Part 1: Settlement Background of Vietnamese in Canada
The immigration of the Vietnamese to Canada was based on the political upheaval in Vietnam and the immigration policy of the government of Canada.
Before 1975
The first Vietnamese immigrant to Canada was Mrs. Phạm Thị Ngọc Lang who married Mr. George Galipeau in Montreal in 1953 after their courtship on the Saigon-Marseille ship when both were students. Their daughter, Céline Galipeau, is currently one of the most popular news anchors for Radio Canada (CBC French Network) in Montreal.
In 1954, at the end of the colonial war between Vietnam and France, 20 Carmelite nuns left Hanoi to go to a seminary near Lac Saint Jean in Quebec when the communists took over North Vietnam.
Before the end of the war in Vietnam in April 1975, there were around 1500 Vietnamese in Canada. The majority of them were students, including those who came under the Colombo scholarship program. They mainly went to Quebec, and a small number went to Ottawa and Toronto (about 100 each) and Moncton. Almost all of them remained in Canada after graduation.
Included in the above number were a few dozen Vietnamese professionals who immigrated to Canada after finishing their university studies in the U.S., Japan, Australia, New Zealand, France, Belgium, Switzerland, etc.
Period of 1975-1978
In early May 1975, after the end of the war in Vietnam, based on a special request from the American government, Canada agreed to take about 2000 Vietnamese who were helped by the American to escape to various places such as Subic Bay, Guam Island, Wake Island, and other locations on U.S. soil.
By 1976, about 6,500 Vietnamese refugees settled in Canada. The majority of them came to Quebec mainly because of their knowledge of French, or because their children were studying in Quebec. Many in this first wave of refugees were either wealthy, well-educated, professionals, or high ranking officials of the former government of South Vietnam.
By 1978, about 1,500 Vietnamese refugees chose to settle in Ontario, including about 1,000 in Toronto.
Although not prepared to emigrate abroad, these newcomers appeared to settle quite rapidly, thanks to their high level of education, their willingness to adapt to a new life, and the initial assistance of the Canadian government and local charitable organizations. It should be noted that it took only a few years for Vietnamese professionals such as doctors, dentists, pharmacists, engineers, etc. to start working again in their fields.
Period 1979-1982
In July 1978, the “boat people” phenomenon started, bringing with it a huge shock to the whole world. The dramatic escape of the “Hải Hồng” ship with 2,654 on board, which was refused to dock in Malaysia on November 9, 1978 after being badly damaged by a hurricane, had caused an S.O.S. article in The Globe and Mail of Toronto on November 11, which prompted the Canadian government to make an announcement that it would rescue 604 from the ship before other countries such as the U.S., France, Germany, Switzerland and Belgium opened their doors to accept the rest.
The Hải Hồng event triggered a new wave of humanitarian rescue of Vietnamese refugees from various refugee camps in Southeast Asia by the Canadian government and by many private sponsorship groups, a program strongly recommended by the government. From 1979 to 1980, more than 7,000 such private groups have been formed to sponsor 36,000 refugees. The government sponsored 24,000 more, meeting the target of 50,000.
Many in this second wave of Vietnamese newcomers went to settle in Ontario to find jobs. The majority of them did not have the same educational levels of those settled in Quebec earlier.
From 1982 until now
After 1982, most Vietnamese immigrants to Canada came under the family sponsorship program. 75% of Vietnamese in Canada came during this period.
Statistics Canada information in 2001 showed that 44% of Vietnamese immigrants came to Canada from 1981 to 1990, and 31% from 1991 to 2001.
From 2001 to 2006, there were only 10,545 Vietnamese immigrants to Canada.
The majority of those who came after 1982, although less fortunate than those who came earlier because of less government support and/or because of their ages, have somehow settled quite well, thanks to their hard-working ethics. Only a minority who came under a special humanitarian program after the closure of refugee camps in Hong Kong in the late 80s have had trouble integrating into the new society.
Table 1 indicates that the highest number of Vietnamese coming to Canada took place from 1981 to 1990. Almost half of them settled in Ontario, and for the first time, British Columbia saw more Vietnamese newcomers than Quebec.
From 1996 to 2001, on average there were only around 800 Vietnamese newcomers per month, including many temporary visa students who mainly went to English speaking universities and colleges in Ontario.
| Canada | Ontario | Québec | B.Columbia | Alberta | |
| Before 1961 | 170 | 55 | 65 | 25 | 25 |
| 1961 - 1970 | 620 | 175 | 305 | 80 | 25 |
| 1971 - 1980 | 25 750 | 9 870 | 7 035 | 3 745 | 3 890 |
| 1981 - 1990 | 47 265 | 22 125 | 8 070 | 8 575 | 6 565 |
| 1991 - 1995 | 23 975 | 11 605 | 3 235 | 5 185 | 3 000 |
| 1996-2001 | 9 235 | 4 390 | 1 650 | 1 610 | 1 120 |
| Total immigrants | 107 010 | 48 225 | 20 360 | 19 215 | 150 |
| Total Non-immigrants (*) | 42 980 | 18 510 | 7 665 | 7 785 | 6 720 |
| Temporary residents | 1 420 | 715 | 285 | 195 | 150 |
| Totals | 151 400 | 67 450 | 28 310 | 27 195 | 21 495 |
* Born in Canada or elsewhere whose parents are Canadian citizens
Source: Statistics Canada 2001, catalogue 97F 0010XCB2001040
| Year | Family | Reunion Refugee | Independent | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | 0 | 88 | 13 | 101 | |
| 1979 | 24 | 2 650 | 9 | 2 683 | |
| 1980 | 24 | 2 504 | 27 | 2 555 | |
| 1981 | 118 | 776 | 85 | 979 | |
| 1982 | 192 | 559 | 173 | 924 | |
| 1983 | 434 | 449 | 384 | 1 267 | |
| 1984 | 734 | 604 | 1 163 | 2 501 | |
| 1985 | 627 | 736 | 733 | 2 096 | |
| 1986 | 438 | 670 | 176 | 1 284 | |
| 1987 | 354 | 635 | 133 | 1 122 | |
| 1988 | 432 | 854 | 78 | 1 364 | |
| 1989 | 706 | 1 186 | 56 | 1 948 | |
| 1990 | 763 | 814 | 159 | 1 736 | |
| 1991 | 1 019 | 495 | 233 | 1 747 | |
| 1992 | 1 108 | 491 | 178 | 1 777 | |
| 1993 | 1 249 | 256 | 134 | 1 639 | |
| Total | 8,222 | 13,767 | 3,734 | 25,723 | |
Source: Department of Immigration and Citizenship, Government of Canada. From Warwick R. Wilson, "Socio-Geographic Aspects of Settlement, Adjustment and Mobility: The Vietnamese in Toronto (Canada), 1981-1994", Research Paper Presented to the 7th Biennial Conference of the Association for Canadian Studies in Australia and New Zealand at Latrobe University, Melbourne, Australia, February 16-18th, 1995, p. 50.
In addition, Immigration Québec also published a Table showing the numbers of Vietnamese settled in Montreal from 1976 to 2006, as follows:
- before 1976 : 2 785
- 1976 – 1980 : 4 925
- 1981 – 1985 : 5 085
- 1986 – 1990 : 3 575
- 1991 - 1995 : 3 670
- 1996 – 2000 : 1 395
- 2001 – 2006 : 1 310
- Total: 22 745
Source:Population immigrée recencée au Québec et dans les régions en 2006/ publiée par MICC, mai 2009, p. 75.
