Port of registry Panama Tonnage 3.175 million kg | Type Freighter | |
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The Skyluck was a 3,500-ton Panamanian-registered freighter that carried a cargo of 2,700 Chinese and Vietnamese boat people fleeing Vietnam four years after the fall of Saigon. The ship entered Hong Kong harbour under the cover of darkness on 8 February 1979, but was discovered and ordered to set anchor by the Hong Kong Police. Thus, began a 4 1⁄2 month-long stalemate as the refugees waited on the ship for the Hong Kong government to decide their fate. The event turned into an international humanitarian incident, which was a symbol of a much larger problem: the estimated one million refugees who risked everything to flee Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam in the aftermath of the Vietnam War.
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Skyluck craftlandia sorte
Arrival in Hong Kong
In the early hours of Wednesday 7 February 1979, Skyluck arrived in the then-British colony of Hong Kong unannounced. Hong Kong police did not detect the ship while it entered the territorial water and until it anchored in the middle of Victoria Harbour. The ship was surrounded by police launches and boarded in the morning hours, engine parts were removed to prevent escape.
Upon interrogation, the Chinese (Taiwanese) captain claimed, as had been done in previous cases, that on his way from Singapore, the freighter came across several fishing boats in danger of sinking in the high seas, and had decided to rescue the refugees.
In fact, the refugees boats were organized by Vietnamese local boss (Bến Tre Province) to allow ethnic Chinese to leave the country as the relations between China and Vietnam rapidly deteriorated and war was imminent. Most refugees had all paid for passage in gold leaf or bars, in amounts that often represented life savings. Some signed over property to local government such as land, house, boat, and possessions in exchange for passage. A few sneaked on-board without any payment at all. Initially, a roster of 900 refugees were to be picked up by the freighter. As the news leaked, thousands swarmed the boat and the refugee count swelled to more than 3200. The freighter had to pull anchor and ran as the freighter was dangerously overloaded, left behind a fleet of small fishing boats trailing. Many late arrivals could not get on-board and were left behind.
The gold payment, along with weapons (M16) to guard the gold were delivered to the Captain by the local boss. The gold was never found on-board because it was transferred to another freighter during a rendezvous in mid-sea.
The refugees were not allowed to land, instead, the freighter was towed to south coast of Lamma Island, several hundred yards off-shore. Refugees were confined to the ship for more than four months (until the freighter was sunk deliberately by refugees) while the Hong Kong government attempted to verify the refugee status of the passengers, and decide whether to allow them into the UNHCR-run refugee camps in the colony.
An act of desperation
The refugees waited aboard Skyluck in squalid conditions, although the Hong Kong government did provide basic necessities - food and water. On Sunday, 11 March 1979, after 33 days of waiting, a group of about 100 refugees jumped overboard and started to swim the mile to shore. About fifty made it to Lamma Island, where they were promptly rounded up by police. Two were admitted to hospital and treated for exhaustion. While in custody, a group of young men unfurled a banner which read in English "Please Help Us", and tossed a message to the press through the wire fencing, which asked that the refugees be allowed to land. Those who didn't make it to shore were picked up by launches and returned to the freighter. Those reaching shore were also returned to the ship.
An end to the stalemate
On 29 June 1979, after 4 1⁄2 months of waiting, some of the Skyluck refugees cut the anchor chain. The ship drifted into the rocks at Lamma Island and began to sink. The refugees jumped into the water or climbed down the side of the vessel on rope ladders, then scrambled up the rocky shores of the island. By nightfall, about 2,000 people had been rounded up by police. Most, if not all, were taken into custody shortly thereafter. They ended up in the overcrowded camps already burgeoning with 10,000 refugees of the Vietnam War. Many ended up immigrating to the United States, Australia, Canada, United Kingdom or Germany, but had lengthy waits before being accepted.