Thatcher on Boat People

From: Michael Montesano

Date: Tue, Dec 29, 2009 at 10:35 PM

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/dec/30/30-year-rule-thatcher-papers-released

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From: JKirkpatrick

Date: Wed, Dec 30, 2009 at 8:11 AM

"The papers, released at the National Archives today, show that her reluctance to take in any of the Vietnamese boat people led to her making a proposal to the Australian prime minister, Malcolm Fraser, that they jointly buy an Indonesian or Philippine island "not only as a staging post but as a place of settlement" for them all. This proposal was blocked by Lee Kuan Yu of Singapore, who feared it might become a "rival entrepreneurial city"."

As Marx is said to have said:

History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce. I forget who first said, Follow the money.

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From: Quynh Le

Date: Wed, Dec 30, 2009 at 8:19 AM

The original documents are hundreds of pages long and can be

downloaded here. You have to type your email address before

downloading:

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/releases/december-files.htm

Quynh