Canadian Immigration Laws: Communist Vietnam

Wooden Boats Dept: While I thank letter writer Christopher Levenson for recognizing the contribution of Vietnamese boat refugees after they became Canadian citizens, I feel the need to clarify the situation for those who do not know what happened three decades ago, according to Vancouver Sun. In short, Vietnamese boat people were not lucky to come to Canada directly by ship like Tamil migrants and re: Sympathy and suspicion greet arrival of Sri Lankan migrants, Letters, Aug. 16 Vietnamese boat people did not break Canadian immigration laws. They escaped from Communist Vietnam in small, rickety, wooden boats, most of the time without enough food and water. They could only reach the shores of southeast Asian countries like Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines and Hong Kong. It was estimated that a few hundred thousands died when the boats sank, they ran out of water or were murdered by pirates, among other deadly challenges. Many boats were chased away by the navies of Thailand and Malaysia, then their boats sank. Those who could reach shore safely had to stay in United Nations-sponsored refugee camps until they were screened and accepted by Canadian immigration officers. As reported in the news.
@t southeast asian countries, vancouver sun