TNAG-1795-FCO40-2555-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-refugees-repatriation--including-Opera-1988 — Page 295

CONFIDENTIAL

075423 MOLIAN 4327

AGREED FOR THE REPATRIATION OF THE SCREENED OUT AND THE RESETTLEMENT

OF THE SCREENED IN. (FOR THAILAND THIS WOULD BE SEEN TO INVOLVE A WEAKENING OF THEIR CURRENT DETERRENT MEASURES.) ACCORDINGLY ASEAN REPRESENTATIVES WERE KEEN TO PUSH AHEAD WITH A MULTI-LATERAL APPROACH LEADING EVENTUALLY TO AN INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE WHERE ALL CONCERNED WOULD MAKE OR RENEW COMMITMENTS TO COPE WITH THE INFLUX.

14. UNHCR APPARENTLY SUPPORT THIS APPROACH AS BEING IN LINE WITH THEIR 'GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE' AND 'WIDER HUMANITARIAN APPROACH''.

1

15. WHILE WE CAN SEE SOME BENEFIT IN GOING ALONG WITH THIS APPROACH, WE HAVE NO INTENTION OF LOSING SIGHT OF OUR PARTICULAR INTERESTS AND CONCERNS, INCLUDING THE DETERRENT VALUE OF EARLY REPATRIATION. MOREOVER WE WOULD SEE MERIT IN SEEKING A SOLUTION BILATERALLY WITH VIETNAM AS A ROLE-MODEL FOR A SOLUTION TO THE WIDER PROBLEM OF

BOAT PEOPLE ELSEWHERE IN SE ASIA AS THE CHANGE IN THE NATURE OF THE OUT-FLOW ARRIVING IN HONG KONG IS MORE MARKED, AND THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN REFUGEES AND NON-REFUGEES POTENTIALLY MORE CLEAR-CUT, NEGOTIATIONS WITH VIETNAM MAY PROVE TO BE ON FIRMER FOOTING INTERNATIONALLY. WE SHALL BE HAPPY TO CONTINUE TO COMPARE NOTES INFORMALLY WITH ASEAN FROM TIME TO TIME, BUT OBVIOUSLY WE HAVE OUR OWN ROW TO HOE.

FORD

OUR

YYYY

ΜΑΙΝ

126

.VIETNAMESE REFUGEES IN HK

LIMITED

HKD

SEAD

UND

LEGAL ADVISERS

WED

SED

PUSD

E CD (I)

E CD (E)

DISTRIBUTION

129

SPD

FED

NEWS

PS

PS/LORD GLENARTHUR

PS MR EGGAR

PS/MRS CHALKER

PS/PUS

MR GILLMORE

MR SLATER

MR MCLAREN

PAGE

4

CONFIDENTIAL