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Federal Document Clearing House Congressional Testimony
June 20, 2005 Monday
SECTION: CAPITOL HILL HEARING TESTIMONY
LENGTH: 2236 words
COMMITTEE: HOUSE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
SUBCOMMITTEE: AFRICA
HEADLINE: HUMAN RIGHTS IN VIETNAM
TESTIMONY-BY: NINA SHEA, VICE CHAIR
AFFILIATION: U.S. COMMISSION ON INTERNATIONAL RELIGIOUS FREEDOM
BODY:
Statement of Nina Shea Vice Chair, U.S. Commission on International
Religious Freedom
Committee on House International Relations Subcommittee on Africa,
Global Human Rights and International Operations
June 20, 2005
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee let me begin by thanking you
for holding this important and timely hearing. It is an honor for me to
be here.
Prime Minister Phan Van Khai arrives in Washington today to hold a
historic meeting with President Bush. It has been thirty years since the
end of the Vietnam War and ten years since our two countries have
normalized relations.
Relations between our two countries have strengthened and improved in
many important areas. Trade is up to almost $7 billion a year and
Vietnam seems poised to enter the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Military ties are growing as our naval ships now regularly visit
Vietnamese ports The U.S. is also popular with Vietnamese youth.
These are encouraging signs and ones that should be capitalized on. A
secure and prosperous Southeast Asia is in the interest of both our
countries.
But significant issues remain, particularly in the area of human rights,
including religious freedom. More than any other issue, differences over
human rights and religious freedom have the potential to inhibit the
forward momentum in our bilateral relationship. Relations can never
fully develop until the Government of Vietnam protects and promotes the
fundamental human rights of all its citizens.
These concerns should not be swept aside during the Prime Minister's
visit. It is crucial that the U.S. Government speaks with one strong
voice that economic and security interests should not precede human
rights.
In his meeting with the Prime Minister, President Bush has the chance to
explain why human rights are an important U.S. foreign policy concern
and how progress on human rights is needed before there is full
cooperation on other bilateral interests.
Human Rights and Freedom in Vietnam: The Current State of Affairs
Mr. Chairman, the Government of Vietnam's human rights record remains
poor and freedoms of speech, assembly, association and religion continue
to be significantly restricted. Though Vietnam is in some respects a
less repressive society now than it was ten or fifteen years ago, we
should not conclude that Vietnam's economic openness has lead directly
to political openness or greater respect for human rights.
Our deepening economic and commercial relationship with Vietnam may
encourage economic reform and transparency and it may draw Vietnam
further into a rules-based international trading system, but the
evidence suggests that it has not encouraged greater political freedom
for Vietnamese citizens.
The human rights situation in Vietnam has not improved since passage of
the Bilateral Trade Act of 2001. One has seen the brutal and ongoing
suppression of ethnic Montagnards who marched for land rights and
religious freedom in April of 2004, the jailing of Pham Song Hong and
others for posting articles critical of the government on the Internet,
the silencing and jailing of journalists for exposing corruption, and
the mass arrests of Buddhist monks from the Unified Buddhist Church of
Vietnam (UBCV), despite promises by Prime Minister Khai that pressure on
the group would cease. UBCV monk Thich Thien Minh, released in February
after sixteen years in prison, did not see many improvements in human
rights and religious freedom. He said, "I have exchanged my small prison
for a bigger one."
The lessons of recent history are quite clear--economic freedom and
political freedom cannot be separated. People want to experience the
benefits of liberty undiluted and governments who try to check this
desire will find they are trying to hold back the rolling tide of the
human spirit. I am sure that the other panelists today will discuss in
more detail other human rights concerns. So, with the remainder of my
remarks, I would like to focus on religious freedom in Vietnam and
particularly on U.S.- Vietnam relations since Vietnam was designated, by
the Secretary of State, as a country of particular concern.
Vietnam As Country of Particular Concern (CPC): Evidence that
International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) Works
The Commission has followed events in Vietnam closely. Commissioners and
staff have traveled to Vietnam and we have established contact with
religious leaders, scholars, and human rights activists inside and
outside of Vietnam.
Over the past fifteen years, the government of Vietnam has slowly carved
out a noticeable "zone of toleration" for government approved religious
practice. However, at the same time, it has actively repressed, and
targeted as subversive, religious activity it cannot control or that
which refuses government oversight. Targeted in particular are leaders
of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV), ethnic minority
Christians in the Central Highlands and northwest provinces,
"house-church" Protestants, and followers of religious minority groups
such as the Hoa Hao and Cao Dai. This repression has not abated in the
last year.
Since 2001, the Commission recommended that Vietnam be designated as a
country of particular concern (CPC) for ongoing, egregious, and
systematic abuses of religious freedom under the International Religious
Freedom Act of 1998. The State Department followed our recommendation
and designated Vietnam as a CPC in September of last year.
Since the CPC designation, the State Department and the Vietnamese
government have engaged on the issue of religious freedom. The
government of Vietnam has made some gestures, including the release of
several prominent dissidents, a directive to stop forcing Protestants to
recant their faith, and another to streamline the application process
for religious groups registering with the government.
The State Department cited these actions as progress when it announced
last month that it had reached an "agreement" with Vietnam to avoid more
stringent actions, including economic sanctions, for countries
designated as a CPC. Though the agreement is secret, from public
statements we know that basically Vietnam promised to implement its new
laws and the U.S. promised to consider removing the CPC designation.
We should not downplay the significance of this action and
Ambassador-At-Large for International Religious Freedom John Hanford
should be commended for the time and effort he has invested in Vietnam.
The agreement reached was the first such diplomatic agreement signed
with a CPC country since the passage of IRFA in 1998. We should see this
as evidence that both vigorous diplomatic action and the use of the CPC
designation produced results that might lead to future improvements in
religious freedom in Vietnam.
But, Mr. Chairman, the key words here are "might" and "future." The
actions taken only signal promises of improvement and not actual
measurable progress. Promises do not mean progress. And, these actions
do not address the human rights violations that landed Vietnam on the
CPC list in the first place.
Religious prisoners remain behind bars, churches remain closed, and
restrictions and harassment on all of Vietnam's diverse religious
communities continue.
Don't Lift the CPC Designation Without Concrete Results
There are a number of important religious freedom concerns that are not
addressed by Vietnam's recent action, including:
-- Leaders of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV) continue to
be harassed and detained, and there is no legal framework for the UBCV,
the Hoa Hao, Cao Dai, and others to register with the government and
operate independently with leaders of their own choosing;
-- There are an estimated 100 religious prisoners in jail or under some
form of house arrest for religious activity, according to human rights
groups, although actual numbers are difficult to obtain because of the
lack of judicial transparency;
-- And hundreds of churches, home worship centers, and meeting places
remain closed, and forced or coerced renunciations of faith continue in
some parts of the country.
-- The government continues to impose limits on the number of candidates
allowed to study for Roman Catholic priesthood, controls the appointment
and promotion of Catholic clergy, and has seized church properties.
Troubling reports continue to arrive of new arrests and pressure on
religious and ethnic minorities in Vietnam.
-- Despite promises to ban forced renunciations of faith, evidence from
the Central Highlands suggesting that the Prime Minister's "Instructions
on Protestantism" is being used by security forces to compel ethnic
minority Protestants to join the governmentapproved Protestant
organization, give up their distinctive faith tradition, or face
criminal penalties.
-- On February 25 at 7 a.m., two police officers from Ia To commune, Ia
Grai District, Gai Lai Province summoned two men and a woman for
interrogation. They were asked whether they followed Dega Christianity
or the "Christianity of [Prime Minister] Phan Van Khai". They were asked
who in their village followed "the religion that is political" and where
they worshiped, and ordered to cease following Dega Christianity. They
did not agree to stop. The police hit one of the men with their fists
and beat the second man until he lost consciousness. The three were
released from detention the same day. They were warned that they would
be arrested if they were caught practicing their religion again.
-- From March 15-18, police surrounded many villages in Ia Hru, Ia Ko,
and Ia Pet communes in Gai Lai provinces. Officials called Montagnard
representatives from villages in these communes for full day meetings at
the district headquarters in Cu Se, where they were lectured by district
authorities as well as "police from Hanoi" (most likely officials from
the Ministry of Public Security) and warned not to follow "Dega
Christianity". In some cases they were forced to sign pledges agreeing
to abandon Christianity and politics. Officials also conducted meetings
in the villages during this time in which they instructed villagers not
to hold religious gatherings.
-- The events above happened in the Central Highlands, but forced
renunciations also continue among the Hmong in Vietnam's northwest
provinces. Police and security forces continue to summon Hmong Christian
villagers to "re-education" where they are told to give up their faith
traditions, are harassed, beaten and sometimes forced to drink wine.
-- Mr. Chairman, the Commission has 21 of these police summons, most
dated less than one month ago, in Pu Nhi Commune, Dien Bein Dong
District, Dien Bien Province. I have a copy of the summons for the
Committee.
-- Also, Mr. Chairman, security forces have arrested church leaders,
destroyed church property, and continue to harass followers of the
Mennonite Church of Vietnam.
Mr. Chairman, I have a letter here from Truong Tri Hien, the Acting
Secretary of the Mennonite Church of Vietnam. The letter documents, in
great detail the arrests and harassment faced by his religious community
over the past eighteen months. It is a sad and telling testimonial to
the continued pressure that religious groups face in Vietnam. He wants
the Commission to give the letter to the Committee and distribute it to
those concerned about religious freedom in Vietnam. Pastor Hien is
taking a great risk compiling and sending this letter and he knows it.
We are told that he is in hiding in a third country. He is awaiting an
interview with the Department of Homeland Security so he can come to the
United States and meet with you, Mr. Chairman, in person.
It is obvious to me that the situation in Vietnam can be summed up as
"repression as usual." Though promises of future improvement are
encouraging, we should not reward Vietnam too quickly by lifting the CPC
designation.
Policy Recommendations:
We know that human rights remain a problem for U.S.-Vietnam relations.
But the question that always arises is what can we do about it?
The Commission's 2005 Annual Report includes policy recommendations that
we believe can improve U.S. human rights diplomacy for Vietnam. In
general, the Commission recommends that U.S. diplomatic and assistance
programs be expanded and re- prioritized to directly promote freedom of
religion and related human rights in Vietnam. Non-humanitarian
assistance programs have been declining in Vietnam, except for new
HIV/AID funding and assistance programs to help Vietnam enter the WTO.
We believe that new public diplomacy, economic development, and
technical assistance programs should be targeted to address ongoing
human rights problems.
We have made specific recommendations for Congressional and
Administration action in the areas of public diplomacy, economic
development, education, good governance, and rule of law programs for
Vietnam.
I will append them to my remarks for the record.
Conclusion:
If the Government of Vietnam were to take further steps to honor its
international commitments and improve its respect for human rights,
U.S.-Vietnam relations will improve for the long term and serve as the
basis for a strong and healthy relationship built on mutual interests,
the rule of law, and the "non-negotiable demand of human dignity."
Thank you Mr. Chairman and I welcome your questions.