Evening star., 1962-05-27

pcdSdIlb WOL1dn WHO, WLleu
caught by a Hong Kong border
police patrol the day before,
had bitterly shouted, "You are
sending us back to starve."
Hunger now and fear Of
famine to come sent upwards
of 10000 flooding across Hong
Kong's twisting 22-mile-long
border since May /. They
forded rivers, climbed rock
strewn cliffs, tore down fences.
crawled under barbed wire.
They crossed in twos and
threes and by dozens and in
mass waves of 500 to a thou
sand at a. time.
Some 1000 were rounded up
by police and soldiers and sent
back by a Hong Kong govern
ment that has absorbed nearly
Is million refugees in. the past
IA years and has no room,
facilities or money to absorb
more.
Most Are UnskilIed
Some 5000 to 10000 were
believed to have escaped the
helicopter-guided patrols and
lost themselves among Hong
Kong's million people. Some
will find jobs but most are un-
skilled peasant farmers who
will become a further burden
upon Hong Kong-which spent
80 per cent Of its total budget
in 1861 and will spend 35 per
cent this year on housing,
health, education, welfare ia
cilities and services for refu-
gees already here. In the past
six years Hong Kong has built
IL huge resettlement housing
projects and moved 100000
refugees into modern ferro-
concrete apartments.
But a half million still live
In the squatter area in tar
paper shacks, another 10000
in huts on rooftops, and 10
$4,000 sleep in the streets.
The refugee situation has
not been entirely one-sided.
Hong Kong owes part of its
postwar industrial growth to
those political refugees who
fled the Communist takeover
of the mainland.
The rich ones brought capi-
tai which they sank into new
businesses and factories. The
poor ones supplied a surplus
Of cheap labor and made it
possible for Hong Kong prod
ucts to, undersell competing
nations on the world markets.
Industries Increase
Powered by refugee capital
the 10000 registered industrial
enterprises in l947 have grown
to $3.50 today, the number OF
industrial workers from $4,000
to 100000. Yet out Of approx
mately 1.25 million employ
ables, about $4,000 are unem-
ployed and 100000 underem-
ployed. Entire families exc out
a bare subsistence by having
everyone. from a pre-school
grandchild to a grandmother
twisting artificial flowers OF
weaving bamboo. The bulk OF
the unskilled Kwangtung peas
ants who tried to reach Hong
Kong in May would have been
largely unemployable.
There is no farm land left to
till, little need for coolie labor
and the cottage industries o1
artificial flowers and woven
bamboo are beginning to glui
the market.
The flow of refugees wa!
choked off suddenly Friday
and it appeared clear Commu'
mist guards had once agar
sealed off most of the escape
routes. Hong Kong authorize.
seemed certain the exodus hac
ended. Apparently, they or Of
ficials in London had received
an answer to the formal Brit
ish request to Peiping earlier
in the week to halt the flow
Why the Reds had been lenient
in letting the refugees pas
earlier remained a mystery.
A refugee who reached Hone
Kong in midweek said a Com.
munist guard ignored him as hi
waded the Shumchun Rive
and crawled under a boundary
fence.
Word Spread Widely
"The word went all through.
out the village that the guards
would not try to stop US anC
they did not" the 23-year-ole
escapee told relatives, whit
passed the story on to news.
men. He said he did not know
VINO first brought the repor
to his village. He said he hat
spent several days with would
be refugees from other Villages
and they all had gotten similar
reports. He said he and th'
others had no idea why th'
Communist authorities werI
allowing them to cross freely.
The question also puzzles
Western diplomats trying Il
assess the Communist motives
A number believe that the Red
saw propaganda value, both a
home and overseas, in lettinl
hungry people batter at HON.
Kong's door and then be refuses
admittance. They point on
that there was no Red borde
relaxation until after Hon
Kong publicly announced il
mid-April it was going to sent
all escapes back. Some be
lieve the Communists saw |
good opportunity to accomplish
two things: embarrass Hon
Kong and the free world an,