France: The forgotten people of Tonkin

A chapter of colonial history is slowly drawing to a close in Sainte-Livrade-sur-Lot, where the last of the French citizens repatriated during the Indochina War still live.The first of the repatriated citizens originally from Vietnam arrived in the town of Sainte-Livrade-sur-Lot in southwestern France in April 1956. Some were former parachutists; others were the widows of French officers, and their children. Today they are between 80 and 90 years old. For a long time, they lived in dilapidated barracks without indoor plumbing. Only in recent years has an effort been made to build new housing. But the residents of the makeshift repatriate camp never complained publically about their deplorable living conditions in France.

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