Illustrative image (Source: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – An inter-sectoral meeting took placebetween Vietnamese and Cambodian agencies took place in Phnom Penh on April 23to discuss the handling of legal residency procedures for VietnameseCambodians.
The Vietnamese side included representatives from the Ministryof Public Security and State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs, whilethe Cambodian side was officials from agencies, including the General Departmentof Immigration and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and InternationalCooperation.
Both sides said historical factors have resulted inshortcomings in the licensing of legal documents to Vietnamese Cambodians inthe past, which is now not suitable to Cambodia’s current law.
The issue has caused difficulties to the management of localauthorities and hindered the community from carrying out their responsibilitiesto the country and protecting their legal rights.
Relevant Cambodian agencies have examined and classified toassess the current conditions of local document licensing and management for over170,000 Vietnamese Cambodians. About half of the group has completed theirrelated legal procedures; many of them with adequate documents to prove theirlegal immigration have received permanent residency permits.
The Vietnamese side welcomed the Cambodian side’s policy ontackling the issue for Vietnamese Cambodians, which facilitated them to settletheir life and make contribution to the host country. The work not only helpedCambodia manage local security affairs more effectively but also reflected thecountry’s traditional relationship with Vietnam.
The two sides agreed that Cambodian relevant agencies speedup the process of legal procedures for the community in line with local law. TheVietnamese side will coordinate with Cambodia during the process. TheVietnamese Embassy and other diplomatic representatives in Cambodia will tookpart in encouraging Vietnamese Cambodians to obey local regulations and quicklycomplete their relevant legal documents.-VNA
VNA
