Object donated to the Vietnamese Heritage Museum by Phan Nhật Nam
Issued in 1993 by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in coordination with the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok as part of the Humanitarian Operation (HO) Program. The H22 code identifies his case as part of the 22nd phase of refugee departures, reserved for former officers, political prisoners, and public figures detained after the war.
After the fall of Saigon in April 1975, Phan Nhật Nam was arrested and imprisoned in northern reeducation camps, including Hỏa Lò Prison in Hanoi. He spent 14 years (1975–1989) in detention, eight years of which were in solitary confinement, for his association with the Republic of Vietnam Armed Forces and his published anti-communist essays.
After years of petitioning, Nam was approved for emigration under the Orderly Departure Program (ODP) in 1993. Following his medical and administrative clearances, he departed Vietnam in November 1993 and resettled in the United States shortly thereafter. He went on to author several works, including Stories That Must Be Told, The Distant Road (1995), The Silent Night, and The Fire-Keeping Winter (1997).
Donated to the Vietnamese Heritage Museum (VHM) in Santa Ana, California, in 2020. Received by Chau Thuy.