TNAG-1883-FCO40-2674-Visits-by-Lord-Glenarthur--Minister-of-State-for-Foreign-and-1989 — Page 113

CONFIDENTIAL

FM HONG KONG

TO PRIORITY FCO

TELNO 136

OF 12050OZ JANUARY 89

INFO PRIORITY PEKING

16

CONFIDENTIAL

156502

MDLIAN 7792

HKB 026/1

FROM PS/LORD GLENARTHUR

LORD GLENARTHUR'S VISIT TO HONG KONG: MEETING WITH EXCO

SUMMARY

1. AS EXPECTED, PROMINENCE GIVEN TO ISSUE OF VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE. BUT ALMOST EQUAL STRESS ON EMIGRATION/BRAIN DRAIN. SOME DISCUSSION OF BASIC LAW, PARTICULARLY IN RESPECT OF POLITICAL STRUCTURE. CONCERN ALSO EXPRESSED ABOUT DEFENCE AND PUBLIC ORDER: BRITISH PROFILE IN HONG KONG: PASSPORTS.

DETAIL

LORD GLENARTHUR SPENT A PRODUCTIVE ONE AND A QUARTER HOURS WITH EXCO ON 10 JANUARY.

2.

3.

LORD GLENARTHUR OPENED WITH A PREPARED STATEMENT (COPIES AVAILABLE ON PARTY'S RETURN TO LONDON), COMMENTING ON THE GENERAL IMPROVEMENT ON THE OVERALL MOOD OF HONG KONG: ENCOURAGING DEVELOP- MENTS IN THE DRAFTING OF THE BASIC LAW: THE PROBLEM OF THE VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE (VBPS), INCLUDING A PRE-EMPTIVE ARGUMENT THAT WE HAD MADE OUR RECENT OFFER OF 1000 RESETTLEMENT PLACES CONDITIONAL IN ORDER TO OBTAIN AS MANY PLACES AS POSSIBLE FROM THE OTHER RESETTLEMENT COUNTRIES.

VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE

b =

THE POINTS ON VBPS WERE NOT TAKEN UP UNTIL CONSIDERABLE LATER IN THE MEETING. THE EMPHASIS WAS ON THE STRENGTH OF FEELING IN HONG KONG: THIS WAS ONE OF THE FEW ISSUES ON WHICH PEOPLE WERE UNITED. THE PROBLEM WAS OF LONG STANDING AND HAD LARGELY BEEN IMPOSED UPON HONG KONG BY THE SOVEREIGN POWER. THE STRAIN ON HONG KONG WAS GREAT, IN TERMS OF COSTS AND FRICTIONS WITHIN THE SOCIETY.

PAGE

1

CONFIDENTIAL