An Appeal for Justice as Racial Attacks Kills One Khmer-Krom, Two hospitalized and Half a Dozen Injured

An Appeal for Justice as Racial Attacks Kills One Khmer-Krom, Two hospitalized and Half a Dozen Injured

09/05/2010

To: International Labour Organization (ILO), International Human Rights Organizations, UN Human Rights Council, Democratic Governments and International Media.

BACKGROUND

On September 2, 2010, 22 Khmer-Krom workers from a Vietnamese rubber plantation company in Tay Ninh province, southern Vietnam were off work on the Vietnam’s National Day holiday and decided to explore a local market in the Vietnamese-populated town.

Upon their arrival to the town, one Vietnamese individual approached a member of the group, namely Chau Net, and asked if they were Khmer-Krom people or not. Mr. Chau Net, aged 22, answered that they were Khmer-Krom. The Vietnamese individual immediately called out to his group of 200 men who came equipped themselves with weapons consisting of knives, axes and swords. They started to attack the members of the Khmer-Krom group with their weapons. Mr. Chau Net’s skull was sliced in half by an axe and then horrifically beheaded by a Samurai sword.

Two Khmer-Krom victims, Mr. Chau Phat and Mr. Chau Keo who were also attacked and remains critically injured at a hospital in Long Xuyen city, An Giang province. Another victim was axed on his shoulder while some others with minor injuries have headed home to take care of their injuries. Nine Khmer-Krom workers who fled the scene was unscathed and returned home fearing for their safety.

• Mr. Chau Net, 22, a son of Mr. Chau Ket and Mrs. Ni Vot, resided in Ro-Lang hamlet, RoLang commune, Tri Ton district, An Giang province.
• Mr. Chau Phat and Mr. Chau Keo reside in Banh-Tel Svay hamlet, Banh-Tel Svay commune, Tinh Bien district, An Giang province.
• One victim with shoulder injuries resides in Kong Onn Pey commune, Tri Ton district, An Giang province.
• Other victims were from Tri Ton district, Tinh Bien district, and Chak-Kradao village nears Long Xuyen city of An Giang province.

REASON OF THE ATROCITIES

Based on the information received from the surviving victims, the incidence took place on two alleged reasons:

1. There were growing animosities between the Khmer-Krom workers and the Vietnamese workers at the Vietnamese Rubber Plantation because the Khmer-Krom group refused to join a protest for a pay-raise against the company owner. The Khmer-Krom workers feared that they might lose their employment if they participated.
2. There is a mythical belief, known as “Ong Bo” in Tay Ninh province where the spirit of “Ong Bo” is awakened once a year and has ordered the killings of Khmer-Krom people as sacrifices. The belief of “Ong Bo” by the Vietnamese locals has incited major hatred and racist acts against the Khmer-Krom people.

THE STATE DENIES JUSTICE WHILE ENCOURAGING RACIAL DISCRIMINATION

The owner of the Rubber Plantations Company has compensated the Khmer-Krom victims for only 30 million dong (Vietnamese currency) or approximately $1,500 in US. The amount barely covered the cost of a coffin for the funeral or travelling expenses for the injured. The victims who have been hospitalized at Long Xuyen’s hospital claimed their hospital cost is already 20 million dong.

In the rule of law, the Vietnamese authorities have taken no legal action against the Vietnamese murderers who attacked, injured, and killed the Khmer-Krom migrant workers. The lack of legal action by the Vietnamese authorities toward this racially inspired attacked against the indigenous peoples of the Mekong Delta has sent a clear and loud message to the world that the Khmer-Krom people remain second-class citizens on their own land. The double-standard behavior of the Vietnamese authorities encourages Vietnamese racial discrimination against the Khmer-Krom locals.

On behalf of the Khmer-Krom victims and their voiceless families in An Giang province, we seek the urgent attention of the international community to:

• Urge Vietnamese authorities to immediately investigate, apprehend and punish those that were involved in the attack as part of their commitment to combat racial discrimination.
• Urge that the government of Vietnam to generously compensate for the loss and the pains suffered by the victims and their families.
• Urge that the government of Vietnam adopts a bill to penalize Hate Crimes, and discrimination against the Khmer-Krom people in order to prevent the above incident from happening again.
• Urge Vietnam to set up social programs/agencies in urban centers to assist Khmer-Krom migrant workers in time of needs.
• Ask Vietnam to strictly enforce Labor Law against the abuses committed by the employers and among co-workers themselves (i.e. to prevent the above case whereby Vietnamese workers killed Khmer-Krom workers).

Thach Ngoc Thach
KKF President