TNAG-2226-FCO40-3198-Political-relations-between-Hong-Kong-and-Vietnam-1991 — Page 5

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WERE INCREASING. THE VIETNAMESE GOVERNMENT WAS NOT HAPPY ABOUT THIS AND WOULD DO THEIR PART TO TRY AND CONTROL IT. THEIR GENERAL

POLICY WAS TO PREVENT ILLEGAL DEPARTURE. HE REFERRED TO THE DECREE OF THE COUNCIL OF MINISTERS. (WE BELIEVE THIS IS THE DOCUMENT LEAKED LAST YEAR, WHICH PROPOSED HOLDING CENTRES AND IMPLICITLY ACCEPTED THE PRINCIPLE OF MANDATORY REPATRIATION (SEE OUR TELNOS 2931, 2938 AND 2939 OF LAST YEAR). LE THO'S REPEATED REFERENCE TO IT IS NOTEWORTHY.

5. LE THO SAID THAT HE AND HIS COLLEAGUES WOULD BE VISITING BOTH THE SOUTH OF VIETNAM AND BORDER PROVINCES IN CONNECTION WITH THE PROBLEM OF THE INCREASED NUMBER OF SOUTHERNERS COMING TO HONG KONG, THEY HAD ALREADY SPOKEN TO THE CHINESE EMBASSY IN HANOI AND WOULD DO SO AGAIN ON THEIR RETURN. HE SUGGESTED WE CO-ORDINATE EFFORTS TO PREVENT DEPARTURE AND PROVIDE THEM WITH INFORMATION ON ORGANISERS AND ROUTES. IF WE IDENTIFIED ANY ORGANISERS IN THE CAMPS IN HONG KONG, THE VIETNAMESE WOULD TAKE THEM BACK AT ANY TIME. THEY WOULD BE PUNISHED SEVERELY. HE ALSO REFERRED TO PLANS TO INCREASE PUBLICITY AGAINST DEPARTURES IN SOUTH VIETNAM.

6. LE THO SAID THAT THE VIETNAMESE WISHED TO SETTLE THE VBP PROBLEM 'FUNDAMENTALLY'. SO FAR IT HAD BEEN DEALT WITH BY BOTH SIDES IN A HUMANITARIAN SPIRIT. THE VIETNAMESE HAD CARRIED OUT THE PROVISIONS OF THE CPA AND WOULD CONTINUE TO DO SO. HE NOTED THAT RELATIONS BETWEEN HONG KONG AND VIETNAM WERE DEVELOPING. BOTH SIDES WISHED TO SOLVE THE VBP PROBLEM, BUT THAT THERE WAS 'ANOTHER FORCE' WHICH WAS PREVENTING THIS. HE WISHED TO CONFIRM

THAT THERE WAS NO IMPEDIMENT ON THE VIETNAMESE SIDE TO ACCEPTING

BACK THESE PEOPLE.

TRADE AND AIR SERVICES

7. EHRMAN NOTED THESE POINTS AND WELCOMED LE THO'S COMMENTS BOTH ON MEASURES TO DISCOURAGE DEPARTURES AND THE VIETNAMESE WISH TO

SETTLE THE QUESTION FUNDAMENTALLY. HE REPEATED THAT WE WISHED TO

MOVE TOWARDS ORDINARY INTERNATIONAL ARRANGEMENTS. HE THEN

REFERRED TO OTHER ASPECTS OF OUR RELATIONS.

8. THERE WAS ALREADY INTEREST IN HONG KONG IN DEVELOPING COMMERCIAL RELATIONS. THE HKG WAS NOW WILLING TO ENCOURAGE THIS, AND THE HONG KONG TRADE DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL WOULD BE LEADING AN

ECONOMIC MISSION TO VIETNAM IN FEBRUARY WITH HKG'S EXPRESS SUPPORT. WE HOPED THIS WOULD BE WELCOME. ANOTHER MATTER WHICH WOULD ENCOURAGE THE DEVELOPMENT OF COMMERCIAL RELATIONS WAS AIR

SERVICES. WE BELIEVED THE TIME HAD COME TO WORK TO REINSTATE

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