United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office National Security and International Affairs Division author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 1996-10-21 monographic deposited born digital 56 p. GA 1.13:NSIAD-97-12 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-12 P0b002ee18037a004 f:ns97012 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-28 GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-12 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-12 NSIAD-97-12 Political refugees International relations International organizations Foreign governments Ethical conduct Eligibility determinations Immigration or emigration Administrative costs Political corruption Dept. of State Orderly Departure Program UNHCR Comprehensive Plan of Action Hong Kong Indonesia Asia Vietnam Letter Report NSIAD Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the implementation of the Comprehensive Plan of Action (CPA) for the resettlement of asylum seekers from Vietnam and southeast Asia, focusing on: (1) whether Hong Kong and Indonesia implemented CPA refugee status determination procedures in accordance with international standards and criteria; (2) alleged corruption in the program; (3) whether asylum seekers who returned to Vietnam encountered persecution; and (4) U.S. and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees' (UNHCR) costs associated with CPA implementation.<p/>GAO found that: (1) both Hong Kong and Indonesia agreed to follow international standards for processing asylum seekers, and their procedures met CPA basic structural requirements and minimal procedural requirements set by UNHCR; (2) although there were some implementation errors, Hong Kong's screening process had sufficient checks and balances to ensure fair treatment of the 60,275 asylum seekers, and there were no allegations of corruption in Hong Kong's program; (3) a review indicated that the Hong Kong government made reasonable screening decisions in nine of ten selected cases; (4) UNHCR had no hard evidence of widespread rumors of corruption in the Indonesia program, which screened 18,131 persons; (5) UNHCR reviews of 486 cases upheld the screening decisions in 481 cases, and found that corruption, while not substantiated in case files, could have inflated the number of positive decisions; (6) a review indicated that Indonesia made reasonable screening decisions in six of ten selected cases; (7) the Department of State did not adequately monitor the screening processes but relied on UNHCR reports on CPA implementation; (8) the UNHCR program for monitoring the voluntary repatriation of returnees was well-structured and implemented; (9) there was no evidence of persecution among the returnee population; and (10) UNHCR spent $8.8 million, including about $1.6 million for 1996, to maintain its monitoring operation in Vietnam and about $444 million in CPA and other funds between 1989 and 1995. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-12/html/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-12.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-12/pdf/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-12.pdf GAO/NSIAD-97-12 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-NSIAD-97-12 Letter Report GAO/NSIAD-97-12; Vietnamese Asylum Seekers: Refugee Screening Procedures Under the Comprehensive Plan of Action; Political refugees International relations International organizations Foreign governments Ethical conduct Eligibility determinations Immigration or emigration Administrative costs Political corruption Dept. of State Orderly Departure Program UNHCR Comprehensive Plan of Action Hong Kong Indonesia Asia Vietnam Public Law 101-167