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101023
MDLIAN 1538
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FM HONG KONG
TO PRIORITY HANOI
TELNO MISC 326
OF 17123OZ MAY 89
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TOP COPY Q Dier ?
INFO PRIORITY FCO, UKMIS GENEVA, WASHINGTON, PEKING
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MY TELNO 1455 TO FCO : LEGCO DEBATE ON VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE
FOLLOWING IS THE TEXT OF THE SECRETARY FOR SECURITY'S REPLY IN
LEGCO TODAY TO THE MOTION IN TUR:
QUOTE
SPEECH IN DEBATE BY THE SECRETARY FOR SECURITY,
THE HON A P ASPREY OBE, JP, IN THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
ON 17 MAY 1989
SIR,
DURING THIS DEBATE, MEMBERS HAVE EXPRESSED CLEARLY AND ELOQUENTLY THEIR ANGER AND FRUSTRATION AT THE CONTINUING INFLUX OF VIETNAMESE BOAT PEOPLE AND THE URBEND WHICH THIS IMPOSES ON HONG
I UNDERSTAND AND SHARE THOSE FEELINGS.
KONG.
2 =
TEN YEARS ON FROM THE 1979 UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ON
REFUGEES AND DISPLACED PERSONS IN SOUTH EAST ASIA, IT IS PLAIN THAT NOT ALL HAVE HONOURED EQUALLY THE COMMITMENTS THEY GAVE THERE.
THOSE COMMITMENTS WERE THREEFOLD: HONG KONG AND COUNTRIES IN THE REGION WOULD CONTINUE TO OFFER TEMPORARY ASYLUM TO ARRIVALS FROM
VOETNAM: OTHERS WOULD RESETTLE THEM: AND VIETNAM WOULD PREVENT FURTHER DEPARTURES. HONG KONG HAS KEPT ITS WORD. NO ASYLUM SEEKERS HAVE BEEN TURNED AWAY. WE HAVE FED, SHELTERED AND CARED FOR NEARLY 150,000 BOAT PEOPLE FROM VIETNAM. OF THESE, OVER 116,000 HAVE BEEN RESETTLED, AND WE ARE VERY GRATEFUL TO THE RESETTLEMENT COUNTRIES WHO HAVE HELPED TO EASE OUR BURDEN. THE MAIN RESETTLEMENT COUNTRIES
FOR VIETNAMESE REFUGEES FROM HONG KONG HAVE BEEN THE UNITED STATES WHICH HAS TAKEN IN OVER 64,000, CANADA WHICH HAS ACCEPTED NEARLY 21,000, THE UNITED KINGDOM WHICH HAS RESETTLED OVER 13,000, AND AUSTRALIA WHICH HAS ADMITTED SIX AND A HALF THOUSAND.
3. BUT, PARTICULARLY IN THE LAST TWO YEARS, THERE HAS BEEN NO EFFECTIVE ACTION TO PREVENT DEPARTURES FROM VIETNAM. ARRIVALS OF
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