PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) - Sixteen Vietnamese asylum seekers have been placed under the protection of the U.N. refugee agency after they were found in a jungle in northeastern Cambodia, the agency said Monday.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said in a statement that it transported the group of eight men, one woman and seven children by road to the capital, Phnom Penh, from Ratanakiri province on Saturday.
It did not give details of the health condition of the asylum seekers, but said they are from Gia Lai province in Vietnam's Central Highlands. Members of minority hill tribes in the area are collectively known as Montagnards.
It was not clear when the group arrived in Ratanakiri province, but the statement said a team of UNHCR and government officials located them during a mission on Aug. 28.
Thousands of Montagnards have fled to Cambodia since 2001, when Vietnam's Communist government cracked down on protests against land confiscation and restrictions on religious freedom. Many have been resettled in the United States. A small number have voluntarily returned to Vietnam.
Vietnam's government generally distrusts the Montagnards, many of whom sided with the United States during the Vietnam War and attend non-approved Protestant churches.
The UNHCR said there are reports of other Montagnards still in hiding in the province, but it did not yet know their exact location.
Another group of asylum seekers is reportedly in hiding in neighboring Mondulkiri province, the agency said, adding that it is concerned about "an unconfirmed report of 24 Montagnards being pushed back to Vietnam."
Cambodia's government has been accused of forcing asylum seekers back to Vietnam and of allowing Vietnamese forces to round up fleeing Montagnards. Cambodia denies the allegations.
There are currently 257 Montagnards under the U.N. agency's protection in Cambodia, the statement said.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said in a statement that it transported the group of eight men, one woman and seven children by road to the capital, Phnom Penh, from Ratanakiri province on Saturday.
It did not give details of the health condition of the asylum seekers, but said they are from Gia Lai province in Vietnam's Central Highlands. Members of minority hill tribes in the area are collectively known as Montagnards.
It was not clear when the group arrived in Ratanakiri province, but the statement said a team of UNHCR and government officials located them during a mission on Aug. 28.
Thousands of Montagnards have fled to Cambodia since 2001, when Vietnam's Communist government cracked down on protests against land confiscation and restrictions on religious freedom. Many have been resettled in the United States. A small number have voluntarily returned to Vietnam.
Vietnam's government generally distrusts the Montagnards, many of whom sided with the United States during the Vietnam War and attend non-approved Protestant churches.
The UNHCR said there are reports of other Montagnards still in hiding in the province, but it did not yet know their exact location.
Another group of asylum seekers is reportedly in hiding in neighboring Mondulkiri province, the agency said, adding that it is concerned about "an unconfirmed report of 24 Montagnards being pushed back to Vietnam."
Cambodia's government has been accused of forcing asylum seekers back to Vietnam and of allowing Vietnamese forces to round up fleeing Montagnards. Cambodia denies the allegations.
There are currently 257 Montagnards under the U.N. agency's protection in Cambodia, the statement said.
1 comment:
I want to make it clear to the world! Montagnards is not Vietnamese and get this right!
It is about time that UNHCR take some action!
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