President Signs Hmong Citizenship Bill
By Frederic J. Frommer/AP

President Clinton signed legislation making it easier for Hmong veterans of the Vietnam War to become U.S. citizens, 10 years after the bill was first introduced in Congress.

The law signed May 26 waives the English-language requirement for Hmong, an ethnic group in Laos, who were recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency for covert military actions during the war.

Supporters say the Hmong have found it difficult to learn English because their language did not have a written form until recently.

Rep. Bruce Vento, D-Minn., sponsored the original Hmong citizenship bill 10 years ago. Vento, who is retiring this year after 12 terms in Congress because of lung cancer, called the legislation one of his most important priorities.

“Bruce is very pleased with news that the president has decided to sign the bill,” said Vento’s spokesman, Rick Jauert. “It’s an appropriate weekend to do so with it being Memorial Day weekend.”

Minnesota is home to an estimated 60,000 Hmong, the most of any state. Wisconsin is another center for Hmong settlement.

Congress gave final approval to the bill earlier this week.

“We’re pleased that the president has signed it so quickly, and that it will be public law thereafter,” said Philip Smith, Washington director of the Lao Veterans of America. “It’s a fitting memorial on the 25th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War in Laos to the Hmong veterans who served this country so nobly in battle.”