Tim Huxley, ‘Indochinese Refugees as a Security Concern of the ASEAN States, 1975-81’, IR Working Paper No. 1, Canberra: Department of International Relations, Research School of Pacific Studies, Australian National University, 1983.

From 1975 a wide range of policymakers in ASEAN countries perceives a security threat emanating from Indochina that was quite distinct from (although perhaps related to) the alleged dangers of invasion and insurgency. The declarations and policies of the ASEAN governments reflected an enduring concern with the security implications of the multitudes who fled Indochina after the fall of the non-communist regimes there. The ‘security threat’ posed by the refugees was perceived in the ASEAN region as having several distinct aspects: these may be summarised as the impact of the influx on relations with the Indochinese countries; the danger of subversion; and the socioeconomic burden, which included a particularly strong ethnic dimension.