MIGRATION AS A RESULT OF WAR – Vietnamese War YEAR 5/6 MISS BLACK

We are learning the reasons for migration to Australia to escape the devastation of war, focusing on the Vietnam War. We are learning that immigration has physical and emotional implications.

Background Knowledge What do you know about the Vietnam War? When did it occur? What was Australia’s involvement?

THE VIETNAM WAR Between 1955 and 1975, Vietnam was at war. The government of the South and the communists’ regime of the North fought for power. The United State allies supported the government of the South and the North Vietnam communists were supported by USSR, China and North Korea. Conflict was great and the jungles of Vietnam proved a difficult place to fight war. It is estimated that millions of Vietnamese died in battle as well as in crossfire.

1975 – Tu Do Refugee Boat Story How did passengers on board the Tu Do feel as they left Vietnam How did passengers feel upon arrival? Imagine you travelled on a similar vessel to China or Cambodia. What would you do on arrival? Who would you speak to, where would you go? How would you feel? https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=agmzNvN4R2o http://www.migrationheritage.nsw.gov.au/exhibition/objectsthroughtime/tudo/

PORTFOLIO TASK Write up a short profile entry for the individual’s life you examined. Include: Country of birth Year of migration Reason for emigration Transport into Australia Provide a paragraph or two outlining the person’s story.

Country of birth: Saigon, Vietnam Year of Migration: 1977 Reason for Emigration: After the fall of Saigon to Communist forces in 1975, thousands of Vietnamese were forced to flee their country, many in overcrowded, leaky boats headed for Australia.  Transport into Australia: In a boat called Tu Do, meaning freedom in Vietnamese In 1975, 30-year-old Tan Thanh Lu owned a thriving general store on Phu Quoc Island in Vietnam’s south. With three friends he pooled resources and built a boat that he named Tu Do, meaning ‘Freedom’ in Vietnamese. Although built specifically to escape Vietnam, to keep it inconspicuous it was constructed like typical fishing craft used on the island. Tan initially used it for fishing to avoid suspicion and to help pay for crucial supplies which were hidden in his fellow voyagers’ homes. When the boat was ready to leave for Australia, Tan staged an engine breakdown in an effort to switch out the engine for a more powerful one that would last the journey to Australia. When the boat was ready to leave, Tan and 38 passengers pushed the boat for kilometres across shallow waters before getting on board and starting the engine further out to shore where they were less likely to be seen and heard. The children on the boat were giving cough medicine to keep them quiet. The boat eventually arrived in Darwin on the 21 of November after travelling the 6,000kms from Vietnam to Australia. THE LU FAMILY

Why did people want to escape Vietnam? The Communist government took over their homeland at the end of the Vietnam War.  Those who fought against the North in the war feared retribution for what they had done They were scared of the Government Traditional freedoms were few and far between It has been estimated that 65,000 Vietnamese were executed after the end of the war with 1 million being sent to prison/re-education camps where an estimated 165,000 died

What is communism? the idea that everyone in a given society receives equal shares of the benefits derived from labour designed to allow the poor to rise up and attain financial and social status equal to that of the middle-class wealth is redistributed so that the members of the upper class are brought down to the same financial and social level as the middle class.  all means of production be controlled by the state (i.e; Government) no one can own his or her own business or produce his or her own goods because the state owns everything TASK: Write a small persuasive paragraph on whether you agree with the ideas communism presents or not. Remember to give reasons whys.

Why did people hate the idea of communism so much? It promotes the vision of a classless society It goes against human nature to be competitive Owners of businesses who worked 24/7 and established a company from ground up, have no right to his own company under communist rule Lack of motivation - Why would one work tirelessly on a new invention or technology when another who does “normal” day-to-day work would receive the same benefits? Communism results in people becoming slaves to the Government

So people fled Vietnam to escape communist rule… Why did they escape on boats and pen the term “boat people”?

Under communist rule, leaving the country was illegal As catching a plane was out of the question for these Vietnamese people, their only option was to escape on a fishing boat and hope they didn’t get caught Up to 1.5 million people attempted to escape Because they were fishing boats, they were not designed for vast open waters and they were often very overcrowded. This resulted in thousands of refugees dying on their journey In 1979 Australian immigration officers selected most refugees from refugee camps in Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia. Those with relatives in Australia, useful skills and who could speak English were selected, as well as a small number of students and diplomats.