TNAG-1801-FCO40-2561-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-refugees-resettlement-in-the-UK-1988 — Page 60

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following reasons:

(i) the absolute size of the problem to be tackled in Hong Kong

has sharply increased, from 9,700 in March to over 15,000

today;

(ii)

(iii)

the "critical mass" needed to secure generous matching bids from others is correspondingly higher;

so too is the assistance we should be ready to give if we are to satisfy Hong Kong opinion and the international community that we are meeting our responsibilities. On both counts I think 1,000 is an absolute minimum: anything less would be

regarded as derisory. The psychological moment to put our

offer on the table is now;

(iv) essentially we are now dealing with a finite rather than an

open-ended problem. The Home Office's fears that a new resettlement commitment would constitute a powerful "pull

factor" can be put at rest since only those boat people

already in Hong Kong or the small proportion subsequently

"screened in" as genuine refugees would qualify;

6.

(v)

(i)

(ii)

there may also be some attraction for Ministers in a commitment which effectively ran throughout the remaining

life of the present Parliament.

The categories which I have chosen need a word of explanation:

We now

where family reunion cases are concerned, 468 individuals

were identified who met the established criteria.

believe that a further 200 in the camps meet the same family

reunion criteria; either they came to light subsequently or

they arrived in Hong Kong after an arbitrary cut-off date;

the "UK refusal cases" are a group of about 100 refugees to whom, at some point in the past, an offer of admission to the UK was made. For a variety of reasons, often obscure, they did not take up the offer; but as a result they have

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