Dear Editor,
Several articles in your recent edition highlighted the
issue of racism in Cambodia against people of ethnic Vietnamese
origin.
Amnesty International has long worked on behalf of individuals in
Cambodia whose human rights have been violated, a number of whom have been
targetted because they were labelled Vietnamese - even though many of them had
been born in Cambodia.
It is a gross distortion of the truth to suggest
that in the past, "Vietnamese" were somehow responsible for the massacres to
which they fell victim, because they had "not respected Cambodia's integrity and
sovereignty." The ethnic Vietnamese were, and remain a vulnerable minority in
need of protection from the racism and discrimination to which they have been
subjected.
In 1994, Amnesty International wrote to the Royal Cambodian
Government, expressing concern that individuals of ethnic Vietnamese origin with
a legitimate claim to Cambodian citizenship were suffering discrimination at the
hands of local authorities, including the confiscation of identity documents,
harassment and extortion.
The organization is concerned that, once again,
no distinction is being made between long-term residents from the ethnic
Vietnamese minority and recent migrant workers who have come to Cambodia to seek
short-term employment.
Cambodia is a state party to the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Article 26 of which states: "All persons
are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to the
equal protection of the law. In this respect, the law shall prohibit any
discrimination on any ground such as race, colour, sex, language, religion,
political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or
status."
Targetting individuals because they happen to speak a language
other than Khmer is a clear violation of this Covenant.
In 2001, the UN
will hold an international conference against racism, designed to encourage
people from all backgrounds to eliminate the scourge of racism, and instead
celebrate the diversity of people which make up the world's population. The
contributions of some politicians to your newspaper's last edition underline the
urgent need for this conference, and for a more tolerant and inclusive view of
who may call themselves Cambodian.
Rory Mungoven, Asia Pacific Program Director, Amnesty International,
London
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