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January 27, 2005  Vietnamese Christian leaders' final appeal set for February 2nd amidst stories of brutal torture

The People's Supreme Court in Ho Chi Minh City will hear the appeals of Reverend Nguyen Hong Quang and evangelist Pham Ngoc Thach of the Vietnamese Mennonite Church on Wednesday 2 February 2005. 

CSW encourages international media to attend the last appeal of these men who have been targeted for their religious and human rights activities.

The two men are amongst six Mennonites detained in a series of arrests from March 2, 2004 onwards. Codefendants Nguyen Thanh Nhan and Nguyen Hieu Nghia, who were released in December, have testified of brutal torture against the group, which repeatedly left them unconscious. One is now partially paralyzed and the other has conditions which may be life threatening (see testimonies below).

Although the two appellants were technically convicted of 'inciting others to resist persons doing their official duty', the evidence of torture, confiscation of human rights documents, religious persecution and a state-sponsored smear campaign reveal a much darker motive behind the convictions. Nguyen Thanh Nhan's description of the reaction of fellow prisoners supports this assessment: 'The prisoners in the cells talked with each other wondering what kind of crime the person had committed to deserve such brutal treatment.  It must have been very bad!  How would they know that we had been arrested only because we carry the two words "Tin Lanh" (meaning Gospel or Christian).  How painful, how bitter!'

Co-defendant Ms Le Thi Hong Lien has suffered a complete mental and physical breakdown due to the torture and abuse that she has endured whilst in prison. Her father, Le Quang Du, reported, after a recent visit, that Ms Lien's right eye was heavily swollen and filled with pus. Two police officers informed him that his daughter had completely lost her mind, constantly urinating and defecating whilst fully clothed, wherever she happened to be.

Following the trial on November 12, 2004 Reverend Quang and Mr Thach received a three-year and a two-year sentence respectively. Both men are being held in the Chi Hoa Prison in Ho Chi Minh City .

Appeals have been denied to both Nguyen Van Phuong, scheduled for release on 2 March, and to Ms Le Thi Hong Lien, who has been declared unfit to stand trial. Mr Phuong is to serve the remainder of his sentence in Bo Vu Prison, Binh Phuoc Province .

The Vietnam Mennonite Church yesterday issued a call to prayer and fasting from 7.30 a.m. on 1 February to 5.00 p.m. on February 3 in support of the imprisoned Mennonites. The call has been addressed to Mennonite bodies and evangelical Christians around the world. It requests specific prayer for strength and endurance for the prisoners, especially Ms Lien, for Christians to remain faithful under pressure and persecution, for justice to prevail at the hearing on February 2 and for protection for the many Christians who will/might come to support the prisoners outside the courthouse during the trial.

Tina Lambert, Advocacy Director of Christian Solidarity Worldwide said: 'We are deeply saddened by the horrific human cost in this abhorrent campaign against the Vietnam Mennonite Church . The depth of brutality exposed by the treatment of the prisoners reveals a very dark side to the motivations of the Vietnamese authorities. The international community must shine the light of truth and justice on this case at this pivotal moment of appeal. A failure by the Court to grant the appeal will be a damning indictment not only on Vietnam's respect for human rights and religious freedom but on the legal system itself.'

Further details of the case, together with appendices of the testimonies of torture by the two released co-defendants and of the father of Ms Le Thi Hong Lien follow. (Should you wish to only print the press release please set the printing command accordingly.)

NOTES TO EDITORS:

SUPREME COURT APPEAL (2 FEB 2005)

The People's Supreme Court in Ho Chi Minh City will hear the appeals of Reverend Nguyen Hong Quang and evangelist Pham Ngoc Thach of the Vietnamese Mennonite Church on February 2.  This constitutes the final appeal option available to the defendants, but the high court has almost never reversed a lower court decision.

Reverend Quang and Mr Thach received a three-year and a two-year sentence respectively, for charges of 'inciting others to resist persons doing their official duty.'  Theirs were the longest sentences among six Mennonite workers convicted on November 12, 2004.  Both men are being held in the Chi Hoa Prison in Ho Chi Minh City .

Appeals have been denied to both Nguyen Van Phuong, scheduled for release on 2 March, and to Ms Le Thi Hong Lien, who has been declared unfit to stand trial.  The torture and physical abuse she suffered in prison has led her to complete mental and physical breakdown (see Appendix 1).  Mr Phuong is to serve the remainder of his sentence in Bo Vu Prison, Binh Phuoc Province .

CSW urges the international community to seize the opportunity presented by this appeal to confront the Vietnamese authorities on their brutal treatment of prisoners, and their harsh repression of religious activity and human rights activists.

BRUTAL TREATMENT SUFFERED IN PRISON

Codefendants Nguyen Thanh Nhan and Nguyen Hieu Nghia, released in early December, have written accounts describing the abusive treatment they received whilst in prison (see Appendices 2 and 3).

CSW believes that what has come to light demands a review of any previous assessment of this case.  The level of abuse, chronicled by Mr Nhan and Mr Nghia, strongly suggests that their case is treated as more important than the matter with which they were charged.  Coupled with the treatment of the case of Reverend Quang hitherto, and with attempts to close his Mennonite Church (described below: see p. 3), this amounts to strong evidence that the six cases have been treated by the authorities as an altogether more serious matter than simply 'resisting persons doing their official duty'.

The report of Nguyen Thanh Nhan (Appendix 2) supports this assessment, describing the reaction of fellow prisoners to the torture of Mr Phuong and Mr Nghia: 'The prisoners in the cells talked with each other wondering what kind of crime the person had committed to deserve such brutal treatment.  It must have been very bad!  How would they know that we had been arrested only because we carry the two words "Tin Lanh" (meaning Gospel or Christian).  How painful, how bitter!'

REVEREND NGUYEN HONG QUANG: CASE DETAILS

Reverend Nguyen Hong Quang, a well known human rights activist and promoter of religious freedom, and General Secretary of the unregistered Vietnam Mennonite Church , was arrested on 8 June 2004 in the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh City by 30 security police.  He was charged with 'inciting others to resist persons doing their official duty' in connection with an incident involving the discovery of undercover police spies in Quang's home / church on 2 March 2004.  This incident resulted in the arrests of Mr Nguyen Hieu Nghia, Mr Nguyen Thanh Nhan, Mr Nguyen Van Phuong and Mr Pham Ngoc Thach on charges of resisting persons doing their official duty.

The former two have now been released, Mr Phuong has been denied an appeal, and Mr Thach is due to appeal alongside Reverend Quang on 2 February.

On 12 November, Reverend Quang, together with the four men arrested on 2 March and Ms Le Thi Hong Lien, a further arrested member of Reverend Quang's Mennonite Church , were tried and sentenced to terms ranging from nine months to three years imprisonment.

Because of the non-political criminal charge brought against Reverend Quang, some members of the international community have been reluctant to challenge his conviction in the context of religious freedom.  Reverend Quang is the latest in a line of arrests of those speaking out against the government's violation of religious freedom: previous cases include Father Nguyen Van Ly (arrested 17 May 2001) and the Buddhist Venerable Thich Quang Do.  Although Reverend Quang's imprisonment is ostensibly on the charge of 'inciting others to resist persons doing their official duty', CSW believes this is only a pretext for a highly cynical arrest.

Several reasons may be adduced in support of this view, expounded below.

False Accusations Extracted Under Torture

The reports of Nguyen Thanh Nhan (Appendix 2, pp. 9-10) Nguyen Huu Nghia (Appendix 3, p. 13) both contain detailed testimony about the brutal beatings and torture endured by the prisoners before being presented with documents containing false allegations to frame Reverend Quang for a serious charge.

Mr Nhan said: 'When I was completely exhausted the police would take me out for interrogation.  Though they say interrogation, which implies asking questions, there were no questions.  Just documents already prepared for me to sign but I refused to agree with the terrible slander the government officials had prepared in advance to inflict on the Reverend Nguyen Hong Quang - the goal of which was to eradicate the whole house church movement which the government is trying to erase in all kinds of ways.  The also did not stop denying all the tricks and schemes they use to try to accomplish this.  And so they beat me and mistreated me incessantly without regret.  And when I still refused to sign they would bring in some of their friends to sign in my place even though I disagreed.'

Mr Nghia painted a similar picture: 'When I came to several police officers came into the room with a report they wanted me to sign, but the report was mostly aimed at the Rev. Nguyen Hong Quang.  They said that Pastor Quang had incited and aroused us, but in truth we were only guarding the scene of the incident and no one incited us at all, but they tried to make me sign the report that they had pre-prepared.  I refused to sign so they bullied me, swore at me and struck me trying to force me to sign.'

Furthermore, according to a separate testimony of Mr Nhan and Mr Nghia, the reason for Ms Lien's having been denied family visits during the first months of her incarceration, was given by prison officials as her being 'uncooperative' by refusing to lodge false accusations against Reverend Quang.

Religious Activities

As the report of Mr Nhan affirms (Appendix 2, p. 10), the documents containing false allegations against Reverend Quang, which the prisoners were ordered to sign, comprised part of a strategy aimed at 'eradicat[ing] the whole house church movement'.  Events outside the prison corroborate this assessment.

The events experienced by Reverend Quang's wife, Le Thi Phu Dung, between 10 November and 3 December provide further evidence of the anti-religious motivation behind his arrest: her husband's home and church, which she oversaw during this period, was invaded on five occasions by gangs of up to 40 uniformed and plain-clothes policemen, sometimes as late as midnight.  She was ordered by the authorities to a Cultural Revolution style public denunciation session on 10 November, which she declined to attend.  A recording of this session makes it clear that it is directed against the 'illegal Christian religion'.  Authorities required Mrs Quang to cease all religious gatherings, activities and ceremonies in her home/church, and to take down the church sign.  She was threatened with being driven away from her home, with her three small children, if she failed to comply.

Such threatening activity has constituted an attempt to close Reverend Quang's church whilst he has been detained.

Human Rights Activities

In the first place, the government has had plenty of reason to silence Reverend Quang: he is an extremely articulate and high profile critic of the human rights abuses of the Vietnamese government.  He obtained a bachelor of law degree in 2000, since when he has accumulated substantial legal files on human rights issues.  He has been an outspoken critic of the severe repression of the rights of Christians, highlighting in particular the arrests of religious believers in the Central Highlands, and fighting for their land rights.  He also successfully challenged the illegal appropriation of the land of 340 families by the People's Committee of District 2, Ho Chi Minh City .  However, the communication of the decision made on 13 October 2003, which was ordered within ten days, was delayed by ten months, until Reverend Quang had been detained, in August 2004.  In 2003, he acted in defense of the relatives of Nguyen Van Ly, who had been charged as spies.

When Reverend Quang was arrested on 8 June 2004, his legal files, documenting the violation of the human rights of certain individuals, were confiscated.  This would be highly surprising if his arrest was simply a matter of 'inciting others to resist persons doing their official duty', and suggests a quite different motivation.

Such events do not bear out the authorities' line that the arrest of Reverend Quang is about a relatively minor civil offence.  It is paradoxical that in the act of attempting to expose violations of religious freedom, Reverend Quang has apparently become a victim of the same.

State-sponsored Smear Campaign

Concomitantly, the authorities have carried out a systematic and acrimonious smear campaign against Reverend Quang, seeking to undermine his credentials as a pastor and making slanderous accusations about his character, which have not stood up under closer investigation.  Such accusations have been totally unnecessary and are entirely irrelevant to the charges brought against him, which must arouse greater suspicion with respect to the real motivation behind his arrest.

The use of the media towards this end is not a new tactic, but one which has been used against the Hmong people.  Immediately after Reverend Quang's arrest, a massive propaganda attack, leveling a plethora of defamatory and trumped up charges against him, was launched by the Public Security Police Ho Chi Minh newspaper (12 June 2004), the People's Public Security newspaper (17 June 2004), the Labor newspaper (30 June 2004), the Word Security newspaper (1 July 2004), the People's Daily (1 July 2004) and national TV Channel 3 (1 July 2004).  He was described variously as a 'counterfeit pastor', a 'professional gangster', a 'promoter of illegal building projects', a 'propagandizer for destroying the nation', 'an inciter of people to fight against the policies of the government to get it to give in', 'a crazy man', 'an incestuous man', 'a rapist of young girls', 'an abuser of religion', an 'immoral person' and a 'disturber of public peace and order'.

These accusations are entirely unsubstantiated.  The allegation of rape in the People's Daily (3 July 2004) was strongly denied by the girl in question, who saw this as slanderous against her own integrity.  Certainly Reverend Quang has never been charged with this, suggesting strongly that the campaign was undertaken solely to vilify his character.

Furthermore, the genuine Christian credentials of Reverend Quang have never been in doubt.  He was officially recognized by the Canadian Mennonite Church in 2000, and in 2003 the World Mennonite Conference sent an official letter to Prime Minister Phan Van Kahi and to the Government Bureau of Religious Affairs, confirming that the Vietnamese Mennonite Church was a member of the World Mennonite Conference, and confirming the leadership role of Reverend Quang.  Indeed, it seems that the Vietnamese authorities lacked confidence in their own campaign: immediately after the arrest, the Evangelical Church of Vietnam (South) was requested by members of the Bureau of Religious Affairs not to raise their voice in support of Reverend Quang.  Further, the VTV3 item (1 July) on Reverend Quang's arrest, alleged that the Reverend Thai Phuoc Truong, General Secretary of the ECVN (South) decried the activities of Reverend Quang as having 'damaged the reputation of the Evangelical Church .'  In fact, Reverend Truong telephoned VTV3 to demand a retraction and correction of the fabricated statements which the broadcasting station claimed he had issued.  He received a private apology from VTV3 and a representative of the Bureau of Religious Affairs 'on behalf of the government.'

Analysis and Comment

Such activities are clearly not in line with the simple prosecution of a charge of 'inciting others to resist persons doing their official duty'.  In light of these aspects, to view Reverend Quang's case purely as a minor matter of 'inciting others to resist persons doing their official duty' is distinctly questionable.

There has been reticence among certain members of the international community has so far declined to intervene in this case, on the basis that it is insufficiently important.  It would be valuable to know what accrued benefit requires silence in the face of harsh treatment against a human rights activist and religious leader. CSW wishes to suggest that this is indeed a significant case, paradigmatic of the human rights abuses of the government of Vietnam and a cynical attempt to silence a critic of the state.  Having attempted to uphold the law by exposing the government's violations of human rights and religious freedoms, such as are constitutionally guaranteed, Reverend Quang has himself become a victim of human rights violations through abuse of the law.

MISS LE THI HONG LIEN: PHYSICAL AND MENTAL BREAKDOWN

According to sources within Vietnam , the torture and abuse suffered by Ms Lien whilst in prison has led her to complete mental and physical breakdown.  Prison authorities informed her father that she was 'wild', that she needed to be tied by her hands and feet to her bed, and she had lost control of her bodily functions.

During the first months of her incarceration, Ms Lien was denied family visits, which are supposedly guaranteed by law.  Prison officials justified this to her family on the grounds that she was 'stubborn and uncooperative.'  According to the testimony of co-defendants Nguyen Thanh Nhan and Nguyen Hieu Nghia, this allegation of uncooperativeness was due to her refusal to lodge false accusations against Quang.

She is being held in the infirmary of her prison, where authorities claim she has become the object of prurient attention by prisoners, because she removes her clothing and staggers around naked when unrestrained.                                              

APPENDIX 1

TESTIMONY OF MS LE THI HONG LIEN'S FATHER

Ho Chi Minh City ,                                                                                December 14, 2004

My name is Le Quang Du.  I was born in 1958.  We are a Christian family of five belonging to the Vietnam Mennonite church.  Our youngest, a son, Le Quang Banh is mentally disabled and needs constant care.  Though we live in hardship our family always trusts in the promises of the Lord Jesus. 

Psalm 9:18 -  The needy will not always be forgotten, nor the hope of the afflicted ever perish. 

Psalm 34:10 -  The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. 

It is 11:40 PM as I write these lines.  This morning, 14 December 2004, I went to visit my child, Le Thi Hong Lien, who is currently imprisoned in the Chi Hoa Prison.  When they dragged her out for me to visit with her, I could see that her right eye was very swollen and it was still filled with pus.  When my daughter saw me she could only stand and cry profusely, her thin arms were wrapped around her fearfully.  It is clear that she has been severely maltreated! 

            Two security police who brought my daughter out said they had brought her from the prison infirmary, but my prison visitation paper said she was in a hospital.  The moment I saw my daughter my heart went out to her.  All I could do was to cry and pray for her - that the Lord would give his PEACE to me and to my daughter Le Thi Hong Lien.

            At this time, about 10:30 in the morning, my daughter and I just stood there in each other's arms crying and praying.  Then two female police officers came to me to say that at this time my daughter has completely lost her mind and was constantly urinating and defecating wherever she happened to be - with her clothes on.  Because of this they beat her very savagely, even more!  

            Here is another example.  November 12^th was the day of the trial of the Reverend Nguyen Hong Quang and the other five others.  My daughter was one of those five and was sentenced to one year in prison even though she was too weak to stand at the trail and did not respond to questions. After the trial, as she was being transported back to Chi Hoa prison, she was again beaten in the prison vehicle by a policemen named Nguyen Dinh Bau.  When I first learned this, I did not dare say anything to anyone as others also were still being held and might also be beaten senseless, as my daughter was, until they could not tolerate it or would lose their mind. 

            As they dragged my daughter back into the prison I watched her feet disappear and I could only weep some more.  Tears flowed down my cheeks as I was filled with Jesus' love for my daughter. My tears, like two rivers of water - in my extreme loneliness the Lord reminded me of his words in Luke 23:28: Do not weep for me, weep for yourselves and for your children.

            When I returned home I did not dare speak out the truth, but sought to give comfort to my family.  As I now write down the terrible truth I am again reduced to tears.  It is now midnight and most people are mercifully lost in their sleep. But I am in deep anguish for my daughter Lien who is buried in a cruel prison.

            O Lord, please keep these tears of mine in a bottle. Amen.

            May the peace of the Lord be with you and his children everywhere - his peace until the end.  Amen.

Signed: Le Quang Du

APPENDIX 2

REPORT OF NGUYEN THANH NHAN

Concerning my arrest and experiences in prison

            My name is Nguyen Thanh Nhan.  I was born on September 25, 1982.

            I am active in the Vietnam Mennonite Church in District 2.

Home address:  Da Noi B Hamlet, Thanh Duong Commune, Tan Hiep District, Kien Giang Province .

Current residence: House without number at To 79, Luong Dinh Cua Street , Phuong An Ward, District 2, HCM City . 

Reason:  On the afternoon of the incident (March 2, 2004) we asked the public security police to make a report of what had happened at the site, but they refused to report accurately what had happened.  After a struggle over the matter my older brother, Elder Nguyen Huu Nghia, was hit, arrested and escorted to the Binh Khanh Ward office.  Later brothers Thach and Phuong and I went to see what was happening to my brother.  We were arrested and accused of "resisting persons doing official duty" by Binh Khanh Ward and District 2 public security police and other security forces and local defence forces. 

That very evening of our arrest (2/3/2004) I was cruelly and savagely beaten by police in plain clothes and police in uniform, as were brothers Thach, Phuong and Nghia.  They immobilized our hands and then used sharply pointed shoes to kick us all over our bodies and also nightsticks to club us repeatedly.  After that we were taken to the District 2 police lockup.  At first I was put into an individual cell and at dawn on 3/3/2004 a large group of District 2 police officers, some in uniform and some in plain clothes - I remember very clearly one police officer wearing a white bracelet (necklace?), a short and thin man, standing outside the cell using all kinds of coarse and vulgar language to humiliate me and also mock my faith and the Lord I worship.  For example, he said "Your Lord, you gangster. is my prick" and many other disgusting and threatening words.  He wanted to open the door of my cell and come in to attack me when I responded with a few words.  And they continued to mistreat me brutally in this way for two days straight.  I was beaten mercilessly without any reason at all, and deprived of water and food for the whole time until I became like a dead person.  

At about 2:00AM on the morning of 4/3/2004 I was escorted to an official prison cell with other prisoners.  These had been instructed before my arrival by the police that they had the responsibility "to beat and punish me appropriately" and were told they would be rewarded with ample food and cigarettes if they did.  The moment I entered the cell I was continually beaten, punched and kicked.  During my first days there I passed out several times from this treatment.  For three months running the prisoners that had received orders to punish me continued to beat and punish me in all kinds of ways and I had to resign myself to this suffering, humiliation and bitter mistreatment.  I was forced to sit with my legs crossed in one place and was not allowed to get up and walk - not even make a small movement.  The also gave me hard work to do.  They made me wash soiled clothes, draw the water to clean the cell, wash the dishes and all the while they did not cease their torture and beating.  When I was completely exhausted the police would take me out for interrogation.  Though they say interrogation, which implies asking questions, there were no questions.  Just documents already prepared for me to sign but I refused to agree with the terrible slander the government officials had prepared in advance to inflict on the Reverend Nguyen Hong Quang - the goal of which was to eradicate the whole house church movement which the government is trying to erase in all kinds of ways.  The also did not stop denying all the tricks and schemes they use to try to accomplish this.  And so they beat me and mistreated me incessantly without regret.  And when I still refused to sign they would bring in some of their friends to sign in my place even though I disagreed. 

And so for the days and months that passed I had to endure such treatment - whether day or night.  When they brought me food it was not enough, water was often not drinkable. And when it was frightfully hot and humid and I was very tired there was no water for me to take a bath. And when it was cold and my family brought warm clothes for me I did not receive them.  I was not allowed to wear any long pants or long-sleeved shirts.  I was not given a sleeping mat.  I had to lie on rough and dirty cement causing me to itch badly and giving me scabies.  When I went to defecate they would not give me water to wash it down and made me use my fingers to push my own faeces down the hole. I was forced to immerse myself in dirty water for long periods of time.  And when I was allowed out I had to sit in a squatting position on the tips of my toes.  My heel was not allowed to touch the earth and my face was had to be turned toward the wall.  When my blood could not longer circulate I fainted and only then they stopped.  This treatment continued for about a month and half until the middle of April 2004. 

My bones in my feet began to ache acutely.  I often fell hard.  I had convulsions and found it hard to move around.  My chest hurt a lot because of all the kicking.  Also in the month of April it seemed to me that my heart hardly had the energy to beat.  I felt pressure on my heart when I breathed.  I often asked officials if I could go for medical check-up and get some medicine but it was not allowed. 

At that time I was kept in cell no. 8, Brother Thach was in cell no. 4, Brother Phuong in cell no. 6, and Brother Nghia in cell no. 7.  Their fate was no different than mine.  Loud cries for help reverberated through the cell block when one of us was being savagely beaten by a gang of police. The cries gradually faded into hopelessness because who would dare try to intercede.  The cries of Evangelist Thach, "Kill me! Kill me!" at first were very strong carrying loudly through the whole prison but gradually faded into a whisper when his strength was depleted.  The cries of Brother Phuong and Elder Nghia when they were being kicked in the chest and head echoed off the walls of the whole prison striking fear into everyone.  The prisoners in the cells talked with each other wondering what kind of crime the person had committed to deserve such brutal treatment.  It must have been very bad!  How would they know that we had been arrested only because we carry the two words "Tin Lanh" (meaning Gospel or Christian).  How painful, how bitter! 

After three months of all kinds of mistreatment like this at the hands of the police of District 2 of HCM City, around the end of June 2004 I was taken to a new prison at no. 4 Phan Dang Luu in the Binh Thanh District of HCM city.  Another place and another version of torture were reserved for me.  I was put into a very small cell of prisoners being disciplined.  It was only big enough for two people to lie down in.  It was completely dark with no light shining in - only a badly smeared small light bulb burning day and night.  It was frightfully hot and humid.  When it rained it flooded.  Roaches, ants and centipedes crawled onto the sleeping place causing us fear.  One thing that was never missing was their attempts to get me to sign documents and reports even as I had to exist in such circumstances. 

In September I was once more moved, this time to the Chi Hoa Prison.  Before this move I had also heard that this was a place was well-know for drinking human blood.  When I heard this, my whole body was terrified.  And the heart did not dare think of anything but to pray to the Lord that His will be done.  As I stepped through the gate of the prison I felt the gaze of many pairs of eyes of both uniformed security police and prisoners famous for their savagery, whose stock-in-trade is threats and bullying.  In this place I was put into an even worse situation of torture.  I continually grieve for the gang attacks on me without reason or cause, hard punches directly into my face and head.  My eyes were red.  My head was swollen.  I felt a dull and never-ending pain as I was beaten all over my back with a nightstick.  Officials who wore sharply pointed shoes did not cease from kicking me in the chest and bum and other parts of my body until I could not longer endure it and so I fainted, but they would drag me to another place and start again.  And after a few days of recovery, the exercise to torture would begin all over again. 

It continued in this way until I was taken to the court for trial on 12/11/2004.  At this point we all had to endure pitiful injustice from an entirely unjust court.  They had decided the sentences for us in advance of the trial.  They held the trail for appearances only.  Our ideas were completely ignored.  The head judge at the trial would not let us say anything related to the truth during the trial.  Outside they announce we have this right and that right, but inside they completely rob us of our citizen's rights and also the rights of the lawyer there to defend us.

During the trial I noticed that Miss Le Thi Hong Lien showed evidence of having had a mental breakdown.  After the trial, we were escorted back to the prison in the same paddy wagon as Miss Lien. She was beaten right in the vehicle even though she was clearly very ill.  My brother, Nguyen Huu Nghia, helped her and I warded off some of the blows to her. 

For many hours we endured a farce of a trial, a trial disguised to fool people.  And behind this trial, much happiness and satisfaction on the part of a society with a dictatorial regime, fearlessly using raw power and every kind of trick, crushing the heart of people, especially of those who live by a faith and particularly Protestant believers as well as religious believers in general.  It has caused me to become despondent, and feel deep pain because of a dictatorship full of injustice.

And now, as I return to life I must carry a withered body.  My left leg is partly paralyzed and I can stand and walk only with difficulty.  My nervous system is badly damaged as it was assaulted by clubs and switches and it will take a very long time to heal.  After only two weeks of treatment, my doctor wants to back out saying he cannot cure me.  I am not only suffering in my body, but also in my spirit and soul, and in material needs as well as support from my family and the church. 

But I always believe that the Lord of Heaven will keep and preserve me, shield and carry me in the shadow of his powerful wings, and that the Lord will bring a revival to our country of Vietnam .

December 12, 2004

Nguyen Thanh Nhan

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August 25, 2004    Trial of activist pastor believed to be on fast track

Reliable sources in Vietnam have informed Christian Solidarity Worldwide that authorities are working hard to put activist Pastor Nguyen Hong Quang on trial as soon as possible. 

A court decision to prosecute is expected in early September 2004. This would then be followed by publication of charges and the trial.

Based on previous human rights cases, it is believed that the goal of the authorities will be to convict Quang of "possessing and distributing materials harmful to the State", based on the evidence he has compiled on numerous human rights infractions by State officials. This crime, if deemed to be in the severest category, carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison. 

Those close to the case say authorities have admitted that they are surprised and upset at the unprecedented amount of negative international attention the arrests of Quang and his fellow Mennonites have attracted.

Quang was arrested on June 8, 2004 and originally charged with "inciting others to interfere with officers doing their official duty".  Five other workers of the Vietnam Mennonite Church , of which the Rev. Nguyen Hong Quang is General Secretary, are also incarcerated on related charges, some having been held since March 2, 2004.

At the time of Quang's arrest, authorities seized all of the documents and files belonging to the Mennonite Church . They also removed many files that Quang and his colleagues had compiled which expose official corruption, religious liberty violations and other human rights abuses. 

On July 27 authorities summoned Mrs. Quang and a Mennonite evangelist to a police station, and pressured them to give the police permission, as required under Vietnamese law, to open the boxes of evidence confiscated from the Quang home and church office.  When the evangelist and Mrs. Quang deferred to the Rev. Quang to make the decision, they were, surprisingly, allowed to see him briefly, but only to ask him if they should allow the opening of the evidence.   He informed them that only the persons who signed that they witnessed the sealing of the boxes of evidence could witness their opening.  It is expected that the difficulty in securing some of those witnesses will not prevent authorities from examining the evidence. 

One of the motives behind the Vietnamese authorities' anxiety to silence Quang is demonstrated by the recent developments arising out of his advocacy regarding illegal land confiscation. 

In early August 2004, when Quang was already detained, authorities delivered an invitation to the Quang home to attend an August 13 meeting to announce the reversal of a 1999 District 2 Peoples' Committee (Ho Chi Minh City) decision to confiscate the land of 346 alleged squatter families for "development".  This included the property of the Quang residence and Mennonite church office. 

The confiscation of 29,000 square meters of land in 1999 appears to have been a land grab by officials and developers.  Quang quickly advised many of his neighbors on filing petitions of complaint against Decision 2551 (30 September1999) of the District 2 People's Committee and helped some of them to carry out the procedure. 

On  December 29, 2000, the Committee denied the petition of a Mr. Tran Dinh Khuyen, one of the complainants whom Quang had helped to file a petition.  Quang, however, kept reminding the authorities about their misappropriation of land and encouraged his neighbors to do the same. 

Nearly three years after this, on September 13, 2003, the chairperson of the District 2 People's Committee reversed the land confiscation order of September 1999, admitting the Committee had exceeded its authority.  This decision, numbered 9835/QD-UB-QLDT, further ordered Binh Khanh Ward of the District, where the land confiscation had been announced, to inform the 346 affected families within 10 days.

However it was not until ten months later, after the arrest of Quang, that a meeting to announce the good news to the affected families was called on August 13, 2004.  Few doubt that Quang's advocacy, based on appeal to Vietnamese law, played a key part in eventually overturning the decision to confiscate the land of the 346 poor families.   

One of the charges of the official propaganda campaign launched against Quang following his arrest was that Quang's neighbors were angry at his noisy, intrusive activities.  The truth is, rather, the reverse.  Fearing support for Quang from his neighbors, authorities conveniently waited until Quang was arrested before they announced the reversal of the land confiscation decision that he had helped achieve.    

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March 18, 2003   Vietnamese Church Under Severe Persecution 

International Christian Concern

A team from International Christian Concern, a Washington-based human right’s organization, has just completed a fact-finding trip to Vietnam. The team met in 10 cities with 21 of the 54 ethnic groups living in Vietnam. Christians living in the Central Highlands in the provinces of Lam Dong, Dac Lac, Gia Lai, Kon Tum and from areas north of Hanoi report that persecution is worse than it was at the end of 2002 however, the church continues to grow. In Dac Lac, out of a total of 417 house churches, only 2 remain open. Previous reports indicated that 56 pastors were missing and their families did not know where they were being held or imprisoned. ICC could not verify how many pastors or leaders were missing in the Central Highlands. However, team was able to verify that two out of the eleven imprisoned Hmong pastors have been released. The pastors and leaders in the Christian community of Vietnam describe facing two major problems.  The first problem is police interrogations. Pastors or leaders are issued a formal “invitation” to appear at the police station for questioning. This is not an optional invitation but a mandatory requirement. This harassment can last up to a day or two and is designed to make the pastors nervous so that they will stop their religious activities. Even the wives of pastors are targeted. One official told a preacher’s wife, “We always know where your husband is.” The second difficulty is the lack of privacy. Pastors are constantly followed. One Hmong pastor told ICC, “I leave my house at 2:00 a.m. to sneak out of the village and I travel by foot for 3 hours in order to preach. At 9:00 p.m., I start for my return trip and arrive back home at midnight.” In addition, many leaders frequently said that the church’s greatest difficulties were that their church lacked a place to meet, and that the church parishioners were unable to openly witness to their faith. Confirmed reports establish the fact that the government continues to deny jobs to believers as well as cut off benefits to the elderly and disabled who are Christians. Some are even beaten to the point of requiring a doctor’s care after converting. One pastor said, “We do not pray that God changes the situation but that the church be strong to endure and stand. God is always faithful.” Christians are urged to write their legislators to support Rep. Smith’s upcoming bill, “Vietnam Human Rights Act” which will seek to prohibit non-humanitarian U.S. aid from being provided to Vietnam unless their government shows significant progress in freeing religious and political prisoners and respecting the rights of the ethnic minorities. 

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U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom

July 23, 2002   Commission Asks Secretary Powell to Raise Religious Freedom Issues With Vietnam at ASEAN Meeting

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, a federal agency advising the Administration and Congress, last week wrote Secretary of State Colin L. Powell, asking that he raise religious freedom issues with Vietnamese officials during the ASEAN Regional Forum at the end of this month. The text of the letter follows:

July 17, 2002

Dear Secretary Powell:

I am writing on behalf of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, which urges you to raise prominently the protection of religious freedom in Vietnam during your upcoming participation at the ASEAN RegionalForum in July 2002. We also urge you to impress upon Vietnamese officials that improvements in the protection of religious freedom in Vietnam are critical to continuing progress in U.S.-Vietnam relations.

Since the Congress ratified the U.S.-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) in September 2001, the protection of religious freedom in Vietnam continues to be minimal at best. In February 2002, the Commission sent a delegation to visit that country. Despite the increase in religious practice among the Vietnamese people in the last 10 years, the Vietnamese government continues its repressive policy toward all religions and their followers in Vietnam.

Key Vietnamese religious dissidents remain under house arrest or imprisoned, including two senior leaders of the outlawed Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV) ? Most Venerable Thich Huyen Quang and Venerable Thich Quang Do ? and a Hoa Hao Buddhist leader, Mr. Le Quang Liem. Mr. Quang has been denied access to much needed medical treatment. In addition, Father Thaddeus Nguyen Van Ly, who last year submitted written testimony to the Commission, was sentenced to 15 years in prison after having been convicted on charges of "undermining state unity" and "slandering the government." During the Commission's visit, Vietnamese officials refused the delegation's requests to meet with these and other religious leaders who were either in prison or under house arrest.

Government officials continue to harass leaders of unregistered religious organizations and their followers, particularly unregistered Protestant fellowships, as well as clergy members of officially recognized religious groups who oppose government interference in their activities. At the same time, Vietnamese authorities have refused to register some religious groups. For example, the Vietnamese government has refused to register or permit any activity of Baha'i adherents, whose membership in Vietnam before 1976 counted close to 200,000. Meanwhile, provincial and local officials continue to force Hmong Christians in northwestern Vietnam to renounce their faith. Hmong Christian leaders have been arrested and beaten, and their followers are not allowed to meet in homes and conduct worship. Catholic bishops continue to have limits imposed on them by the government regarding the number of candidates who can be admitted to study for the priesthood as well as the number of qualified men who are allowed to be ordained to the priesthood.

Although the government recognized the Evangelical Church of Vietnam in the South in April 2001, that recognition apparently has not been extended to the Montagnards who reside in the Central Highlands. Government repression of religious freedom for Montagnard Christians, coupled with an ongoing land dispute between the Montagnards and the government, led to unrest and government crackdown in February 2001 that ultimately resulted in the flight to Cambodia of over 1,000 Montagnards. Nonetheless, it appears that the Vietnamese government continues to violate the right to religious freedom of Montagnard Christians in the Central Highlands through arrests and the closing of churches.

In light of these conditions, the Commission urges you to raise these issues in substantive discussions with Vietnamese officials during your attendance at the ASEAN Regional Forum. In particular, we hope you will inquire about the confinement of Mr. Quang, Mr. Do, and Mr. Liem, and the imprisonment of Fr. Ly.

Furthermore, we wish to draw your attention to the following recommendations, first set out in our 2001 Annual Report. We urge you to press the Vietnamese government to take the following steps:

1. Release from imprisonment, detention, house arrest, or intimidating surveillance persons who are so restricted due to their religious identities or activities.

2. Permit full access to religious leaders by U.S. diplomatic personnel and government officials, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, and international human rights organizations. The government should also invite a return visit by the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion.

3. Establish the freedom to engage in religious activities (including the freedom for members of religious groups to select their own leaders, worship publicly, express and advocate religious beliefs, and distribute religious literature) outside state-controlled religious organizations and eliminate controls on the activities of officially registered organizations. Allow indigenous religious communities to conduct educational, charitable, and humanitarian activities, in accordance with the UN Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and Discrimination.

4. Permit religious groups to gather for observances of religious holidays.

5. Return confiscated religious properties.

6. Permit domestic Vietnamese religious organizations and individuals to interact with foreign organizations and individuals.

7. Permit domestic Vietnamese religious and other non-governmental organizations to distribute their own and donated aid.

8. Support exchanges between Vietnamese religious communities and U.S. religious and other non-governmental organizations concerned with religious freedom in Vietnam.

In its May 2001 report, the Commission also recommended that the U.S. government continue to support the ASEAN Human Rights Working Group, and that it should encourage the Vietnamese government to join the working group by establishing a national working group. The Commission urges you to take this opportunity to engage officials of the ASEAN working group in serious discussions about the promotion of human rights, including religious freedom, among ASEAN member states. Moreover, we urge you to impress upon Vietnamese officials that the establishment of a national working group by their government would be an important sign of Vietnam's commitment to protecting religious freedom and other human rights.

Thank you for your consideration of the Commission's recommendations. We would be grateful if you would share with us the findings and achievements of your visit upon your return.

Respectfully,

Felice Gaer
Chair

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom was created by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 to give independent recommendations to the executive branch and the Congress.

Visit our Web site at www.uscirf.gov

800 NORTH CAPITOL STREET, NW SUITE 790 WASHINGTON, DC 20002 202-523-3240/ 202-523-5020 (FAX)

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July 23, 2002   DETAINED VIETNAMESE CHURCH LEADER RELEASED AFTER SIT DOWN PROTEST BY CHURCH

A Vietnamese church leader arrested for his religious activities, was released after a sit down protest in a police station by members of his church.

Pastor Nguyen Dang Chi, 39, who leads a church in Phu Ly, Tri An, in Vietnam, was arrested on July 6.

He was held in a cell for 24 hours, with his feet shackled and was denied water, a blanket, and the use of a toilet. Despite the conditions, he sang hymns and prayed through the night.

The following day, more than 20 of his congregation went to the offices of the Phu Ly Commune security police and demanded to be allowed to visit their leader.

When this request was denied, they staged a sit down protest until midnight when the security forces eventually released Pastor Chi.

Pastor Chi and his church, which grew rapidly from a few people in 1995 to more than 800 today, have faced harassment from the Communist authorities from the outset.

The authorities questioned the validity of Pastor Chi's ordination certificate and ordered him to ask permission to preach. When he submitted the forms as requested, he was forbidden from preaching as he did not have written permission. His ID papers were repeatedly confiscated and this was followed by frequent fines. He was repeatedly summoned for interrogation, and when he insisted on asserting the right to religious freedom and his responsibility to preach the gospel, he was arrested.

A statement from believers in Vietnam says: "The lives of religious believers in Vietnam are still suffering an epidemic of abuse. 

"Even to quietly preach the Gospel is like a thorn in the face of the regime. Why? Because the Communist regime wants to implement the policy of keeping its citizens ignorant, prevent them from becoming moral and educated, and from exploring the basis for religious faith. For as long as citizens have faith, and as long as citizens have a basis for morality in religious faith, the Communists will not be able to force people into their atheistic ideology."

Earlier this month, CSW urged the UN Human Rights Committee to raise concern about the frequent abuses of Protestant Christians in Vietnam and the country's breaches of its obligations to respect religious freedom under the UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. 

CSW cited numerous incidents of abuse, violence, restrictions and harassment instigated by the Vietnamese authorities against the Protestant community in Vietnam. CSW also submitted a list of 12 evangelical pastors currently in prison in Vietnam. 

The Committee raised concern over religious freedom with the Vietnamese authorities, specifically highlighting refusal to recognize religious groups, misuse of laws on religion and restrictions on religious activities, including training of religious personnel."

Mervyn Thomas, Chief Executive of CSW-UK, said: "The mistreatment of Pastor Chi, including how he was held with his feet shackled and without water, a blanket or even the use of a toilet, is a disgrace. It is the height of duplicity for Vietnam to come before the UN claiming it practices religious freedom while it is carrying out such flagrant abuses of this right. 

"We commend the bravery of the congregation in taking a stance, but sadly believe the report from inside the country suggesting that Pastor Chi and his congregation will surely face more serious abuse in the future. We call on Vietnam to honor its international commitments and truly protect the right to religious freedom."

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July 5, 2002   CHRISTIAN LEADERS IN VIETNAM PETITION GOVERNMENT OVER RESTRICTIONS ON RELIGIOUS FREEDOM

Christians in Vietnam have sent a petition to the government to protest about 'severe hardships' in running their activities.

The petition, issued by the Evangelical Church of Vietnam - Northern Region (ECVN-North), is addressed to Prime Minister Phan Van Khai and cites three main proofs of the government's restrictions.

Firstly they have not been able to ratify the decisions made at their annual General Assembly on the orders of the Bureau of Religious Affairs, meaning that the leadership committee is not recognized and the work of the church is seriously hindered.

Secondly a church building in Vinh, Nghe An Province, has been destroyed and thirdly the government severely restricts the ECVN-North's permission to train and assign new leaders.

The petition from the ECVN-North reads: "Our church building in Vinh had withstood two horrible wars without a scratch, but it was destroyed, razed, at a time when our country has peace, independence and freedom.

"This is a serious spiritual attack on the congregation of Vinh and the believers of Vietnam in general, and at the same time a clear violation of the constitution and the laws of the Vietnamese nation. 

"We ask that the activities and organization of the ECVN-North may soon be made more secure, so we can resume normal activities and meet the spiritual and moral needs of citizens who have religious faith and at the same time provide encouragement for them to be good citizens of Vietnam."

In addition, CSW has just received a new list of twelve Protestant leaders who are currently in prison in Northern Vietnam.

Nine church leaders are in Thanh Ha prison, Phuc Yen province, one is in Lao Cai province prison and two are in Lai Chau province prison.

Ly A Hu has been imprisoned in Thanh Ha since September 1998; Vang Sua Giang and Sung A Choa, since August 2000; Sung Seo Si, Thao Seo Sao, Thao Seo Chong and Sung Seo Sang since March 2001; and Ma Seo Phu and Vang Seo Senh, since December 2001.

Lu A Chung, has been in prison in Lao Cai since December 2001; Phan Phu Thin and Chau Quay Phan have been in Lai Chau since December 2001.

In addition, there are believed to be many other Christians who have been imprisoned or killed, but whose names are not known. Other church leaders have had severe restrictions placed on their movements.

Vietnam's human rights record, including its respect for religious freedom, is to be examined by the forthcoming session of the UN Human Rights Committee which convenes on Monday in Geneva.

CSW stands with the ECVN-North in calling on the government to allow the church to organize its affairs without interference. In addition CSW calls on the government to free the twelve church leaders and all others who are behind bars for their religious beliefs. 

Stuart Windsor, National Director of CSW, said: "Christians in Vietnam are not free to follow their faith in freedom and the government's National Bureau of Religious Affairs harasses them at every turn.

"Innocent men and women are locked up and persecuted simply for their religious faith and we call on the government to release them and to respect the right to religious freedom."


NOTES TO EDITORS:

There are about one million Protestant Christians in Vietnam - three quarters of whom belong to Vietnam's tribal minority groups. They are considered to be a threat to the Communist regime and tribal Christians, particularly from the Northern Hmong tribal areas, face especially severe persecution.

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November 6, 2001     Pastor Intimidated as Part of Government Clampdown on Christians in Vietnam

Pastor Nguyen Hong Quang has been warned by Vietnamese authorities to stop running church activities from his house in Ho Chi Minh City.

He has been running projects to help the poor and destitute as well as leading a church in Binh Thanh's 26th Ward, District 2, but the future of these works is now uncertain.

This is not the first time this church leader has been intimidated as security police broke into a class of underprivileged children he was teaching and arrested three teachers in August.

When Pastor Quang raised the matter with the security police, they handcuffed him, kicked him and beat him until his face was swollen.

The arrested teachers were released the next day, but police confiscated Pastor Quang's Family Register making it impossible for his child to get state education and for him to carry out his work without difficulty.

Pastor Quang is the Provisional Chairman of the Administrative Committee of the Vietnamese Evangelical Mennonite denomination.

Christians from the Hmong tribe in the northwestern Lai Chau province have also experienced harassment from the authorities, ranging from intimidation to torture.

Government officials and soldiers reportedly came to their homes and tried to force them to perform spirit practices on April 12.

Their possessions were thrown out of their homes and women and children were threatened while some of the men were assaulted before being evicted from their homes.

In a separate incident in the same province, two believers say they were beaten and stabbed with an electric cattle prod in the chest on June 19.

The next day a group under the control of the village chairman destroyed one of the men's houses and intimidated other believers.

Other Hmong believers were assaulted by men using an electric truncheon and beaten severely before being told to renounce Christianity.

Christian Solidarity Worldwide has just received a list of 16 Christian prisoners, all from the Hmong people, which includes believers arrested as long ago as 1998. There are believed to be several more believers, but this information is yet to be verified.

Father Thaddeus Nguyen Van Ly, a Roman Catholic priest, has just been sentenced to 15 years for allegedly disobeying probation rules and "undermining national unity".

He is an advocate of religious freedom in Vietnam who has been consistently critical of the Government for not upholding the right to worship freely and who has already spent nearly ten years in prison.

Mervyn Thomas, Chief Executive of Christian Solidarity Worldwide - UK, said: "This latest intimidation of a church leader highlights the constant pressure being put on the church by the authorities in Vietnam. We call on the Government to protect the right of individuals to worship freely and to hold to the rule of law."

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October 2, 2001    Vietnam: Pastor Quang

Dear Friends,

We are writing to ask if you would consider helping a brave pastor who has taken a courageous stand for religious freedom and the rights of the poor in Vietnam.

Nguyen Hong Quang is a pastor and the Provisional Chairman of the Administrative Committee of the Vietnamese Evangelical Mennonite denomination. As well as his valuable pastoral activities, Pastor Quang runs projects to help the poor and destitute. Pastor Quang has been subject to frequent intimidation and persecution to dissuade him from conducting both his religious and social activities. In the most recent series of incidents, on August17th, security police charged into a class established by Pastor Quang for the desperately poor children of Cell 16B of Binh Thanh's 26th Ward, Ho Chi Minh City, and arrested three of his colleagues. When Pastor Quang raised the matter with the security police, officer Tien beat Pastor Quang until his face was all swollen. The officers handcuffed Pastor Quang and kicked him, leaving him with bloody scabs and handcuff marks on his wrists, and bruises on his left thigh, two and a half weeks later. The arrested believers were held in Binh Thanh 26th Ward security police office for the day, without food or drink. On 24th August officers brought an evangelical believer named Khai to the security police office at 2.00 am. 

Later on the same day, they took Pastor Quang's Family Register, making it impossible for his child to receive public education and for Pastor Quang to carry on many aspects of trade and communication. Pastor Quang has taken a courageous stand in speaking out against the injustices visited upon him and his team and he and his group would greatly value expressions of support. 

If you would like to express solidarity with Pastor Quang and his team, please do send them a card of encouragement. It would be valuable to include a comment along the lines that you know of the unjust treatment he and other Christians are experiencing and that you are praying for justice and freedom of worship for him and all people of faith in Vietnam. Feel free to include personal sentiments as well, of course.


Contact details: 
Muc Su Nguyen Hong Quan
C5/1H Tran Nao, Phuong Binh Khanh
Quan 2, Ho Chi Minh City
VIETNAM

(Greeting: Dear Pastor Quang, family and friends,)

If you would like to help Pastor Quang in another practical way, you could  write to your Congressperson to ask them to raise concern about the treatment of Pastor Quang, his colleagues and the poor community that he is helping. You can find out the name of your Congressperson by calling the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121.

Please remember Pastor Quang and his team in your prayers and encourage others to pray for them.