TNAG-1842-FCO40-2617-House-of-Commons-Select-Committee-on-Foreign-Affairs-enquiry-1989 — Page 167

CONFIDENTIAL

FM FCO

TO DESKBY 10010OZ HONG KONG

TELNO 622

OF 091815Z MARCH 89

CONFIDENTIAL

HKB 011/3

148

020650 MDHOAN 6895

MY SECOND IPT: FAC: VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE

1. WE HAVE THE FOLLOWING COMMENTS ON THE PAPER ON VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE.

2. PARA 3: QUOTE EMIGRANTS UNQUOTE IN SECOND SENTENCE SHOULD READ QUOTE VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE ARRIVING IN THE REGION UNQUOTE. 3. PARA 4: FINAL SENTENCES ON PAGE 2 SHOULD READ QUOTE IT BECAME CLEAR THAT THE SITUATION HAD CHANGED DRAMATICALLY FROM 1975 AND

THAT MANY OF THE NEW ARRIVALS IN HONG KONG WERE NO LONGER CONSIDERED ELIGIBLE FOR RESETTLEMENT BY THE RESETTLEMENT COUNTRIES. CERTAINLY MOST OF THE BOAT PEOPLE ARRIVING IN HONG KONG NO LONGER MET THE CRITERIA OF REFUGEES UNQUOTE.

4.

PARA 5: SECOND SENTENCE SHOULD READ QUOTE THE POLICY OF ACCOMMODATING VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE IN HONG KONG PENDING THEIR RESETTLEMENT ELSEWHERE HAD NEVER BEEN POPULAR ... ETC. UNQUOTE.

PARA 7: FIRST SENTENCE, DELETE WORDS QUOTE FOLLOW THE LEAD OF THE RESETTLEMENT COUNTRIES AND UNQUOTE. THE MENTION OF THE CRITERIA FOR SCREENING SHOULD CARRY A REFERENCE TO THE 1951 UN CONVENTION

AND THE 1967 PROTOCOL ON THE STATUS OF REFUGEES.

6. MAY NOT MEAN ANYTHING TO THE FAC. WE SUGGEST IT

PARA 11: THE PHRASE QUOTE FIRST ASYLUM UNQUOTE

SHOULD BE REPLACED WITH QUOTE THE POLICY OF PERMITTING ALL

WHO ARRIVE IN HONG KONG TO LAND PENDING RESETTLEMENT ELSEWHERE UNQUOTE.

7. WE ALSO SUGGEST THAT PARA 2 SHOULD BE MOVED TO BECOME THE PENULTIMATE PARAGRAPH OF THE PAPER, UNDER A NEW HEADING

''ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS FROM CHINA''.

HOWE

YYYY

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CONFIDENTIAL