- immigration expertise
- policy analysis
- extensive facts and figures
Vietnamese Green Card Holders May Be Deported
By Sandra Hernandez
The Daily Journal
Jan. 24, 2008
LOS ANGELES - A new agreement allowing U.S. officials to deport undocumented Vietnamese immigrants to
their homeland is also expected to affect some green-card holders.
A pact signed Tuesday by Julie L. Myers, assistant secretary for Homeland Security, in the capitol city of
Hanoi, allows for Vietnamese who entered the United States illegally after July 12, 1995, to be deported.
Until recently, Vietnam was among a handful of countries, including Cuba, where deportation was impossible
because the United States had no deportation agreement with those countries.
The new rule initially will affect 1,500 Vietnamese nationwide, including some green-card holders, according
to federal officials.
"Some of those affected include those with final orders of removal or those going through immigration
proceedings," said Michael Keegan, a spokesman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency that
oversees deportations.
Keegan said the number of Vietnamese likely will increase as more immigrants are identified.
Immigration law considers any foreign national, including permanent residents, who are sentenced to at least
one year, an aggravated felon subject to deportation.
The new agreement sparked concern among Vietnamese and immigrant activists.
"This is huge for the Vietnamese-American community," said Nam Loc Nguyen, who heads Catholic Charities
of Los Angeles' immigration and refugee department.
Nguyen said green-card holders, including children of former U.S. soldiers stationed in Vietnam, could face
problems if repatriated.
"My big concern is for refugee groups, including former political prisoners, the Amerasians, and the boat
people who will be mistreated if returned to Vietnam," Nguyen said. "They will be persecuted."
U.S. officials agree to pay for the deportations, and Vietnamese authorities agree to issue travel documents
needed to repatriate any immigrant.
Before the pact, undocumented Vietnamese immigrants could not be deported because they lacked travel
documents.
The agreement comes 33 years after the Vietnam War ended.
Relations between the U.S. and Vietnam were severed until 1995.
A million Vietnamese fled the country, some in boats, and later resettled in the United States. Southern
California is home to one of the largest Vietnamese communities in the nation.
"Vietnam is one of the major countries where deportation hasn't been possible and now is," said Hiroshi
Motomura, a law professor at University of North Carolina, Durham.
"This is similar to what happened with Cambodia a few years ago," Motomura said.
In 2000, the United States signed an agreement with Cambodian allowing for deportations. The pact came 30
years after the Khmer Rouge's reign left 2 million dead and forced others to flee Cambodia.
Immigration advocates said that agreement led to broken families.
"Families were split here," said Kathleen Sullivan, a senior attorney with Catholic Legal Immigration Network
Inc.
"People who were children during the Killing Fields, who actually spent no time in Cambodia and didn't speak
the language, were processed and returned to Cambodia," Sullivan said. "And you can expect to see
something similar now.
By Sandra Hernandez
The Daily Journal
Jan. 24, 2008
LOS ANGELES - A new agreement allowing U.S. officials to deport undocumented Vietnamese immigrants to
their homeland is also expected to affect some green-card holders.
A pact signed Tuesday by Julie L. Myers, assistant secretary for Homeland Security, in the capitol city of
Hanoi, allows for Vietnamese who entered the United States illegally after July 12, 1995, to be deported.
Until recently, Vietnam was among a handful of countries, including Cuba, where deportation was impossible
because the United States had no deportation agreement with those countries.
The new rule initially will affect 1,500 Vietnamese nationwide, including some green-card holders, according
to federal officials.
"Some of those affected include those with final orders of removal or those going through immigration
proceedings," said Michael Keegan, a spokesman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency that
oversees deportations.
Keegan said the number of Vietnamese likely will increase as more immigrants are identified.
Immigration law considers any foreign national, including permanent residents, who are sentenced to at least
one year, an aggravated felon subject to deportation.
The new agreement sparked concern among Vietnamese and immigrant activists.
"This is huge for the Vietnamese-American community," said Nam Loc Nguyen, who heads Catholic Charities
of Los Angeles' immigration and refugee department.
Nguyen said green-card holders, including children of former U.S. soldiers stationed in Vietnam, could face
problems if repatriated.
"My big concern is for refugee groups, including former political prisoners, the Amerasians, and the boat
people who will be mistreated if returned to Vietnam," Nguyen said. "They will be persecuted."
U.S. officials agree to pay for the deportations, and Vietnamese authorities agree to issue travel documents
needed to repatriate any immigrant.
Before the pact, undocumented Vietnamese immigrants could not be deported because they lacked travel
documents.
The agreement comes 33 years after the Vietnam War ended.
Relations between the U.S. and Vietnam were severed until 1995.
A million Vietnamese fled the country, some in boats, and later resettled in the United States. Southern
California is home to one of the largest Vietnamese communities in the nation.
"Vietnam is one of the major countries where deportation hasn't been possible and now is," said Hiroshi
Motomura, a law professor at University of North Carolina, Durham.
"This is similar to what happened with Cambodia a few years ago," Motomura said.
In 2000, the United States signed an agreement with Cambodian allowing for deportations. The pact came 30
years after the Khmer Rouge's reign left 2 million dead and forced others to flee Cambodia.
Immigration advocates said that agreement led to broken families.
"Families were split here," said Kathleen Sullivan, a senior attorney with Catholic Legal Immigration Network
Inc.
"People who were children during the Killing Fields, who actually spent no time in Cambodia and didn't speak
the language, were processed and returned to Cambodia," Sullivan said. "And you can expect to see
something similar now.
415 Michigan Ave., NE
Suite 150
Washington, DC 20017
202.635.2556
202.635.2649 fax
media inquiries:
e-mail me
(202) 635-5810
Suite 150
Washington, DC 20017
202.635.2556
202.635.2649 fax
media inquiries:
e-mail me
(202) 635-5810
media inquiries: Melissa Williams
Public Affairs & Media Relations Officer
(202) 635-5810
Public Affairs & Media Relations Officer
(202) 635-5810
NATIONAL PROGRAMS | LEGALIZATION | ADVOCACY | RELIGIOUS IMMIGRATION SERVICES | ADMINISTRATION & DEVELOPMENT | TRAINING & TECHNICAL SUPPORT
HOME | CONTACT US | E-MAIL LIST | DONATE NOW
