TNAG-2185-FCO40-3122-Ethnic-minorities-in-Hong-Kong-1990 — Page 189

SECRETARY OF STATE

Mr H N Harilela

President

Council of Hong Kong Indian

Associations

c/o TST PO Box 95106

Hong Kong

LAPAAO

Thank you for your letter of 29 December about the

position of the non-Chinese ethnic minorities in Hong

Kong under the Nationality package and for your earlier

letters of 11 November and 7 December, copies of which

you sent to Sir Geoffrey Howe and Francis Maude.

also grateful for the opportunity to discuss the

Council's concerns with Mr Sital and Mr Narain during

their visit to London in November.

I was

I have taken very careful note of all the points you

make in your letters. In reaching the decision which I

announced to the House on 20 December, the Government

took fully into account the arguments put to us by the

Council on behalf of the non ethnic Chinese minorities.

We concluded that we could not treat this group as a