I thank the Chair for allowing me to raise this issue. It is important, and I would like to give five minutes of my time to Deputy Michael D. Higgins.
Adjournment Debate. - Vietnamese “Boat People”.
Is that satisfactory? Agreed.
The decision of the British Government and the British Prime Minister Mrs. Thatcher to repatriate, or more correctly deport, as many as 44,000 of the 56,000 Vietnamese people who fled Vietnam as a result of the cruel totalitarian rule in that area and who travelled by boat — many of them did not arrive at their destination and were lost at sea because of the flimsiness of the craft in which they had to travel — has aroused the international indignation of the world. Ireland should join in expressing that indignation and be seen to condemn the British Government's decision to repatriate the boat people. The EC of which Ireland and Great Britain are members, the USA, the United Nations and Amnesty International have all joined in this condemnation.
The fact that in a few short days our Taoiseach will be President of the EC allows me to raise this issue with him and I was given the opportunity here today to do so and to express on behalf of the Irish people and many of the people of Europe and in the Community our disgust at this decision. There is stiff opposition throughout Britain itself to it which the British Labour Party voiced very forcibly in the House of Commons yesterday. Mr. Stanley Clinton Davis — a former Commissioner of the EC, now Chairman of the British Refugee Council — said the action must be condemned by all civilised people.
I look forward to the Minister's reply here tonight to say that the Irish voice will be heard clearly in this condemnation because we as a people have known for many centuries what it is to be under the heel of British rule, but never, even after the Famine when people fled in many directions to Australia, America and other parts of the world, were Irish people repatriated. Therefore, a country like Ireland should have its voice heard throughout the international community and because of this despicable decision of the British Government should be seen to be aware and have sympathy with these people and condemn the British Government's action. That condemnation should be sent through the British Ambassador to the Prime Minister and the Government of Great Britain.
I thank my colleague Deputy Liam Kavanagh for sharing his time with me and, as spokesman on international affairs for the Labour Party, I am very glad of the opportunity of expressing on behalf of the party our abhorrence at the appalling behaviour of Mrs. Thatcher and her Government in this matter.
A number of issues are at stake and I would like to say a word or two about them in elaboration of the points Deputy Kavanagh made. In the first instance, Ireland in assuming the Presidency of the Community will have particular responsibility in relation to the whole process of foreign policy within the Community. At this stage we should make absolutely clear our stand in relation to Mrs. Thatcher's behaviour. Mrs. Thatcher, the British Prime Minister, is operating in flagrant violation of international consultation. Even her closest ally in all circumstances, the US, issued a statement today condemning the action she has taken in relation to the forced expulsion of Vietnamese people from Hong Kong. In doing so the US referred to the Geneva meeting at which an accord was reached between the US, Vietnam and Britain on the orderly handling of this problem.
I am not surprised, and I noted in Irish foreign policy, that there is a constraint on us at times from certain elements of the public and press who would wish that we be silent on Mrs. Thatcher's behaviour in the international context because it is perceived as being unhelpful in relation to bilateral relations. Her record in relation to international policy — I have described it elsewhere as international terrorism — must be remembered. She is the Prime Minister who ordered the sinking of a ship in retreat to international waters in the Malvinas affair. Many of the world community to their shame were silent on that occassion. It was in breach of every principle of international law.
What is at stake in the matter before us is the issue of refugees and migrants. I am very interested in a statement made by Stanley Clinton Davis with whom I had the honour of serving in Basle and in Nicaragua on the Committee for the Defence of Refugees and Emigrants. His very judicious comments, issued by somebody with training in law, refer to a number of seedy aspects to this decision: the deporting of people at 5 a.m., the majority of whom were children, is in itself disgraceful; 26 children, 18 men and seven women were deported at 5 a.m. The Governor-General of Hong Kong suggested that the due process of investigation into all the circumstances of each individual was taken; that left it open in regard to the knock-on effect on the 44,000 people who were to be dealt with. The question has been reasonably raised: what procedures of investigation have been taken in relation to the rights of children, particularly children without parents or guardians?
There are other aspects that are very important. Ireland as a member of the UN with a particular interest in the decolonisation work of the UN should take an interest in this matter. Having referred to the US's condemnation of Mrs. Thatcher's behaviour, there is an element of crocodile tears and hypocrisy in this because precluding the right of entry to the US of North Vietnamese citizens is not an insignificant factor in the whole affair. We in the Labour Party are interested in the rights of migrants and refugees and people who have been forced from their home anywhere. It is very interesting to contrast the rhetoric of Mrs. Thatcher in relation to the free mobility of capital and her statements this evening as reported on the news that the Hong Kong people had to bear more than they could take, which smacks of racism. Mrs. Thatcher's policies have a knock-on effect not only in relation to the remaining people in Hong Kong but also in her general attitude towards migrants and to the rights of refugees.
It is important that Ireland, before we assume the Presidency of the European Community, should distance itself from this outrageous breach of humanity on an international scale and that we condemn it and express our concern for the rights of all the people involved. We should also insist in our participation in the community of international affairs that when people sit at conference, such as took place at the Geneva meeting, the accords which have been reached should be respected. It is very clear that Mrs. Thatcher's behaviour is consistent with what I have no reservation in referring to as international terrorism in relation to the Malvinas affair. Now she is revealing her thinly veiled racism in relation to immigrant and refugee issues. Our Taoiseach would have the support of my party in addressing these issues and expressing regard for elementary humanity and respect for the rights of movement of people from one territory to another. These rights need to be respected now more than ever.
It is important that on our behalf a very strong statement be made, as Deputy Kavanagh has suggested, through the British Ambassador and that this be communicated immediately. We should communicate it further to our partners in the European Community. I should like assurances in both these regards from the Minister of State.
I share the concern expressed by the two Deputies about the decision by the Hong Kong authorities to commence the repatriation, against their wishes, of Vietnamese "boat-people".
In June Ireland joined with other countries represented at the International Conference on Indochinese Refugees, held in Geneva, in endorsing a "Declaration and Comprehensive Plan of Action" on the question of IndoChinese refugees. In accordance with the plan, the "boat-people"— including those who landed in Hong Kong — were to be screened by countries of first asylum to determine whether they met the internationally-accepted definition of "refugee"— namely, a person with a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion. Those who so qualified were to be eligible for resettlement in third countries. Those who did not qualify as "refugees" were to return to Vietnam. However, it was clearly understood that every effort would be made to encourage them to return voluntarily.
Against this background, it is regrettable that the Hong Kong authorities have commenced repatriation of "boat-people" who do not wish to return to Vietnam. I must acknowledge, of course, that the authorities in Hong Kong are faced with a very difficult situation given, on the one hand, the continued flow of "boat-people" into the small colony and, on the other hand, the increasing reluctance of third countries to accept Vietnamese for resettlement. It is my hope that the Hong Kong authorities will consider the appeals that have been addressed to them from many quarters to suspend any further involuntary repatriation at least until the international community has been given an opportunity to further assess the situation, with a view to coming up with a more acceptable solution based on the comprehensive plan agreed at the Geneva conference in June last.
Ireland has played its part in the international community's effort to address the tragic plight of the Vietnamese "boat-people", by accepting since 1979 over 400 Vietnamese for resettlement in this country.
I appreciate the interest displayed by the Deputies in this matter of international importance and I hope that the Hong Kong authorities will take the opinions of the international world into account in arriving at their decisions in this very important issue. I hope that the Vietnamese people will be treated with the utmost care and compassion.
Will the Minister of State communicate these views to the British Ambassador?
I will be communicating the views expressed by the Deputies to my colleague, the Minister for Foreign Affairs.