[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 435 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 435
Recognizing the contributions of the Montagnard indigenous tribespeople
of the Central Highlands of Vietnam to the United States Armed Forces
during the Vietnam War, and condemning the ongoing violation of human
rights by the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 11, 2019
Mr. Budd (for himself, Mr. Rouda, Mr. Lowenthal, Mr. Khanna, and Mr.
Meadows) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the
Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the
Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker,
in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the
jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the contributions of the Montagnard indigenous tribespeople
of the Central Highlands of Vietnam to the United States Armed Forces
during the Vietnam War, and condemning the ongoing violation of human
rights by the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
Whereas the Montagnards are an indigenous tribespeople living in Vietnam's
Central Highlands region;
Whereas French Roman Catholic missionaries converted many of the Montagnards in
the 19th century and American Protestant missionaries subsequently
converted many to various Protestant sects;
Whereas, during the 1960s, the United States Mission in Saigon, the Central
Intelligence Agency (CIA), and United States Army Special Forces, also
known as the Green Berets, trained the Montagnards in unconventional
warfare;
Whereas an estimated 61,000 Montagnards, out of an estimated population of
1,000,000, fought alongside the United States and the Army of the
Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) forces against the North Vietnamese Army and
the Viet Cong;
Whereas the CIA, United States Special Forces, and the Montagnards cooperated on
the Village Defense Program, a forerunner to the War's Strategic Hamlet
Program, and an estimated 43,000 Montagnards were organized into
Civilian Irregular Defense Groups (CIDGs) to provide protection for the
areas around the CIDGs' operational bases;
Whereas, at its peak, the CIDGs had approximately 50 operational bases, with
each base containing a contingent of two United States Army officers and
ten enlisted men, and an ARVN unit of the same size, and each base
trained 200 to 700 Montagnards or ``strikers'';
Whereas another 18,000 Montagnards were reportedly enlisted into mobile strike
forces and various historical accounts describe a strong bond between
the United States Special Forces and the Montagnards;
Whereas the lives of thousands of members of the United States Armed Forces were
saved as a result of the heroic actions of the Montagnards, who fought
loyally and bravely alongside United States Special Forces in the
Vietnam War;
Whereas, after the fall of the Republic of Vietnam in 1975, thousands of
Montagnards fled across the border into Cambodia to escape persecution;
Whereas the Government of the reunified Vietnamese nation, renamed the Socialist
Republic of Vietnam, deeply distrusted the Montagnards who had sided
with the United States and ARVN forces, and subjected them to
imprisonment and various forms of discrimination and oppression after
the Vietnam War ended;
Whereas, after the Vietnam War, the United States Government resettled large
numbers of Montagnards in several States and an estimated several
thousand Montagnards currently reside in North Carolina, which is the
largest population of Montagnards residing outside of Vietnam;
Whereas the Socialist Republic of Vietnam currently remains a one-party state,
ruled and controlled by the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), which
continues to restrict freedom of religion, movement, land and property
rights, and political expression;
Whereas some Montagnard-Americans have shared their personal stories about
Vietnamese authorities either preventing them from visiting Vietnam or
subjecting them to interrogation upon re-entering the country on visits;
Whereas the Department of State's 2016 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices
documents the Government of Vietnam's claim that Montagnards fleeing to
Cambodia and Thailand are illegal migrants in pursuit of economic
opportunities, and human rights groups assess that the Government has
pressured Cambodian and Thai authorities to refuse Montagnards refugee
or temporary asylum-seeker status and repatriate them to Vietnam;
Whereas the Department of State's 2016 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices
states that, although Vietnamese law prohibits discrimination against
ethnic minorities and despite Vietnam's significant economic growth, the
economic gap between many ethnic minority communities and ethnic
Vietnamese (Kinh) communities persisted as a result of longstanding and
persistent discrimination;
Whereas the Department of State's 2016 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices
further states that ethnic minority populations in Vietnam also
experienced significant health challenges as maternal and child
mortality rates were significantly higher in ethnic minority areas, in
comparison with urban and coastal areas;
Whereas the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF)
in its 2016 Annual Report states that ``Montagnards, many of whom are
Protestant, face numerous restrictions'' such as being prevented from
holding religious ceremonies, harassed or punished, and ``many are
summoned to meet with local authorities and pressured to cease
practicing their `poisonous' faith'';
Whereas Montagnards have stated that this kind of ongoing social and religious
persecution drove them to flee to Cambodia;
Whereas USCIRF reports that, since October 2014, ``up to 300 Montagnards have
fled Vietnam to Cambodia, many because of religious persecution'' but
``only 13 have been granted refugee status with the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as countless others are waiting for
Cambodia to process their asylum claims, and dozens have been returned
to Vietnam, often at great risk of reprisals''; and
Whereas USCIRF recommends that Vietnam be designated a Country of Particular
Concern (CPC) as a means to facilitating reforms: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) recognizes the contributions of the Montagnards who
fought loyally and bravely with United States Armed Forces
during the Vietnam War and who continue to suffer persecution
in Vietnam as a result of this relationship;
(2) condemns ongoing actions by the Government of Vietnam
to suppress basic human rights and civil liberties of its
citizens;
(3) calls on the Government of Vietnam to allow human
rights groups access to all regions of the country and to end
restrictions of basic human rights, including the right for
Montagnards to practice their Christian faith freely, the right
to land and property, freedom of movement, the right to retain
ethnic identity and culture, and access to an adequate standard
of living;
(4) recognizes the importance of the U.S. Refugee
Admissions Program (USRAP) and that, where determined to be
eligible, Montagnards should be provided access to USRAP for
resettlement in the United States and in other countries; and
(5) urges the President and Congress to develop policies at
every level, including trade, military, and economic policy,
that support Montagnards and other marginalized ethnic minority
and indigenous populations in Vietnam that reflect United
States interests and commitment to upholding human rights and
democracy abroad.
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