Tag: Montagnards

Thailand called to release detained Vietnamese Montagnard refugees

September 3, 2018 Asylum seekers, Cambodia, Children, Hmong, Minorities, Montagnards, Refugees, Religious freedom, Thailand, Vietnam

The Montagnard-people are persecuted because of their faith but getting asylum in neighbouring countries is difficult. (Photo: World Watch Monitor)

Thailand should release the group of ethnic minority refugees and asylum seekers, mostly Christians, arrested last week during a crackdown just outside the capital Bangkok, rights groups say. Most of the 181 refugees detained are Montagnards, an indigenous group from Vietnam who face “harsh persecution if they are returned to . . . Read More

‘Under no circumstances’ should Cambodia repatriate Montagnards to Vietnam

September 13, 2017 Vietnam Cambodia, Human rights, Montagnards, Vietnam

Human Rights Watch (HRW) is urging Cambodia not to carry out its threat to imminently return a group of ethnic Montagnards to Vietnam, saying “they would face severe persecution on political and religious grounds”. HRW also criticised Cambodia’s Interior Ministry for denying the asylum claims of 29 Montagnards and failing . . . Read More

Cambodia to repatriate 13 Montagnards after failed asylum bids

August 10, 2017 Vietnam Asylum seekers, Cambodia, Central Highlands, Communism, Montagnards, Vietnam

Thirteen Montagnards are being sent back to Vietnam, after they were refused asylum in Cambodia. Thousands of Montagnards have fled their country to seek asylum in neighbouring countries since 2001, citing land expropriation and religious persecution. Many of the indigenous group, from Vietnam’s highlands, are Christians. The 13 were part of . . . Read More

Vietnamese pastor punished for ‘reports’ to US diplomats; Catholic blogger to be expelled to France

June 15, 2017 Vietnam Cambodia, Central Highlands, Communism, Ho Chi Minh City, Montagnards, Nguyen Cong Chinh, Thailand, USA

Pastor Nguyen Cong Chinh was released early in a deal that saw him leave the country. (Photo: USCIRF)

A pastor imprisoned in south-east Vietnam is being further punished for telling a visiting U.S. diplomatic delegation about abuses he has suffered. Nguyen Cong Chinh, serving an 11-year sentence for “undermining national solidarity” by religious activities with ethnic groups in the Central Highlands, met US consular officials in Ho Chi . . . Read More

No solution for Vietnam’s persecuted Montagnard-people

April 5, 2017 Vietnam Asylum seekers, Cambodia, Montagnards, Refugees, Religious freedom, Thailand, UN, Vietnam

The number of Montagnard-people fleeing their native Vietnam, because of persecution of their Christian faith, is growing, reports Al Jazeera. They initially end up in surrounding nations like Cambodia and Thailand, where they face a stateless future as their refugee status is not recognized. Thailand and Cambodia are not signatories . . . Read More

Vietnam Religion Law causes concerns

January 20, 2017 Vietnam Cambodia, Central Highlands, Montagnards, Refugees, Religion Law, Religious freedom, Vietnam

Vietnam’s new Law on Belief and Religion is causing concern among Christians, particularly in rural areas, reports The Diplomat. The legislation, passed in November last year, has been widely criticised by rights groups, who say the government is trying to exert greater control over religious practice in the country. Human . . . Read More

Cambodia orders Montagnards to leave

September 15, 2015 Vietnam Asylum seekers, Cambodia, Montagnards, Protestants, Refugees, UN, Vietnam

Cambodia has told hundreds of Vietnamese Christian refugees to return home or face forced repatriation. The UN estimated in August that over 200 Degars (or Montagnards), who observe a form of Protestantism outlawed in Vietnam, were waiting for their asylum claims to be processed. Cambodia granted 13 of them refugee . . . Read More

Vietnam’s two faces

April 30, 2015 Vietnam Cambodia, Central Highlands, Dien Bien, Ho Chi Minh City, Montagnards, Nguyen Van Dai, Religious freedom, UN

n Vietnam’s paddy fields and distinctive rock formations are major attractions for tourists. Kristen Elsby / Getty Images As Vietnam celebrates 40 years since the end of what is commonly known elsewhere as the ‘Vietnam War’, its government faces accusations of failing to ensure the rights of its citizens . . . Read More

Vietnam still violates religious freedom

March 12, 2015 Vietnam Cambodia, Minorities, Montagnards, Religious freedom, UN, Vietnam

The message at the annual UN Human Rights Council in Geneva this week was clear: Vietnam still struggles to ensure religious freedom for its citizens. ‘Whereas religious life and religious diversity are a reality in Vietnam today, autonomy and activities of independent religious or belief communities – that is, unrecognised . . . Read More

Catching Our Eye