BILL NUMBER: SJR 5	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Senator Nguyen
   (Coauthors: Assembly Members Chu and Kim)

                        MARCH 10, 2015

   Relative to humanitarian resettlement.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SJR 5, as introduced, Nguyen. Vietnam: humanitarian resettlement.
   This measure would urge Congress and the President of the United
States to expand the Humanitarian Resettlement Program to allow
disabled veteran officers of the South Vietnamese Army currently
living in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to enter the United
States.
   Fiscal committee: no.



   WHEREAS, The Vietnamese-American community plays an important role
in the social, cultural, and economic landscape of the State of
California and the United States; and
   WHEREAS, The Socialist Republic of Vietnam's human rights
violations and corrupt judicial system have resulted in the
incarceration of peaceful dissidents without due process; and
   WHEREAS, Despite the renewal of diplomatic relations between the
United States and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam in 1995, and the
launching of the United States-Vietnam Comprehensive Partnership in
July 2013, significant human rights violations continue to persist;
and
   WHEREAS, The Global Network for Rights and Development's 2014
International Human Rights Rank Indicator ranks the Socialist
Republic of Vietnam as one of the 15 countries who are the worst
offenders of human rights in the world; and
   WHEREAS, The United States government and the American people have
a commitment to assisting individuals that fought as allies in the
Vietnam War who continue to face persecution and threats from the
Communist government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam; and
   WHEREAS, The veterans of the South Vietnamese Army, also known as
the Qu[n L?c Vi?t Nam C?ng Hòa, showed their commitment to the United
States by fighting alongside the United States Armed Forces during
the Vietnam War and have suffered greatly since April 30, 1975; and
   WHEREAS, The Humanitarian Resettlement Program, also known as the
Orderly Departure Program, has allowed for the resettlement to the
United States of former reeducation center detainees, former
Vietnamese employees of the United States government, and former
Vietnamese employees of private American companies and organizations
prior to April 30, 1975; and
   WHEREAS, Disabled veterans of the South Vietnamese Army, also
known as the Qu[n L?c Vi?t Nam C?ng Hòa, have suffered a lifetime of
great challenges and discrimination. Yet, disabled veterans were
excluded from the Humanitarian Resettlement Program because they were
not detained in reeducation camps for the requisite number of years
due to their physical disabilities; and
   WHEREAS, Thousands of disabled veterans of the South Vietnamese
Army, also known as the Qu[n L?c Vi?t Nam C?ng Hòa, and their
families are still living in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,
facing continued persecution from the government, including a lack of
access to jobs, housing, and education; and
   WHEREAS, April 30, 2015, marks the 40th year since the Fall of
Saigon; and
   WHEREAS, Amending the Humanitarian Resettlement Program, also
known as the Orderly Departure Program, to include disabled veterans
of the South Vietnamese Army, also known as the Qu[n L?c Vi?t Nam
C?ng Hòa, would rightfully bring these veterans into a program that
was meant to include them but inadvertently left them out; now,
therefore, be it
   Resolved by the Senate and the Assembly of the State of
California, jointly, That the Legislature respectfully urges the
President and the Vice President of the United States and the United
States Congress to expand the Humanitarian Resettlement Program to
allow disabled veterans of the South Vietnamese Army currently living
in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to enter the United States; and
be it further
   Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this
resolution to the President and the Vice President of the United
States, to the Majority Leader of the Senate, to the Speaker of the
House of Representatives, and to each Senator and Representative from
California in the Congress of the United States, and to the author
for appropriate distribution.