Cambodian American National Council

[srpnote 54] CAMBODIAN-BORN CONVICTS IN THE US

NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE KINGDOM OF CAMBODIA

Phnom Penh, June 23, 2002

THE U.S. SHOULD NOT SEND CAMBODIAN-BORN CONVICTS BACK TO CAMBODIA

On behalf of the Cambodian people, we appeal to the US government to reconsider their decision to send some 1,200 Cambodian-born convicts back to Cambodia.

This decision is unfair because:

1-Those mainly young convicts, though born in Cambodia, have been raised in the US and are therefore products of American society.

2-Their families were received in the US as political refugees more than 20 years ago, following tragedies the US were involved in and -- at least partly -- responsible for.

3-Had those Cambodian-born convicts obtained American citizenship, as most of them would be entitled to if they had the opportunity to apply for, like more privileged people with higher education, they would not face deportation now.

4-They have already been punished for the most often petty crimes they committed in the US. Being deported to Cambodia and obliged to survive in a country they know virtually nothing about, especially the lawlessness and the appalling living conditions, represents another harsh and unfair punishment.

5-While the crimes they have committed in the US are relatively minor and have already been paid for, they are sent now -- as a further punishment -- to a country of high crime where there is total impunity for criminals, including the most notorious ones, who occupy high ranking government positions and ally themselves with former Khmer Rouge leaders responsible for crimes against humanity.

Our plea to the American government is the following: Please, be fair with Cambodians in the US, and don't make double standards worse in Cambodia.

SRP Members of Parliament

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SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER Saturday, June 15, 2002 Tearful goodbyes before deportation to Cambodia By CHRIS MCGANN, SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER It was a family reunion no mother, no sister, no brother would ever wish for. But when word came down that Mao Chan was once again in Immigration and Naturalization detention and that this time he would be put on a one-way flight to Cambodia, they all traveled from Richmond, Va., to see him one last time. Uncertain of when Chan would actually be deported, they delivered a small duffel bag packed with clothes, toiletries, family snapshots and a new pair of shoes -- all that he's allowed to take with him. One by one, they walked into a noisy, partitioned room to see him, offer some worried, strained words of love and encouragement, then walked out into the drab waiting room at the INS detention center. "At home I always have a lot to say," said Chan's sister, Ouk. But the noise and the glass between them and the worry left her at a loss for words, if not in tears. Chan's mother, Yeng, carried the heaviest emotional burden. When she escaped Cambodia and Pol Pot's killing fields in 1979, she never wanted her family to have to return. Mao was 8 when they arrived in the United States. Thursday, the INS granted the family a "contact visit," allowing them to sit together and talk quietly. "I told him I love him so much," Yeng Chan said. "And I miss him." Worry showed on her face as she thought about what might await her son when he arrives in Cambodia. Media reports that Prime Minister Hun Sen will imprison the criminal deportees in a jail known for torture and other human rights violations exacerbates those fears. "I'm not sure he'll get there safe," she said. Chan will be among the first small group of Cambodian refugees who never gained U.S. citizenship, but who faced deportation because they committed "aggravated felonies" in the United States. The Cambodian government for decades had refused to accept the deportees, leaving 1,500 of them in legal limbo until March, when Cambodia reversed its policy. The policy change has raised concerns with King County's 7,000-member Cambodian community, many of whom question the fairness of deporting young people who have little or no connection with that country or its culture. Mao Chan said yesterday his biggest concern is what will happen to him upon his arrival. "They might try to kill me or throw me in jail when I get there," he said, but hid any hint of distress that thought might hold for him. Chan speaks Cambodian and says he thinks he'll be able to find a way to fit in. "I think I'll be OK," he said. The wide chasm that will separate him from his family appeared to be more troubling, though he remained remarkably upbeat through yesterday's awkward conversations. "I told them I'll be OK, just don't worry about me," he said. Convicted of several felony robberies, Chan could not have avoided the years in jail he's already served. But if he had become a U.S. citizen, he could have prevented his deportation. Like many Cambodian refugees who came to the United States as children and quickly assimilated into the street culture of the poor neighborhoods where their families could afford to live, Mao Chan got into trouble with the law. Which, federal officials are quick to point out, violates the rules that allowed them to take refuge here in the first place. But Chan said he never dreamed that his run-ins with the law would lead to deportation. The thick tattooed lines that spell out "Khmer" jutted out from under his sleeve and an ironic grin crossed his lips when he said that he now wished he had become a citizen -- something he simply didn't think about before. Advocacy groups say many of the refugees committed their crimes as juveniles and were little aware of the consequences of their crimes or the benefits of becoming a citizen. But in 1996, a new federal law took away immigration judges' discretion in cases such as Chan's. "Right now there is no discretion whatsoever," Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Wash., said in dismay. The legislation also defined offenses not considered felonies by most state and local governments, such as shoplifting, drunk driving and possession of marijuana as "aggravated felonies" punishable by deportation. While there is little that can be done to prevent the half-dozen imminent deportations scheduled as early as next week, Congress is working on changes that might reduce deportations in the future. McDermott said a 1996 immigration law has prompted complaints that Cambodian and other immigrant refugees are treated unfairly. "You have a whole bunch of things that make this a terribly unfair situation, which I'm afraid the Immigration Department is going to use their full power and deal with these people," McDermott said. A bill sponsored by Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., that targets some of the harshest aspects of the 1996 law has a chance of passage. It addresses the mandatory detention, retroactivity of the law and would return some discretion to immigration judges. Meanwhile, Chan's younger brother Charlie, who was 7 the last time he saw Mao but who kept close contact by telephone, said the two of them never lost their sense of humor. "We just joked around -- he told me how much this place (the detention center) sucked," said Charlie Chan, who remained upbeat at the reunion otherwise punctuated by tears. "I think it's a free ticket to a new life. We wanted to stop this, but now we plan on him starting a new life," Charlie Chan said. "But I don't think they gave him a fair chance here.[End]

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Refugees with a record face shock -- deportation A new agreement paves the way for the U.S. to send many people back to Cambodia Friday, June 14, 2002 By CHRIS McGANN SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER For Sokha Sun, the choice seemed simple: Facing a lengthy imprisonment and legal battle even after completion of his sentence on a gun charge, he simply agreed to be deported to Cambodia -- something most people thought would never happen. On March 22, it became clear that the 23-year-old Cambodian, who came to the United States as a 3-week-old refugee, had bet wrong. After decades of refusing to enter an agreement to accept criminal deportations of its citizens, the Cambodian government gave in, paving the way for Sun and nearly 1,500 other refugees to be sent to a war-ravaged country they barely know. About 100 of the Cambodians are currently in federal custody. Most have been released under supervision. Sun served 366 days in prison for possession of a stolen firearm in 2001. He was free less than three months before the unexpected thaw in U.S.-Cambodian relations and subsequent order to report back to the Immigration and Naturalization Service. Now in INS detention, he's a prime candidate for deportation "Back then, there wasn't a deportation agreement," she said. "There's no way he would have pleaded guilty. He would have gone to trial to fight. Any Cambodian would do anything possible to stay here." He may have little choice. The first deportations to Cambodia are expected early next week, with Mao Chan, another young immigrant in custody in Seattle, scheduled to be on the first flight with five other deportees from around the country. Chan was convicted of several felony assault charges. The timing of their removal depends in part on the Cambodian government, which must provide travel documents. Chan and five others have received those papers, and will be the first to go, an INS official confirmed yesterday. The sudden reversal of fortune for the 1,500 potential deportees sent shock waves through Washington's large Cambodian community, which numbers about 15,000 -- the third-largest in the United States. Most of the people facing deportation came to the United States as children. If their families had taken them through the citizenship process, none would be subject to deportation. But now, a lifetime later, few have much knowledge of Cambodian culture, or even the language. Their relatives worry that they will be abandoned to the harsh conditions of the impoverished country. "It's just like throwing these people away," said Lyvan Sawn, executive director of Khmer Community of Seattle/King County, which represents about 7,000 immigrants. Sawn's organization has organized a forum on the issue to be held from 9:30 a.m. to noon Saturday, June 22, at the Rainier Vista Community Center, 4500 Martin Luther King Jr. Way S. For many refugee children, an unusually wide generation gap may have led to youthful mistakes that now carry a stiff price, Sawn said. The children absorbed American culture and language faster than their parents. And while parents held tight to cultural traditions, their children quickly adopted different values. "The biggest problem was that Cambodian parents did not like their children becoming boyfriends and girlfriends before they were married," Sawn said. Cultural differences caused many young people to leave home early -- drawing them in to all kinds of problems, Sawn said. "But now they've grown up, they know their mistakes, they've got jobs and families and have become productive members of society," Sawn said. Some fear that the deportees, who in most cases have already completed prison terms, will face what could be life behind bars. Several Phnom Penh newspapers have reported that Prime Minister Hun Sen plans to jail the deportees as soon as they arrive in Cambodia. In May, The Cambodia Daily quoted Sen as saying: "America has asked the Cambodian government to accept Khmers that went to America illegally or were convicted in America. ... Persons who were put in prisons in America, when they return they have to stay in Prey Sar." Prey Sar is a Phnom Penh lockup for political prisoners where torture is likely, according to a 2002 Human Rights Watch World Report on Cambodia. However, an official at the U.S. Embassy in Phnom Penh said yesterday that Cambodia plans to repatriate "those who have served their sentences for their crimes." "They may have to be kept in some kind of temporary place until they can be resettled," he said. "The Cambodian government has asked that we send small groups so they can be resettled in an appropriate way." The embassy spokesman said Cambodia signed the deportation agreement this year because the United States negotiated more rigorously after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. But he emphasized that the U.S. Naturalization Act, which authorizes deportation of those convicted of some crimes, applies to all countries. Sun's situation is all too familiar to T.C. Duong, of the South East Asia Resource Center in Washington D.C. "People are often told, 'Why don't you just sign this agreement, they are never going to have (a deportation) agreement with Cambodia -- and essentially you will be set free under supervised release," Duong said. "A lot of people didn't proceed with legal avenues." While non-citizens living in the United States have long risked deportation if convicted of a serious crime, Congress in 1996 mandated detention and deportation for aliens convicted of crimes deemed "aggravated felonies," which include shoplifting, driving while drunk, marijuana possession. "Crimes that would not be classified as felonies under state or local laws are now deportable offenses," Duong said. The Resource Center opposes the removal of Southeast Asians to countries where they and their families were persecuted during years of war and revolution. It notes that the State Department affirms "unequivocally" that Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam continue to be characterized by gross and widespread human rights violations. "We fear that individuals forcibly deported to Southeast Asia would be particularly targeted for human rights violations," Duong said. Sun's family fled Cambodia along with about 200,000 other refugees in the aftermath of Pol Pot's genocide, which killed an estimated 2 million people. But federal officials say the rules are clear. "The Cambodian nationals who are affected by this -- they came as refugees, but part of being a refugee is that you agree to live your life lawfully and you agree to abide by the laws of the United States," said the INS representative, who asked not to be named. "Once you commit a crime you forfeit your right to stay in the U.S. and you no longer have a right to refuge in this country." Seattle Federal Public Defender Jay Stansell, who represents Mao Chan, said he has serious concerns about his clients' safety, as well as the precedent his pending deportation represents. "If there's a formalized policy of sending people back to maximum security prison, I think that's outrageous," Stansell said. "Our fear is that the government will claim that it is reasonable that thousands of others can expect to be deported." Stansell, who has helped win the release of at least 300 immigrants who were being held indefinitely in INS detention, said he's trying to find a non-governmental organization in Cambodia to monitor the treatment of the deportees. But for the 54 Cambodians Stansell helped free from indefinite INS detention, freedom could once again be in the balance. "The worst part is the uncertainty," said Niki Sun. "No one has any idea what is going to happen to him, will he be held in jail, are they going to torture him? He's never even been in Cambodia, he was born in a refugee camp in Thailand, it's not his country -- He's like an American kid. He doesn't even speak the language. How's he going to work? Where's he going to live?"

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RALLY FOR FAIR AND HUMANE TREATMENT OF CAMBODIAN DEPORTEES WHY IS THE US GOVERNMENT SENDING PEOPLE TO TORTURE, DEATH AND POLITICAL IMPRISONMENT IN CAMBODIA? COME SHOW YOUR SUPPORT FOR CAMBODIAN AMERICANS! When: Friday June 21ST at 4pm Where: Meet at 16th and Roxbury SW in White Center ( Seattle, Washington ) 1. WE ARE POLITICAL VICTIMS 2. WE ARE POLITICAL REFUGEES 3. DEPORTATION IS UNFAIR TO CAMBODIAN COMMUNITY 4. STOP SEND REFUGEES BACK TO TORTURE COUNTRY 5. IF DEPORT PEOPLE BACK TO CAMBODIA, THEY WILL DIE 6. WE WOULD RATHER STAY IN JAIL; WE WILL NOT GO BACK TO CAMBODIA 7. WE ARE AMERICAN, DO NOT SEND AMERICAN TO THE DEATH 8. DO NOT MAKE CAMBODIAN POLITICAL PRISONER 9. U.S.A SHOULD BE HELPING POLITICAL PRISONER NOT CREATING THEM For more info contact: Savun Neang (206) 383-5413 or 767-7686 Stephen Reilly (206) 852-9028 Chanvong Kim (206) 713-2083 Tepsovanmony Sounn, (253) 377-9005

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