TNAG-1883-FCO40-2674-Visits-by-Lord-Glenarthur--Minister-of-State-for-Foreign-and-1989 — Page 109

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MDLIAN 7802

DRAFTING PROCESS. LORD GLENARTHUR WAS HAPPY TO GIVE THIS ASSURANCE.

WIVES AND WIDOWS OF WAR VETERANS

4.

JOHN SWAINE SPOKE OF THE CASES OF 28 LADIES WHO HAD APPEALED TO OMELCO. HE REFERRED TO THE STATEMENT MADE IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS BY THE HOME SECRETARY ON 23 APRIL 1986. OF THE 28 LADIES WHO WERE NOW APPEALING TO LOMELCO, 18 WERE MARRIED TO BRITISH CITIZENS WHO WERE STILL ALIVE AND THUS APPEARED TO QUALIFY AUTOMATICALLY FOR THE RIGHT OF SETTLEMENT. A FURTHER 7 WERE WIDOWS WHO, IF THEIR HUSBANDS WERE STILL ALIVE, WOULD SIMILARLY QUALIFY. OMELCO WERE CURRENTLY GATHERING TOGETHER FURTHER DETAILS ABOUT THE CASES. WHAT WAS WANTED FOR THE TIME BEING WAS SOME GENERAL ASSURANCE THAT, IF HMG COULD NOT PROVIDE CITIZENSHIP FOR THESE 28 OUTRIGHT, THEY WOULD AT LEAST BE ASSURED OF BEING GRANTED THE RIGHT OF SETTLEMENT IF THEY CHOSE TO TAKE THIS UP AT SOME TIME IN THE FUTURE. IT NEEDED TO BE BORNE IN MIND THAT THEY WERE ELDERLY AND MANY WERE INFIRM. THE CHANCES OF ANY OF THEM ACTUALLY WISHING TO TAKE UP THE RIGHT OF SETTLEMENT WERE THEREFORE NOT GREAT. AS A SEPARATE QUESTION, SWAINE ASKED WHETHER ANY OF THE 28 WHO TOOK UP THE RIGHT OF SETTLEMENT IN THE UK WOULD BE

ABLE TO REGISTER FOR BENEFITS.

5.

LORD GLENARTHUR ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THE NUMBERS INVOLVED WERE VERY SMALL. IT MIGHT BE POSSIBLE FOR US TO HELP IN INDIVIDUAL CASES BY USING THE FLEXIBILITY PROVIDED FOR IN THE IMMIGRATION RULES.

WE WOULD NEED FULLER DETAILS OF THE CASES. HE WOULD THEN ENSURE THAT THEY WERE LOOKED AT CAREFULLY, CASE BY CASE. AS FOR BENEFITS, SOME WERE AUTOMATIC, BUT OTHERS NEEDED TO BE LOOKED AT ON A CASE BY CASE BASIS. LYDIA DUNN SAID THAT OMELCO COULD PROVIDE THE DETAILS VERY

SOON. AN EARLY RESPONSE FROM HMG WAS NEEDED.

VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE (VBPS)

6. RITA FAN SAID THAT THE PROBLEM WAS GEETING BIGGER DAY BY DAY, PROVOKING STRONG FEELINGS AMONG LOCAL PEOPLE. THERE HAD BEEN HIGH HOPES THAT THE UK WOULD HELP: BUT THE RESPONSE OVER RESETTLEMENT HAD BEEN DISAPPOINTING. THE LOCAL FEELING WAS THAT THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR SOLVING THE PROBLEM LAY WITH THE UK AS HONG KONG'S SOVEREIGN STATE. THE CONDITIONS ON OUR LATEST OFFER MUST THEREFORE BE REMOVED. ALL 15,000 PEOPLE SHOULD BE RESETTLED FROM HONG KONG WITHIN THREE YEARS. THE UK HAD TO TAKE THE INITIATIVE. DR. LEONG CHE-HUNG COULD FORESEE INCREASING PROBLEMS, AS MORE VBPS ARRIVED. FOR THOSE ELIGIBLE

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