Project Brief- Montagnard Oppression

The Montagnard Dega people have been intensely persecuted by the current Vietnamese government since its victory over the South Vietnamese and American forces in 1975. I find this topic fascinating for a multitude of reasons, but particularly because of the lack of discussion by both the international community and media outlets. It still amazes me that in this day and age things such as this intentional, focused persecution can occur and mankind still insists that we are somehow 'better' than we were 100 years ago.

As stated on the Montagnard Human Rights Organization website, the Montagnard have been the subject of systematic persecution by the Hanoi-based government. This is due to combination of factors such as the fact that the Montagnards stood against Ho Chi Minh and the Communists on the sides of both the French and the Americans. Additionally, the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization has stated that it has been very difficult for persecuted Montagnard's to gain asylum in neighboring countries (particularly Cambodia) and they are in fact sent back to Vietnam to face further persecution and scrutiny. I feel it necessary to further research this ongoing problem further and more in depth.

Resources Used:
http://www.cal.org/co/montagnards/vpeop.html
http://www.mhro.org/
http://sites.google.com/site/mdagreensboronc/mission-culture-history
http://www.montagnard-foundation.org/news-04-0621.htm
http://www.deathinthehighlands.com/home.html
http://www.unpo.org/article/12280

This is a diagram 'connecting' my interest in music to my interest in the plight of the Montagnard people. A sort of interesting thought experiment.



In order to really get the information I want/need for this project to work, I believe that I would like to meet with members of Montagnard community who have directly experienced the persecution of the Vietnamese government in order to better understand this topic. I believe with this information I could present an engrossing product/presentation.