Q&A: Cambodian deportee’s wife talks about moving back to her homeland

Marley Dang, the 3-year-old son of a local Cambodian awaiting deportation. (Photo: Vyreak Sovan)

Friday, October 15th, 2010
Posted by Holly Otterbein
Philadelphia CityPaper (Pennsylvania, USA)

Last week, I wrote about Mout Iv, a Cambodian refugee, Olney denizen and American permanent resident for the last 24 years, who was awaiting deportation — and other local Cambodians like him, who have been deported recently because of criminal convictions (a fact that fits squarely into President Obama's immigration policy aimed at deporting more people with criminal backgrounds, regardless of how old their convictions are or whether they're refugees, apparently).

After the story went to print, I interviewed a Cambodian refugee named Lynn, who lived most of her life in Philadelphia, until her husband, Saul, was deported to Cambodia in 2007 for a crime he committed 10 years prior. His crime was theft by stolen property; according to Lynn, he bought a stolen car from a friend. Saul came to the U.S. when he was 3 years old, and Lynn was 4 months old when she landed here. They now live in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Lynn told me, "I am not very good with details or my feelings," but still agreed to talk. This is my interview with her:

City Paper: Why did you decide to move to Cambodia with Saul? Not every wife does.

Lynn: My husband was deported on June 24, 2007 … a couple weeks later my daughter was born. I never really thought that he was going to get deported because there were rumors that Cambodia wasn't accepting people back and then when it happened, I was kind of in shock. During his deportation process, I already knew I was coming to Cambodia. In January 2008, my children and I arrived in Cambodia. I moved to Cambodia because I wanted my children to be with their father, and I wanted my husband and daughter to meet each other.

CP: More than 30 percent of Cambodians live below the poverty line. Have you found work there?

Lynn: There are not many jobs opportunities here. It is hard for my husband to find a job. I can find one easier than him because of my passport. There is a lot of poverty. Majority of the people is trying to make it through the day. The government doesn't give assistance.

CP: During your husband's deportation process, did you find your lawyer helpful? And what about the lawyer your husband dealt with during his '97 conviction?

Lynn: [During his trial], he pleaded guilty to get a lesser sentence and his [public defender] didn't explain to him that it can get him deported. … After his back judge gave him early parole, immigration picked my husband in December 2003 and took him to York. There we hired an immigration lawyer who took our money and didn't do anything for us. The lawyer told my husband that if he signed out and they don't deport him within six months, they will release him, so my husband signed out. He had to report to ICE once a month. To make a long story short, ICE picked him up on January 2007 and started his deportation process.

CP: Do you speak the language?

Lynn: We speak enough Khmer to communicate with the locals. Sometimes they have trouble understanding us and we have trouble understanding them.

CP: After living in Philly for so long, what has Phnom Penh been like?

Lynn: Living here is different. My first couple of months, I experienced culture shock and it can get pretty lonely without family and friends. The life here is really slow-paced so we get to spend more time with each other. My feelings toward living here is Cambodia is [it's] a fun country to visit, but to live here is a whole different story — especially if you have family somewhere else. Both of our immediate family is still in the states. Our parents, brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews, and his kids from his previous marriage.