SECRET
110033
MDHIAN 0262
нив 2+3 / із
SECRET
FM WASHINGTON
TO IMMEDIATE FCO
TELNO 1106
OF 11234OZ MAY 90
INFO IMMEDIATE PEKING, HANOI, MANILA, CANBERRA, UKMIS GENEVA INFO IMMEDIATE UKREP JLG HONG KONG
attatched,
YOUR TELNO 947: VBPS: MANDATORY REPATRIATION
1.
WE SEE THE LOGIC OF RETURNING SCREENED-OUT VBPS TO VIETNAM BY THE ROUTE OF THEIR ARRIVAL. WE ALSO NOTE THE (QUASI) PRECEDENT SET BY OUR REGULAR RETURN OF CHINESE ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS. BUT YOU SHOULD BE AWARE THAT ANY SUCH PROPOSAL WOULD BE CERTAIN TO AROUSE STRONG HOSTILITY IN THE UNITED STATES.
2. AS YOU KNOW, THERE IS CONSIDERABLE SENSITIVITY HERE OVER DEALINGS WITH CHINA, AS HAS BEEN APPARENT MOST RECENTLY IN THE DEBATE OVER MFN RENEWAL. CONCERNS OVER HUMAN RIGHTS IN CHINA WILL BE INTENSIFIED BY THE FORTHCOMING ANNIVERSARY OF TIANANMEN SQUARE. GIVEN US CONCERNS ABOUT THE USE OF FORCE IN THE RETURN OF VBPS, WE WOULD BE HEAVILY CRITICISED FOR HANDING THEM OVER TO THE CHINESE AUTHORITIES WHO, IT WILL BE ASSUMED, WOULD NOT TREAT THEM IN A HUMANITARIAN MANNER. IN SHORT, TURNING VBPS OVER TO THE CHINESE FOR REPATRIATION WOULD COMPOUND OUR PROBLEMS WITH THE AMERICANS.
TWO FURTHER POINTS OCCUR TO US. FIRST, THE AMERICAN ASSESSMENT SO FAR HAS BEEN THE CHINESE ALLOW OVERLAND TRAVEL TOWARDS HONG KONG BECAUSE THE PEKING AUTHORITIES CANNOT PREVENT IT. PEKING TELNO 706 CAN BE READ IN SUPPORT OF THIS VIEW. SECOND, IF, AS APPEARS TO BE THE CASE, THE CHINESE ARE NOT ABLE OR WILLING TO STEM THE FLOW OF VIETNAMESE THROUGH CHINA TO HONG KONG, WHAT CONFIDENCE COULD WE HAVE THAT THE CHINESE WOULD BE ANY MORE ABLE TO EFFECT THEIR REPATRIATION?
ACLAND
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