From the Private Secretary
10 DOWNING STREET
LONDON SWIA 2AA
Se. PS
Ps / cord (authness HKD.
33
HKCD 015/1
9 April
Mr M.
17
Moines
Mg
1992 16/4 dur Woodrow or.
Ponote
note + fa
Thank you for your letter of 8 March to the Prime Minister about human rights in China. I have been asked to reply.
The Prime Minister shares your concern about human rights in China. This subject has been on the agenda of all meetings between British and Chinese Ministers. For example, the Prime Minister raised human rights with Premier Li Peng when they met in New York on 31 January.
As
I have checked carefully the points you raised. It is not the case that countries represented in Hong Kong agreed in 1989 to resettle a 'quota' of Chinese refugees from Hong Kong. there never were any 'quotas' they have not been ' exhausted'. We are not aware that any country has recently changed its policy on resettlement of asylum seekers from China, or that there are any particular difficulties at present.
On the case of Ms Tang Ri-mei, I understand that she was detained for involvement in the student protests in 1989, was released after two months, pardoned and allowed to resume her studies. She fled China following a civil dispute with her employers and entered Hong Kong illegally in November 1991. Given the very unusual circumstances of the case, the Hong Kong authorities let Ms Tang remain on exceptional humanitarian grounds.
Ms Susan Whitfield
J S WALL
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