TNAG-1798-FCO40-2558-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-refugees-repatriation--including-Opera-1988 — Page 9

CONFIDENTIAL

UNITED KINGDOM MISSION

нко 24317

37-39 RUE DE VERMONT

1211 GENEVA 20

TELEPHONE 34 38 00

33 23 85

978

CT Hum Esq

Hong Kong Department

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Dear Christofler,

VIETNAM REFUGEES IN HONG KONG

1.

t.

5 October 1988

гда

nga W191

& gived its will

Ette

pla

مان

Thank you for your letter of 22 September about financial assistance to boat people voluntarily returning to Vietnam.

2.

I am afraid that my use of the phrase "bilateral assistance" (meant to imply direct assistance rather than multilateral assistance channelled through UNHCR) has caused a musunderstanding. What I intended to propose in my letter of 26 August is precisely the scheme outlined in para 4 of your tel 2478 to Hong Kong viz. assistance in kind (clothing, food or other simple items - perhaps tools?) provided by the Hong Kong authorities to the volunteer returnees. I suggest that it would be a good investment to give this modest pack of goodies to all volunteer returnees, not just the first batches.

Jous

ever

Tihan

J A Sankey

P.S. Another suggestion for Hong Kong to consider - would it be possible to move volunteers into a camp with less restrictions (or more privileges), pending their return to Vietnam. improvement in status might help to encourage more volunteers to come forward.

ET Davies Esq CMG, Hanoi

R D Clift Esq CMG, Political Adviser,

Hong Kong

Mr Williams, UND

Mr Colvin, SEAD

CONFIDENTIAL