Ministers discuss resettlement outside the UK, but ultimately the Government accepted UK passport holders expelled from Uganda. Minutes from a Cabinet Meeting held on 17th October 1972. (CAB 128/50 f.15-16)
Transcript
The Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary said that Mr Slater, the High Commissioner who had been recalled from Kampala following a threat of expulsion, had informed him that the moods of the President of Uganda, General Amin, were becoming increasingly unpredictable, and that there was little prospect of establishing rational communication with him. It was believed that Africans, including Army personnel, were being murdered with the acquiescence of General AMIN. The Ugandan Army was, however, being restrained from molesting Asians or Europeans. The number of British citizens still in Uganda with personal or ancestral connections with the United Kingdom (“belongers”) was thought not to be more than some 4000. Two United Kingdom “belongers” and one Australian had recently been arrested; but it did not at present appear that the “belongers” were in physical danger. Despite General Amin’s aberrations, the people of Uganda as a whole appeared to be still friendly to Britain; and it would be unwise to jeopardise unnecessarily our commercial interests in the country.
The Home Secretary and Lord President of the Council said that the number of Asian United Kingdom passport holders (UKPH) to be evacuated from Uganda to the United Kingdom was of the order of 22,000, all of whom would have left well before the time limit stated by General Amin. Recent reports that entry certificates to the United Kingdom were being issued to stateless Asians were incorrect. The facts were that a number of persons-some 600 heads of households- whose status was doubtful (for example those whose renunciation of United Kingdom citizenship might be shown to be invalid) were being re-examined to see if they should properly be classified as United Kingdom citizens, in which event they might be issued with entry certificates; and that entry certificates were also being granted to UKPH dependants of non-UKPH heads of families, subject to the clearly stated condition that no right of entry was thereby granted to the head of family. This latter measure might involve some separation of families; but it was essential to maintain the principle that we had no direct responsibility for non-UKPH heads of families, although we should in no way discourage the reunion of such families in third countries. Meanwhile any non-UKPH Asians from Uganda who reached the United Kingdom without entry certificates were exceptionally being accommodated in the resettlement centres established by the Ugandan Resettlement Board; but it was made clear that they could not remain in this country as of right, and would be subject to deportation if they left the resettlement centres.
The Prime Minister summing up a brief discussion, said that the Cabinet had taken note of the statements by the Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary and the Home Secretary and Lord President of the Council. The policy of refusing right of entry to non-UKPH Asians should be maintained; but we should seek, wherever possible, to encourage family reunion in third countries, perhaps under the auspices of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees. The Foreign and Commonwealth Secretary and the Home Secretary and Lord President of the Council should also consider whether special arrangements were required to enable misleading statements regarding the Government’s policy to be quickly and authoritatively denied.