Report on Violations of Freedom of Religion by the Government of Vietnam for First Quarter of 2014

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Article 24 of the 2013 Version of Vietnamese Constitution, which was approved by Congress on November 28th, 2013 and became effective on January 1st, 2014, defines:

1. Everybody is entitled to freedom of religion.  A person can choose to practice any religion of their choice or remains atheist.  All religions are equal by laws.

2. The government respects and guarantees freedom of religion.

3. No person can violate freedom of religion for another, and no person can abuse freedom of religion to breach the laws.

However from January 1^st through March 31^st of 2014, there had been numerous cases of violations of freedom of religion by offices in the Vietnamese government system upon individuals and religious organizations.

On the morning of January 1st, 2014, Leader Le Cong Cau, Head of Youth Buddhist Family Committee with the United Vietnamese Buddhism Association was removed from his flight going from Hue to Saigon.  The reason of his removal was to search his belongs because of a “bomb threat.”   The police interrogated Mr. Cau for thirteen hours and accused him of working with an unrecognized religious organization, the United Vietnamese Buddhism Association.   The police presumed that Mr. Le Cong Cau carried illegal materials; therefore they needed to detain him for further investigation.  The illegal materials that security forces referred to were document by United Vietnamese Buddhism Association, which they deemed unlawfully.  He has been under house arrest with a watch force of at least fifteen officers in both uniforms and plainclothes.  (Details of the interview of Mr.  Le Cong Cau by Radio Free Asia reporter Y Lan can be found at the following link.)

Venerable Thich Nhu Dat, the newly elected President of the United Vietnamese Buddhism Association planned a ceremony on January 10th, 2014 to jointly honor the immortalizations of Buddha, contributing founders of Buddhism, and martyrs who scarified their lives for Buddhism at Long Quang Monastery in Hue.  The organizers of this ceremony arranged to invite approximately three-hundred guests from the United Vietnamese Buddhism Association and Vietnamese Buddhist Family Committees nationwide.

Beginning on January 1st, 2014, the government of Thua Thien – Hue province banned this ceremony from taking place.  They prohibited guests from the southern provinces to convene in Hue.  Venerable Thich Chon Tam was expelled from Long Quang Monastery and taken to Saigon on January 9th, 2014.  Seventeen leaders of Youth Buddhist Family were investigated and placed under house arrests since January 7th, 2014.

Prisoner of conscience Paul Tran Minh Nhat, who is a Catholic, is currently imprisoned in Thai Nguyen province.   Mr. Nhat sent a letter to Archbishop Peter Nguyen Van Nhon, the president of Vietnamese Conference of Catholic Bishops raising concerns violations of religious freedom in prison including the right to access religious publication, the right to conduct religious practices and ceremonies.

On January 21st, 2014, the People’s Committee of Ayun Pa town sent document numbered 77/UBND-VX  to the office of Kontum Dioceses proposing the transfer of Father Vu Van Bang out of Ayun Pa town.  The reason mentioned in this document was that the Religion Committee in Ho Chi Minh city had not recognized Father Vu Van Bang as a priest.   On the other hand, Decree on Religious Freedom issued in 2004 states that religious committees along with all other government organizations do not have the right to approve or disapprove statutory in Catholicism.  This letter  clearly fits the definition of power abuse and law breaching by the government of Ayun Pa town with the purpose of interfering and disturbing religion.

Hoa Hao Buddhist worshipers in Lap Vo district have constantly been harassed and threatened following the arbitrary arrests of Ms. Bui Thi Minh Hang, Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy Quynh, and Mr. Nguyen Van Minh on February 11th, 2014.  Mr. Nguyen Van Hoa, a Hoa Hao Buddhist worshiper in Long Hung B commune, Lap Vo district, Dong Thap province informed reporter An Nhien of Radio Free Asia that he and his family have been blocked in traffic, threatened with arrests.  He also mentioned that police went to his home in large number to summon him for investigation at the commune’s police station.  Mr. Hoa insistently refused for fear that he would face beatings or even danger to his life inside the station.   Police from Lap Vo district have constantly been harassing Hoa Hao Buddhist worshipers in the area.

Some Hoa Hao Buddhist worshipers have informed us that there are currently more than two million Hoa Hao Buddhist practitioners in Vietnam with the majority of them living in the Mekong delta region.  Many Hoa Hao Buddhist practitioners have often been physically assaulted, imprisoned, and threatened because of their religious belief and their refusal to participate in Hoa Hao Buddhist Association organized by the government of Vietnam.   The Vietnamese government continuously tells the international community that they respect freedom of religion, but their repetitive attacks on Hoa Hao Buddhist practitioners in the Mekong delta prove that the local governments betray words from the central government.

Hoa Hao Buddhist Association usually conducts an annual memorial ceremony to mark the day Prophet Huynh Phu So was assassinated by Viet Minh on February 25th of the lunar calendar, which coincides with March 25th, 2014.

A group of Hoa Hao worshipers in Cho Moi district, An Giang province planned for a memorial ceremony at the residence of Mr. Nguyen Van Vinh at 393, Group 10, Long Hoa hamlet, Long Giang commune, Cho Moi district, An Giang province.  In the afternoon of March 18th, 2014, the government of An Giang province came to this location to order a ban on the ceremony with threats of punishment for anyone who disobeyed this order.  Mr. Tong Van Chinh and Mr. Nguyen Van Vinh fiercely attested this ban.  They insisted on conducting the ceremony even if they had to face jail-time or even risk of being shot at.  Mr. Le Quang Liem, the president of Central Traditional Hoa Hao Buddhist Association had issued a statement of condemnation from Saigon.

During the evening of March 19th, 2014, the government of Hanoi used bulldozers and excavators to fill the pond inside the premise of the Church of Vietnamese Redemptorists in Hanoi.  This track of land had been illegally taken from the church and given to Dong Da hospital.  Father Luu Ngoc Quynh, acting on behalf of the Church, contacted Mr. Le Van Hung, the president of Dong Da hospital to request a halt on the work.  Mr.  Le Van Hung assured him that the work was to recondition the lake.  But reliable sources informed the Church that the government of Hanoi planned to build a high-rise right on the lake once it is filled; therefore the reason of reconditioning the lake was deceptive.   If this high-rise is built, it will cause significant disruption to the layout and composition of the Churches’ premise.

Father Joseph Nguyen Van Phuong, the bishop of Thai Ha parish said: “We have tried our best to maintain a peaceful protest from the parishioners.  If the government deliberately destroys the church then they will be fully responsible for any reaction by angry parishioners.  The Church of Thai Ha has taken tremendous loss resulted from the lack of respect for the laws by the government.  The priests, students, and parishioners of this Church have all been victimized.   We all share the pain with the land-grab victims and people under persecution from all over Vietnam.”

In addition to illegal land-grab taking place at the Church of Vietnamese Redemptorists’s premise, land in the Ho Ba Giang area of the church is also under serious invasion with many signs of corruption taking place.

This very first report may not comprise all of the violations against freedom of religion by the government due to lack of information.  To make future reports more complete, we ask for your inputs in the forms of reports of violations taking place anywhere inside of Vietnam. Please include any documentation, photographs, voice or video recordings, with specific time and location when possible. Correspondence can be sent to email address of: vietnamesereligion@gmail.com or quyentongiao@gmail.com

The formation of this committee is based on Articles 24 and 25 of the 2013 version of Vietnamese Constitution, which was approved by Congress on November 28th, 2013 and became effective on January 1st, 2014.  Article 24 states that:

1. Everybody is entitled to freedom of religion.  A person can choose to practice any religion of their choice or remains atheist.  All religions are equal by laws.

2.  The government respects and guarantees freedom of religion.

3. No person can violate freedom of religion for another; and no person can abuse freedom of religion to breach the laws.

Article 25 mentions:

Citizens have the rights to freedom of expression, freedom of the press, freedom to access information, freedom of assembly, freedom to form associations, and freedom to protest.   The right to exercise these freedoms is defined by laws.”

Up until now, there are no other laws beside the Constitution provide further clarification on the right to form an association.   Therefore, Article 25 of the Constitution is the only and the Grandfather law for this matter.

The ultimate purpose of Committee to Protect Freedom of Religion is assisting citizens to practice their freedom of religion and to fight any attempt to restrain or obstruct freedom of religion.

Any person who meets the following criteria can become member of Committee to Protect Freedom of Religion:

1. Currently practicing any faith-based belief.  Please take notice that honoring the deceased ancestors is not a religion, but this is truly a long standing respectful tradition in the Vietnamese culture.   Honoring Ho Chi Minh is neither a religion.

2. Having the courage to publically participate in all activities initiated by the Committee.

3. Having the willingness to work towards common objectives without financial assistance.

4. Agreeing to the objectives and activities initiated by the Committee.

The Committee is focusing the following projects:

1. Compiling quarterly reports on violations of freedom of religion by the government of Vietnam.

2. Demanding better care from the government of Vietnam for belief, spiritual, and religious aspects for members of the military.

3. Demanding freedom of religion for prisoners, especially prisoners of conscience.

4. Requesting total abolition of the current Decrees on Belief and Religion.  If total abolition of these decrees cannot be achieved then there should at least be formation of new religious laws with guaranteed protection of freedom of religion for all citizens.  These new laws cannot serve the purpose of current management on religions by the government.

The Committee will dissolve when all Vietnamese citizens recognize that freedom of religion is truly respected based on standards established by independent organizations inside of Vietnam and abroad.