A Change of Guard

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Thursday 29 January 2015

18 more Vietnamese Montagnards cross into Cambodian jungle: activist

Eighteen more Vietnamese hill tribe Montagnards fleeing persecution in the communist nation have crossed into Cambodia's jungle to seek asylum, a rights activist said on Thursday.
The group, including two women, arrived in Cambodian territory on Wednesday and are now hiding out in a remote jungle in northeastern Rattanakiri province, Chhay Thi, an activist from local rights group Adhoc, told AFP.
"They are seeking to apply for asylum. They want the United Nations to help them," he said.
Scores of Montagnards, a French term referring to the mainly Christian ethnic minority groups in Vietnam's mountainous Central Highlands region, have crossed the border to Cambodia in recent years to escape discrimination.
Many Montagnard groups practise forms of evangelical Protestantism, which puts them at odds with Vietnam's communist rulers, who tightly control religion.

With the help of the United Nations some have applied for asylum, but many remain wary of coming into contact with Cambodian authorities for fear of being returned.
The arrival of the latest group brings the number of Montagnards currently hiding in Cambodia's jungle to 32, including 3 children.
Chhay Thi said the asylum-seekers were facing health issues brought about by cold temperatures.
"According to information we have received, many more Montagnards want to cross the border to Cambodia," he added.
Cambodian officials could not immediately be reached for comment.
In 2001 Vietnamese troops crushed protests in the Central Highlands, prompting an exodus of Montagnards. Hanoi routinely asks Cambodia to return those who flee.
In May 2011 thousands of Hmong people -- one of the Montagnard groups -- gathered in Vietnam's remote northwest apparently awaiting the arrival of a "messiah".
The gathering was broken up by authorities in circumstances that remain unclear.
Dozens of people have been jailed over the incident, which Vietnam has cast as a separatist plot to overthrow its government.

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