UNHCR CLAIMS "BIG STEP FORWARD;" PLAN OF ACTION WITH GVN ON

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 HANOI 001651 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP/MLS, DRL/AWH, AND PRM, BANGKOK FOR REFUGEE COORDINATOR, GENEVA FOR RMA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM PREF CB VM SUBJECT: UNHCR CLAIMS "BIG STEP FORWARD;" PLAN OF ACTION WITH GVN ON STATELESS KHMERS REFS: A) HANOI 1463 B) HANOI 301 HANOI 00001651 001.2 OF 003 SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (SBU) In a new development, the United Nations High Commission on Refugees (UNHCR) has claimed a "big step forward" toward resolution of the 30-year old cases of more than 9,000 stateless Khmer persons in Southern Vietnam. According to UNHCR, in August, the Cambodian Government (GOC) informed the Government of Vietnam (GVN) that it is unable to provide any records or information about the citizenship of said individuals. With this development, the GVN has changed these individuals' legal status from "foreign nationals" to "stateless persons," providing them a path to naturalization under the GVN's Nationality Law. The GVN Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) and UNHCR have drafted a proposed Plan of Action for the naturalization process and submitted it to Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dzung for final approval. In a meeting with Ambassador Michalak, the MFA Consular Department confirmed the new cooperation and plan. With the GOC out of the picture and the GVN now recognizing these individuals as "stateless," resolution of the cases looks promising. UNHCR has asked Post to "encourage" the process, including the use of its public diplomacy resources. UNHCR would welcome a congressional visit focused on this issue if it could occur before a proposed November launch date for the Plan of Action. BACKGROUND -------------- ¶2. (SBU) In the mid to late 1970s, thousands of Cambodian residents fled Cambodia as and after the Khmer Rouge came to power. The majority of those individuals who arrived in Vietnam were granted refuge by the GVN. Some of these refugees were later resettled in third countries, and most of the remainder were able to return to Cambodia once the situation in Cambodia had stabilized. However, approximately 9,500 Cambodian residents who had sought refuge in Vietnam were not accepted for resettlement and were denied the right to return to Cambodia by the GOC. The GOC asserted at the time and continues to assert that, following a check of the country's civil records, no proof existed to confirm that these individuals ever possessed Cambodian citizenship. Almost all of these individuals 
are ethnic Chinese or ethnic Vietnamese. ¶3. (SBU) Denied the chance to resettle in a third country and the right to return to their country of origin, thousands of Cambodian refugees remained in Vietnam in a situation of statelessness. While this group was initially settled in a number of refugee camps in and around Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC),humanitarian assistance in these camps ceased in 1994. Since then, approximately 7,000 refugees have left the camps in search of work and opportunities in and around HCMC. A further 2,200 remain in four villages in which the camps once operated. These individuals have now lived in Vietnam over 30 years and many have children and grandchildren born in Vietnam; yet, they do not enjoy the same rights as Vietnamese citizens; including the right to own property, comparable access to education, and public healthcare benefits. Most of these individuals continue to live in adverse conditions as stateless persons. UNHCR HAS TAKEN LEAD ON RESOLUTION -------------- ¶4. (SBU) For the last several years, UNHCR has been trying to resolve these cases, working with the GVN and GOC, and pushing for a solution involving Vietnamese naturalization. The GVN Prime Minister's Directive of 2000 and its amendment on December 15, 2006 called for a naturalization process. However, this process initially required the GOC to officially classify the individuals as non-Cambodian citizens and required each individual to obtain a Cambodian certification of citizenship renunciation before the GVN would consider naturalization. UNHCR conducted surveys and identified all such individuals, creating name lists that both governments have now shared. However, the situation between the GVN and GOC reached a stalemate on technical immigration issues and the issue of Cambodian citizenship renunciation. UNHCR: AFTER AUGUST MEETING, GOC NOW "OUT OF PICTURE" -------------- -------------- ¶5. (SBU) UNHCR Deputy Regional Representative Giuseppe De Vincentis told PolOff that, following a meeting in Phnom Penh on August 20-21, 2007 between GVN DPM/FM Pham Gia Khiem and GOC DPM/FM Hor Namhong, the situation has completely changed and the GOC is now "out of the picture." In this meeting, the GVN reportedly presented the GOC with a list of Khmer individuals and requested GOC certification of renunciation of citizenship for the group. The GOC's official HANOI 00001651 002.2 OF 003 response was, according to UNHCR documentation, "since these people cannot present any proof that they were Cambodian citizens...[and since] the government has no archive about these people...they are not peoples of concern to Cambodia." GVN SAYS THEY ARE NOW OFFICIALLY "STATELESS PERSONS" -------------- -------------- ¶6. (SBU) According to De Vincentis, this statement from the GOC allowed the GVN to make the decision to completely change the legal status of these people from "foreign nationals" to "stateless persons". The result is that the GVN may now apply its present Nationality Law and naturalize these persons without any further action by the GOC. PLAN OF ACTION FOR NATURALIZATION -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Subsequent to the late August Phnom Penh meeting, UNHCR and the MFA Consular Department drafted a proposed Plan of Action for moving towards a naturalization solution. Under this Plan of Action, the UNHCR and the GVN, will (per UNHCR documentation, text follows): - Organize a training workshop on the basic statelessness issues and international standards for senior GVN officials (key players) of the concerned provinces/city (where the stateless persons reside); - Carry out a census and categorize all Cambodian refugees in Binh Duong and Binh Phuoc provinces; - Carry out a separate census and categorize all 7,000 Cambodians living in HCMC; - Organize training workshops for local authorities at communal/district levels including refugee committee people on the naturalization procedures; - Organize an information campaign in the areas where the refugees living, i.e. printing leaflets, TV, radio, etc.; and, - Start to receive applications for naturalization. ¶8. (SBU) According to UNHCR, the MFA is now working with relevant government bodies to amend present and/or issue new legal documents to these stateless persons and to further facilitate the process, such as implementing a waiver of certain GVN naturalization fees and a waiver of required Vietnamese language certificates for older people (most of the children all speak Vietnamese). In addition, the GVN will undertake an initial inter-agency mission to the South, according to De Vincentis. This proposed Plan of Action has been submitted to PM Dzung for final approval, and UNCHR is awaiting a Note Verbale from MFA confirming the Plan. UNHCR is "hopeful" that the operational phase could commence in November. UNHCR: GVN HAS NOW ACKNOWLEDGED "BALL IN ITS COURT" -------------- -------------- ¶9. (SBU) According to De Vincentis, this revised application of the law can be applied to other Khmer refugees not on the list given to the GOC, but included on UNHCR lists or identified by the planned census. Based on these negotiations, the MFA is now eager to resolve these cases and fully understands the requirements of UNHCR's role in the naturalization process. De Vincentis said the MFA has acknowledged that "the ball is fully in its court." Under the Plan, UNHCR will provide much of the technical and financial support including subsidizing certain naturalization-related fees that may not be waived, producing required documentation and advertising. This may require additional minor negotiations. UNHCR ASKS FOR EMBASSY SUPPORT; OPEN TO CODEL -------------- ¶10. (SBU) De Vincentis said the best way the USG can now support this process is for Post to "actively encourage" the MFA - UNCHR Plan of Action through its high-level GVN meetings and through "its public diplomacy," and to push for a November start date. He said UNHCR HQ's Statelessness Unit in Geneva has previously supported a proposed visit to Vietnam by U.S. Congresswoman Diane Watson (California) and that UNHCR would still support this visit if it took place before the Plan of Action went into operation and served to "encourage" the GVN. DISCREPANCIES IN ACTUAL NUMBER OF STATELESS KHMERS -------------- -------------- HANOI 00001651 003.2 OF 003 ¶11. (SBU) Ambassador Michalak met on September 7 with Truong Xuan Thanh, Deputy Director General of the MFA Consular Department, who confirmed that the GVN was working with UNHCR on a path to citizenship for these cases. However, according to Thanh, 8,000 of the reported 10,000 stateless Khmer people have "already been granted Vietnamese citizenship." This contradicts the UNHCR assessment that only a "small number has regularized." There could be some confusion as the GVN has granted a form of legal residency status to many of these persons but not citizenship. Other individuals were pursuing the earlier naturalization process that required a Cambodian certificate of citizenship renunciation. Clearly the initial joint GVN - UNHCR census, called for in the Plan of Action, will be key to the overall successful resolution of these cases as this should establish the legal status of each individual and the requirements for a permanent solution. COMMENT -------------- ¶12. (SBU) After years of stalemate in resolution of these stateless cases, this is clearly a positive step forward and a solid commitment to resolving the problem by the GVN. With action by the Cambodian Government no longer required, resolution of these cases should be much simpler. Possible obstacles remain. Inter-agency cooperation will be needed between the MFA and the Ministry of Justice, which has responsibility for naturalization and has failed to lead in the past on this issue. In addition, there could be inconsistencies between the lists of individuals that have already been identified as "stateless" and the new lists that will be developed from the proposed census and criteria called for in the Plan of Action. A strong commitment from the Prime Minister's office will likely be needed. We will follow developments closely in the weeks to come and report on progress toward implementation of the UNHCR-GVN Plan of Action. MICHALAK