE THAI POLICY OF EFFECTIVELY DENYING NEW ARRIVALS FIRST ASYLUM MIGHT BE COPIED BY OTHERS IN THE REGION, THEREBY PUTTING AT RISK THE POLICY OF FIRST ASYLUM ITSELF. THEY WERE THEREFORE LOOKING TO THE GROUP TO AGREE ON A PUBLIC STATEMENT REAFFIRMING THEIR COMMITMENT TO EXISTING MEASURES FOR DEALING WITH BOAT PEOPLE AND URGING THE THAI GOVERNMENT TO MAINTAIN FIRST ASYLUM. THERE WAS A STRONG SUSPICION AMONG MEMBERS OF SOME DELEGATIONS THAT PRESS ARTICLES WHICH APPEARED IN THE RUN-UP TO THE MEETING, E.G IN THE WASHINGTON POST, MELBOURNE AGE AND THE GUARDIAN, MAY HAVE BEEN ENCOURAGED WITH THIS OBJECTIVE IN MIND.
3. THE AUSTRALIANS WHO HAD INCLUDED SMITH, THEIR AMBASSADOR TO THAILAND, IN THEIR DELEGATION, WERE FIRMLY OPPOSED TO ANY SUCH
IN PART THIS WAS BECAUSE THEY WERE AT PRESENT
APPROACH.
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CONFIDENTIAL
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