As four Uighur men prepare to resettle in Bermuda, few Bermudians can contemplate what they are going through.

Jimmy Diep can relate more than most.

In 1980, Mr. Diep was one of five South Vietnamese refugees selected by Sir John Swan to be brought to Bermuda from a camp in Hong Kong.

The decision came in the aftermath of a Bermudian registered ship rescuing 24 Vietnamese refugees in the South China Sea.

He was the last person granted asylum on the Island.

Since his arrival, three of the people who came with him have moved to the United States, and a fourth died, but Mr. Diep remains, working at the Van Buren gas station in Flatts. "Only I'm still here," said Mr. Diep yesterday.

Mr. Diep attempted to escape communist South Vietnam in 1979, with 300 people crammed into a 30-foot vessel.

Two immigrants died before the Marine Police of Hong Kong rescued the ships passengers.

For months, he lived with 500 other people in Hong Kong, working in a handbag factory for $22 a day, until he was selected to come to Bermuda.

"It is hard," said Mr. Diep. "Sometimes you're lucky. We didn't know how it was going to be. It's hard to live so you don't know what's coming tomorrow.

"Now is harder than it was. The cost of living is so high, it's completely different."

In Mr. Diep's case, he was able to find a home for himself due to the generosity of Edgar Wilkinson, who gave Mr. Diep a job at Tobacco Associates, along with helping him find a home and a motorcycle.

"When I started, my boss helped me a lot," said Mr. Diep. "He helped me straight from the beginning.

"People were quite welcoming. When I got here, I got a job, I earned a living, so I was comfortable. It feels good."

According to Mr. Diep, one of the main reasons he was able to adapt was that he spoke English when he arrived.

"The Chinese community here is so small, and I don't know how much English they speak," said Mr. Diep. "I don't know how much Chinese they speak. It takes a while to adjust. It's not easy getting used to life here."

While Mr. Diep was accepted with open arms, he understands things might be very different for the Uighurs because of their history. "If they are innocent people, we have to give them a chance," said Mr. Diep. "It's going to be hard for them."