VIETNAMESE IMMIGRATION TO THE CZECH REPUBLIC

1. VIETNAMESE IMMIGRATION TO THE CZECH REPUBLIC Cộng Hòa Xã Hội Chủ Nghĩa Việt Nam

2. Started in 1950´s Biggest wave during Vietnam War Officially as help of the Czechoslovakia to Vietnamese people 1967 - Around 3000 Vietnamese students,apprentices, trainees and workers (proletarians) 1973 - First agreement - Official visit of Vietnamese governmental delegation to Czechoslovakia to negotiate conditions of arrival of 10 to12 thousand Vietnamese to get professional experience in Czechoslovak factories

3. Vietnamese government saw the only possibility of restoration and development of their economy after war in workers' foreign internship • Next agreements - 1974, 1979 and 1980, which allowed arrival • of high amount of Vietnamese people to the Czechoslovakia • officially over 30 thousand - mostly workers, students and • apprentices 1985 - intergovernmental agreement on reducing number of Vietnamese in Czechoslovakia 1986 - around 19 thousand registered Vietnamese, 15 thousand of whom were men

4. Vietnamese were spread all over Czechoslovakia - most of them in Prague (around 4000) Till the end of 1990´s the number of Vietnamese was continually reduced up to 1/3 in 1990 - expiration of the agreement Vietnamese intended for foreign internship in Europe were selected chaotically till 1980, after this date they were selected according to real needs of their provinces and resorts of their companies Language training begun already in Vietnam with Czechoslovakian lectors there

5. In second half of 1980´s there was obvious misusing of the situation from both sides Czechoslovakia misused Vietnamese workers in unattractive fields of industry, at flow production in factories and when need to fulfill the plans On the other hand, Vietnamese discovered the possibility of migration for financial revenue - to the Czechoslovakia were sent people whose primary interest was to make high amount of money and do easier living. The tendency to learn the craft and improve working skills was pushed backwards and replaced by economic interests

6. Economic migration after 1989 The pressure of Vietnamese government to force its to return to Vietnam after 1989 was very weak and inconsistent, which made possible for thousands of Vietnamese in Europe to stay • There were several "tools" to avoid return to Vietnam • to emigrate to neighboring countries, where Vietnamese were not registered • and local governments had no records on them. Most used was Germany • to establish a Ltd. company together with Czechoslovak citizen and consequently • ask for trade license, which allowed Vietnamese to stay

7. After 1989 there were new waves of Vietnamese immigrants • Family members of Vietnamese living in Czechoslovakia • Arrival from German Democratic Republic, which resigned • agreements with Vietnamese government and enforced their • going off • Arrival of Vietnamese from other countries, especially Poland • and Hungary • - Illegal emigration from Vietnam via Russia Vietnamese insist on and have built self-sufficient system