What is the origin of the Vietnamese refugee problem that has plagued Hong Kong for decades?

The Vietnamese boat people problem in Hong Kong is a problem that has puzzled the Hong Kong government for 25 years.

During the period from11970s to11980s, a large number of Vietnamese boat people flooded into Hong Kong, which brought a heavy burden to the economy, public security and other issues. It was not until 2000 that this problem came to an end.

The Vietnam War broke out in 196 1 and ended in 1975. South Vietnam was defeated by North Vietnam, and North Vietnam unified Vietnam. Many people are afraid of the * * * regime and have left their homes and fled everywhere. The first batch of 3743 refugees arrived in Hong Kong. They arrived in Hong Kong on the Danish cargo ship "kina Maersk" on May 4th and were all accepted. In the following years, refugees came to Hong Kong. 1979, Hong Kong was declared as the "port of first asylum". At the same time, the Vietnamese government is carrying out brutal ethnic cleansing activities in many cities in Vietnam, and a large number of Vietnamese refugees flock to it. During the period of 1979, more than 68,700 people arrived in Hong Kong in one year. To 1980, more than 65438+ ten thousand people. Most Vietnamese who first arrived in Hong Kong stayed in Hong Kong for some time and were accepted as refugees by western countries.

During the period of 1987, many Vietnamese refugees who fled to China entered Hong Kong because they mistakenly believed that illegal immigrants in Hong Kong could be granted amnesty, and the number of Vietnamese allowed to enter Hong Kong gradually decreased in western countries.

Therefore, the Hong Kong Government implemented the screening policy from June 65438 to June 16, 988. Political refugees are classified as "refugees" and non-refugees such as economic migrants are classified as "boat people". All Vietnamese boat people who enter Hong Kong due to financial problems will be regarded as illegal immigrants, unable to transfer to a third country and will be repatriated to Vietnam. The screening policy is based on June 1994. This policy was broadcast by Radio Television Hong Kong in Vietnamese in an attempt to prevent a large number of Vietnamese from entering Hong Kong. This broadcast has become a well-known "North Dongla" broadcast in Hong Kong.

In the 1960s and 1990s, the Hong Kong government began to repatriate Vietnamese boat people in an orderly way, including voluntary repatriation, and the government reached an agreement with Vietnam in advance to ensure that they would not be persecuted by the regime after returning home. However, few Vietnamese boat people voluntarily repatriated, and eventually forced repatriation was implemented.

With the change of the situation in Vietnam, Hong Kong abolished the "first asylum" policy on June 5438+099865438+1October 9. By 2000, the government granted the right of abode to the boat people still stranded in Hong Kong and issued identity cards to integrate them into Hong Kong society. From 1975 to 1999, more than 143700 Vietnamese refugees arrived in Hong Kong, and another 67000 boat people were repatriated. As many countries around Hong Kong demand that Hong Kong become a "port of first asylum", the responsibility of taking care of the daily life of refugees has shifted to Hong Kong, adding to the burden on the government. Up to now, the United Nations still owes Hong Kong a huge debt of over HK$ 6,543.8 billion.

By February 2000, the problem of Vietnamese refugees, which had plagued Hong Kong for a quarter of a century, had been completely solved. 1,400 Vietnamese refugees and boat people stranded in Hong Kong have been issued Hong Kong identity cards and have been formally integrated into the local community under the "Expanded Local Resettlement Scheme" launched by the Hong Kong Government today.

The Hong Kong Government will accept the residence applications of the people concerned within six weeks, issue all identity cards within about three months, and the last refugee detention center will be closed at the end of May.