Set against the backdrop of the Cold War and the declining British Empire, this thesis explores how the Hong Kong government handled the Vietnamese refugee crisis of the 1970s. The Vietnamese refugee influx started after the fall of Saigon in 1975 and temporarily stopped after the Geneva Conference on Indochinese refugees in 1979. Drawing extensively upon recently declassified files from the National Archives in London and the National Archives in Maryland, the thesis discusses several important themes, for example, international concerns about human rights during the Cold War era, interpretations of humanitarianism, and Hong Kong’s autonomy in the age of decolonization. It argues that Britain exerted its international influence by forcing Hong Kong to be a first asylum for refugees. Hong Kong played an important role in demonstrating Britain’s contribution to resolving the refugee crisis. The colony served as a place for Britain’s proxy humanitarianism. This thesis shows that international expectations of human rights conflicted with local politics in Hong Kong. Unlike studies that stress Hong Kong’s increasing autonomy, this thesis shows that the colonial authorities played a passive role in the refugee crisis, and the British government still had the final say on Hong Kong’s refugee policy. This thesis comprises three chapters. The first chapter investigates the case of two freighters that rescued Vietnamese refugees in 1975 and 1976. The Danish-registered Clara Maersk arrived in Hong Kong on 30 April 1975, marking the beginning of the refugee crisis. As the British and Hong Kong governments were uncertain about the scale of the influx and had different expectations about Britain’s contribution to ending the refugee problem, the Clara Maersk incident triggered heated debates. The incident demonstrates how Britain’s domestic affairs led to the British government’s reluctant assistance to Hong Kong. The Burmese-registered Ava that arrived in Hong Kong on 6 July 1976 with ninety-eight refugees reveals the unclear responsibility for shipwrecked refugees rescued by foreign vessels. The Ava incident shows how Hong Kong’s refugee influx was treated as an American problem. The U.S. government saw Hong Kong’s regional role of strengthening Southeast Asian countries’ involvement in America’s refugee program. The second chapter investigates the second wave of Vietnamese refugees. The deteriorating Sino-Vietnamese relations in 1978 led to an exodus of ethnic Chinese from Vietnam. The Vietnamese government officially permitted the ethnic Chinese to leave in return for payment. This chapter examines the pre-arranged vessels that transported refugees to other countries under collaboration with the Vietnamese authorities. The final chapter focuses on how the British government relieved Hong Kong’s refugee burden as cheaply as possible. On the one hand, the British government wanted to show its contribution to resolving the refugee crisis by maintaining Hong Kong’s humanitarian policy. On the other hand, it did not want to take the Vietnamese refugees because of Britain’s own immigration problems. By initiating an international conference on Indochinese refugees, the British government internationalized the refugee problem and minimized its responsibility for the crisis. / published_or_final_version / History / Master / Master of Philosophy

陳美美. / Thesis (M.A.)--香港中文大學, 1987. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 1-10 (last group)). / Chen Meimei. / Thesis (M.A.)--Xianggang Zhong wen da xue, 1987. / 撮要 / 內容目錄 / 圖表目錄 / Chapter 第一章 --- 緒言 --- p.1 / Chapter 第一節 --- 滯港越南難民的來源 --- p.1 / Chapter 第二節 --- 香港越南難民目前情況 --- p.5 / Chapter 第三節 --- 目前難民服務提供情況 --- p.7 / Chapter 第四節 --- 研究原因 (Rationale of the Study) --- p.9 / Chapter 第五節 --- 研究課題 --- p.13 / Chapter 第二章 --- 文獻探討 --- p.15 / Chapter 第一節 --- 難民問題在其它國家的研究 --- p.16 / Chapter 第二節 --- 各國提供社會服務的情況 --- p.28 / Chapter 第三節 --- 香港越南難民的問題研究 --- p.36 / Chapter 第四節 --- 難民服務在香港 --- p.46 / Chapter 第五節 --- 總結 --- p.54 / Chapter 第三章 --- 理論架構 --- p.57 / Chapter 第一節 --- 有關需要之概念 --- p.58 / Chapter 第二節 --- 成人階段的成長需要 --- p.69 / Chapter 第三節 --- 本港越南難民的需情況 --- p.75 / Chapter 第四章 --- 研究方法( Methodology ) --- p.79 / Chapter 第一節 --- 假定( Assumption ) --- p.79 / Chapter 第二節 --- 名詞界定 --- p.80 / Chapter 第三節 --- 研究設計( Research Design ) --- p.88 / Chapter 第四節 --- 研究的總體( Population )及樣本( Sampling ) --- p.89 / Chapter 第五節 --- 研究的量度工具( Measuring Instrument ) --- p.91 / Chapter 第六節 --- 預試研究 --- p.99 / Chapter 第七節 --- 資料搜集過程 --- p.100 / Chapter 第八節 --- 資料分析 --- p.105 / Chapter 第五章 --- 研究結果──研究對象的背景資料( Profile of the Respondents ) --- p.107 / Chapter 第一節 --- 被訪者的背景資料 --- p.108 / Chapter 第二節 --- 背景資料的討論與總結 --- p.125 / Chapter 第三節 --- 總結 --- p.133 / Chapter 第六章 --- 研究結果分析──五種需要的情況 --- p.135 / Chapter 第一節 --- 五種需要的特性分析情況 --- p.136 / Chapter 第二節 --- 被訪者個人社會經濟背景與各種需要之關係 --- p.161 / Chapter 第三節 --- 五種需要情況之分論 --- p.199 / Chapter 第四節 --- 總結 --- p.219 / Chapter 第七章 --- 研究結果分析──社會服務提供情況 --- p.223 / Chapter 第一節 --- 有關被訪者對社會服務的使用情況 --- p.224 / Chapter 第二節 --- 需要與社會服務二者間之關係 --- p.227 / Chapter 第八章 --- 總論及建議 --- p.236 / Chapter 第一節 --- 總論 --- p.236 / Chapter 第二節 --- 建議 --- p.240 / Chapter 第三節 --- 研究局限 --- p.247 / 附錄(一) 至(二) / 參考書目

published_or_final_version / abstract / Sociology / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

Chan Wai Kwong. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 136-139). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / Abstract --- p.i / Acknowledgements --- p.iii / Chapter Chapter One --- Introduction --- p.1 / Research Aims and Significance / Historical Backgrounds of Young Vietnamese Refugees in Hong Kong / Literature Review / How is This Research Different From Previous Research? / "Methodology, Field-site and My Personal Background" / Organization of Thesis / Chapter Chapter Two --- A Prison for Non-criminals: What Made Closed Refugee Camp Experiences Positive for My Informants --- p.41 / General Conditions of Two Different Closed Camps / Survival Strategies and Micro-economic Systems / What Made the Closed Camp Positive for My Informants? / Analysis / Conclusion / Chapter Chapter Three --- The Open Refugee Camp: The Place Between Physical Existence and Legal Non-Existence --- p.65 / Introduction / Sinh's Story-An Ethnic Vietnamese / Hung's Story - An Ethnic Chinese / Born To Be A Refugee - Hau's Story / Comparison / Conclusion / Chapter Chapter Four --- The Adaptation of Young Refugee in Hong Kong --- p.92 / Introduction / Integration in Hong Kong -Thuy's Story / Integration in Vietnam - Man's Story / Pik Uk Prison - Hai's Story / What Happened to Other Students From Pillar Point Camp? / Analysis / Conclusion / Chapter Chapter Five --- Research Implications --- p.119 / Introduction / Review / Cultural Shaping of Self / What Does It Means to Grow Up in Refugee Camp in Hong Kong? / Implications of This Research / Appendix --- p.134-135 / Bibliography --- p.139