Vietnam/Cambodia: Montagnards in a Catch-22 situation

In recent weeks, dozens of Christian asylum-seekers have entered Cambodia from Vietnam, and - according to Radio Free Asia reporting on 1 October 2015 - continue to do so.‚  Refugees from Central Vietnam have crossed the border to Cambodia only to find that they will not be accepted as political refugees. The plight of Vietnamese Montagnard Christians has been highlighted in World Watch Research"s bimonthly analysis with ugly frequency. Daniel, persecution analyst for World Watch Research, explains further: "Montagnard Christians keep crossing the border despite the fact that virtually all refugees have been denied refugee status by Cambodian authorities and have been threatened with deportation. While several of them have chosen to return to Vietnam, it is worrying that, despite the refugee"s testimonies about persecution, the Vietnamese authorities have given no assurances that they will cease harassing Montagnard communities. As the region is effectively closed to international monitoring and even domestic observers have difficulties entering the provinces, it is impossible to judge what treatment returnees can expect."