TNAG-1800-FCO40-2560-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-refugees-principle-of-first-asylum-1988 — Page 118

CONFIDENTIAL

Vietnamese Asylum Seekers:

Current Perspective for solutions

(Informal Note from UNHCR) HLD 243/11

44

I. Introduction

1.

The refugee scene in South East Asia is approaching a watershed. A

complex mix of facts and perceptions have brought about changes in the

thinking and the attitudes towards the asylum seekers. As a result, the

humanitarian practice of asylum has been compromised in some areas.

2.

This informal Note purports to address the concerns that underlie these

changes. It seeks to identify, in earnest, the choices which may exist for

the governments of the ASEAN member states (and Hong Kong) to avoid a departure from their humanitarian record of the past. More than anything,

such choice means a constructive engagement in continued partnership with

-

the UNHCR in the process of search for humane and acceptable solutions and

alternatives.

3

This search has already begun.

Certain progress has been made; some

obstacles are yet to be overcome. In providing a succinct account of the

state of consultations with the countries of resettlement and the countries of

origin, this Note tries to define the broad lines around which a new

international consensus may have to be formed.

4. The point of departure is to maintain the structures that already exist. Undeniably, there are signs of some erosion in the commitments made in 1979.

This erosion should not be allowed to spread and lead to a disintegration of

structures which have performed over the years with a high measure of

success. The continued strength of these structures could best be displayed

in statistical terms. Departures for resettlement in 1987

a year marked

with increased arrival rates was nevertheless 40% higher than the rate of

arrivals during the same year. Globally, of the 1,170,000 Indochinese who sought asylum in the ASEAN region (and Hong Kong) during the last thirteen

years, 1,050,000 or 90% have indeed been resettled leaving 145,000 */

region-wide who still await durable solutions.

*/ Figure includes increments due to birth rate.