| Type of casualty | Number of people |
|---|---|
| South Vietnamese troops killed or missing in action | 220,357 |
| South Vietnamese troops wounded | 1.17 million |
| North Vietnamese + Viet Cong troops killed | 660,000 |
| South Vietnamese civilian casualties | 325000 - 1 million |
| North Vietnamese civilian casualties from U.S bombing | 65,000 |
| Civilians assassinated by North Vietnamese + Viet Cong | 166,000 |
| Vietnamese affected by herbicide poisoning | 3,000,000 |
As the North began consolidating control over the South, anyone found to have been cooperating with the U.S. or Australia were imprisoned in ‘re-education’ camps (about 1 mil. would be imprisoned). Many were tortured in these camps, and ~165,000 died. Most were imprisoned for between 3 - 10 years, but some stayed for up to 17 years.
Vietnamese emigration
Many of the Vietnamese, in fear of capture and detainment in the camps, or after having their lives destroyed by the war and fearing the communist system, became desperate to leave the country. These people were internationally classified as ‘internally displaced persons’ (people forced to flee their homes because of conflict) or ‘stateless people’ (people not considered citizens of a particular state) by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Refugee camps for these people were established in Malaysia, Hong Kong, Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia. From here, these refugees or asylum seekers were resettled in countries willing to accept them (including the USA, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the UK and Japan).
Boat people
Many refugees so fearful and desperate to escape at times arrived in Australia with official approval, they came to be known as ‘boat people’. The first boat people landed in Darwin in April 1976. Following this one boat, 2058 further boats would arrive until 1981.
Australia’s willingness to take in these refugees only occurred due to the Labor governments official repeal of the White Australia Policy in 1973. From this point, and beginning with the Vietnamese refugees, Australia started to be considered a multicultural society.