Vietnam: USCIRF
Condemns Intimidation of Le Thi Cong Nhan and Urges Obama Administration to Name
Vietnam a CPC
WASHINGTON D.C. (March 12, 2010) –
Vietnam continues to backslide on human rights
and religious freedom with the detention Wednesday of Le Thi Cong Nhan for
giving interviews to international media, said the U.S. Commission on
International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today.
Le Thi Cong Nhan, a prominent human rights and religious freedom dissident, was
released from prison Saturday, two months shy of completing a three-year
sentence for “anti-government activity.” But she was detained again at a Hanoi
police station Wednesday for telling reporters that her time in prison confirmed
her “faith” in the peaceful “struggle for human rights and democracy in
Vietnam.”
“USCIRF condemns the outrageous police harassment
and detention of Le Thi Cong Nhan in the strongest possible terms. She
represents the best of Vietnam’s future and not a threat to its government. The
international community should act to make sure she does not exchange one prison
for another,” said Leonard Leo, USCIRF Chair.
“USCIRF also calls for the unconditional release of Le Thi Cong Nhan and other
peaceful human rights and religious freedom advocates, including Father
Nguyen Van Ly and Nguyen Van Dai. We urge the
U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam to echo this call and to meet with Le Thi Cong Nhan.”
Le Thi Cong Nhan was imprisoned in 2007 at the same time as fellow dissidents
Nguyen Van Dai and Fr. Nguyen Van Ly. During USCIRF visits to Vietnam in 2007
and 2009, the Vietnamese government granted USCIRF delegations unusual access to
all three prisoners. All expressed a firm commitment to the peaceful
advancement of religious freedom and the rule of law in Vietnam, saying that
such action was essential to the future of Vietnam and better U.S.-Vietnam
relations.
USCIRF has lobbied the Vietnamese government for the release of these prisoners
and others detained or harassed for religious activity or religious freedom
advocacy, including seeking the humanitarian release of Father Ly who suffered a
debilitating stroke in October 2009. He remains in solitary confinement.
“USCIRF has given the Obama Administration and the U.S. Congress compelling
evidence of severe and ongoing religious freedom violations in Vietnam,
warranting its re-designation as a Country of
Particular Concern (CPC),” said Mr. Leo.
The CPC designation would mark Vietnam as one of the world’s most egregious
violators of religious freedom.
During a House Foreign Relations Committee hearing last week,
Assistant Secretary
Kurt Campbell acknowledged that Vietnam was “backsliding” on human rights
and religious freedom issues. Mr. Campbell is touring Southeast Asia at this
moment, but Vietnam is not his itinerary.
“The human rights record of the government of
Vietnam remained problematic,” said the State Department’s 2009
Human Rights Report, which was released
yesterday. “The government increased its suppression of dissent, arresting and
convicting several political activists. … The government utilized or tolerated
the use of force to resolve disputes with a Buddhist order in Lam Dong and
Catholic groups with unresolved property claims. Workers were not free to
organize independent unions, and independent labor activists faced arrest and
harassment.”
USCIRF has also urged passage of the Vietnam Human
Rights Act in Congress believing that this measure will bring tangible
improvements for the Vietnamese people and
reaffirm America’s commitment to the promotion of human rights and democratic
values abroad.
“Public statements of concern are no longer enough; we believe the Obama
Administration should take concerted action to encourage specific improvements,”
said Mr. Leo. “When used in the past, the CPC designation did not hinder
progress on other bilateral interests, but led to tangible improvements on a
number of critical human rights concerns. U.S. policy and diplomacy must be
clear champions for both universal rights and increased trade, and should send a
clear signal that these interests cannot proceed separately.”
USCIRF is an independent, bipartisan U.S. federal
government commission. USCIRF Commissioners are appointed by the
President and the leadership of both political parties in the Senate and the
House of Representatives. USCIRF’s principal
responsibilities are to review the facts and circumstances of violations of
religious freedom internationally and to make policy recommendations to the
President, the Secretary of State and Congress.
To interview a USCIRF Commissioner, contact Tom Carter, Communications Director
at
tcarter@uscirf.gov, or
(202) 523-3257.