Viet Nam
29.10.03
Urgent Interventions
Vietnam : new wave of repression against the leaders of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV)
URGENT APPEAL – THE OBSERVATORY
VTN 003 / 1003 / OBS 059
Administrative detention
VIETNAM
October 29th, 2003
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint FIDH and OMCT programme, requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Vietnam.
Brief description of the situation :
The Observatory has been informed by International Buddhist Information Bureau of a new wave of repression against the leaders of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV).
According to the information received, on October 8th, Security Police intercepted UBCV Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang (86-year-old), and his deputy Thich Quang Do (75-year-old), as they were leaving the Nguyen Thieu Monastery, in Binh Dinh province, to travel to Ho Chi Minh City. At 5.00 am, the two UBCV leaders had just set off in a mini-van along with other UBCV monks, when Security Police suddenly appeared along with a group of about 40 people. The Police blocked the road, intercepted the monks' vehicle and banned them from leaving the Monastery. Thich Huyen Quang – who has been in assigned residence since 1982, at the exception of some journeys he recently made under the surveillance of the authorities - and Thich Quang Do – who was release from administrative detention in June 2003 - strongly protested and refused to move.
At 10.00 am, police drew up a report claiming that the vehicle was "disturbing public order". They ordered the UBCV monks to sign the report, but they refused. Police declared that they would tow the van back to the Nguyen Thieu Monastery. Deeply distressed, local Buddhists and monks from the Nguyen Thieu Monastery gathered around the van to protect them. By 2.00 pm, 200 monks and 1,000 Buddhist followers had formed a human wall around the van and the convoy was able to pursue its road after 10 hours of immobilization by the police.
Following this incident, Thich Huyen Quang and Thich Quang Do were placed under house arrest and their monasteries subjected to round-the-clock surveillance. Since then, they both have been held in total isolation, respectively at the Nguyen Thieu Pagoda, in Dinh Binh Province, and the Thanh Minh Zen Monastery in Ho Chi Minh City and have been denied access to medical care. Phone lines to scores of UBCV Pagodas have been cut and mobile phones confiscated in a widespread campaign to isolate UBCV supporters and prevent them from reorganizing the banned UBCV.
On October 9th, the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the two monks were accused of "carrying state secrets" (article 80 of the Penal Code). They have still not been cleared of these accusations.
Moreover, on October 11th, three other Buddhist monks who were travelling with the two UBCV leaders, Thich Tue Sy, vice-President of Vien Hoa Dao, the UBCV's Institute for the Dissemination of the Faith, Thich Thanh Huyen, head of its Youth Department and its treasurer Thich Nguyen Ly, have been sentenced to two years administrative detention by the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Chairman invoked "national security" legislation (Article 27 and Decree 31/CP). Decree 31/CP is among "national security" legislation strongly denounced by the UN Human Rights Committee as being totally incompatible with international human rights law.
Venerable Thich Huyen Quang declared that his personal assistant, Venerable Thich Dong Tho, was arrested on October 16th, and sent into internal exile without charge to a Pagoda in a remote mountainous region.
According to the same sources, between October 14th and 19th, several other senior UBCV monks, all new appointees to the UBCV Executive Committee, were "orally" sentenced to house arrest by Security Police. They include Venerable Thich Thien Hanh, Secretary-general of the UBCV's Institute of the Sangha in Hue; Thich Thai Hoa, head of the UBCV's Religious Instruction Department in Hue; Thich Dong Tho, the UBCV Patriarch's personal assistant, in Binh Dinh province; Thich Nguyen Vuong, personal assistant to Venerable Thich Tue Sy, at Gia Lam Pagoda in Ho Chi Minh City. Moreover, Venerable Thich Phuoc An, newly-appointed head of the UBCV's Cultural Department, was summoned for "working sessions" at the People's Committee in Khanh Hoa Province and ordered by Bui Huu Thanh, a Religious Security Police official, to give up this function.
On October 17th, Venerable Thich Vien Dinh, the new Vice-President of the UBCV's Institute for the Dissemination of the Faith, who was arrested during the October 9-10 incidents and who is now under effective house arrest in Ho Chi Minh City, called on the Vietnamese leadership to grant urgent medical access to Thich Huyen Quang and Thich Quang Do, who are in very poor health. The Observatory has not received any new information concerning this request.
According to the last information received, on October 21st, the Head of the Binh Dinh Provincial Security Police came to the Monastery and pressured Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang to resign from his position as Fourth Supreme Patriarch of the UBCV. He threatened Thich Huyen Quang with serious reprisals if he did not break off all contact with Venerable Thich Quang Do and the UBCV.
The Observatory notes that these events follow a wave of interrogations and harassment of UBCV monks which began in early September 2003, when police were informed that Venerables Thich Huyen Quang and Thich Quang Do had called a special UBCV Assembly on 16-19 September to reorganize UBCV structures and appoint a number of monks to new functions.
This new crackdown on the UBCV comes after a landmark meeting on April 2nd, 2003, between Prime Minister Phan Van Khai and UBCV Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang which had raised hopes that Vietnam might move towards greater religious tolerance. It also comes after the release, on June 28th, 2003, of Venerable Thich Quang Do, who was in administrative detention since June 2001, for launching a “Call for democracy in Vietnam “ in February 2001 (See annual report of the Observatory 2001)
The Observatory recalls that the UBCV monks have been subjected to systematic repression on the part of the Vietnamese authorities for many years because of their commitment to religious freedom, human rights and democracy in Vietnam (Cf. See Urgent appeals VTN 001/9909/OBS 061 and VTN 001/0105/OBS 042).
The Observatory considers that these facts constitute a blatant violation of the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 9 December 1998, whose Article 1 states that "everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to promote and to strive for the protection and realisation of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international levels" and whose Article 6(b) states that "Everyone has the right, individually and in association with others (...) to publish, impart or disseminate to others views, information and knowledge on all human rights and fundamental freedoms".
Action requested :
Please write to the Vietnamese authorities urging them to :
i. Guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Venerables Thich Huyen Quang, Thich Quang, in particular by granting them access to medical care;
ii. Release immediately Venerables Thich Huyen Quang, Thich Quang Do and the other UBCV monks arbitrarily detained and guarantee their freedom of movement and expression;
iii. Put an end to all forms of harassment to which Venerables Thich Quang Do, Thich Huyen Quang and all other human rights defenders in Vietnam have been subjected;
iv. Respect the terms of the Declaration of defenders of human rights adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 9 December 1998, and in particular its Articles 1 and 6(b) mentioned above;
v. Respect the terms of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and other international instruments ratified by the Socialist Republic of Vietnam
Addresses :
- President :Tran Duc Luong, President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Office of the State, 1 Bach Thao, Hanoi, Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Fax : (+84) 4199 2682
- Premier Ministre : Phan Van Khai, Prime Minister, Office of the Prime Minister, 1 Bach Thao
Hanoi, Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Fax : (+84) 4823 1872
- Secrétaire général du Parti Communiste du Vietnam : M. Nong Duc Manh, Hanoi Fax: (+84) 48 23514
- M. Nguyen Nang Tien, Mission permanente de la République socialiste du Vietnam auprès de l’Officce des Nations Unies à Genève, Fax : (+ 41 22) 798 24 69 (+ 41 22) 798 07 24
e-mail : mission.vietnam@ties.itu.int
**************
Geneva – Paris, October, 29th, 2003
Kindly inform the Observatory of any action undertaken, quoting the code number of this appeal in your reply.
The Observatory, a joint FIDH and OMCT venture, is dedicated to the protection of Human Rights Defenders and aims to offer them concrete support in their time of need.
To contact the Observatory, call the Emergency Line: Fax : 33 (0) 1 55 80 83 92
Tel. : FIDH 33 (0) 1 43 55 20 11 OMCT : + 41 22 809 49 39 E-mail observatoire@iprolink.ch
VTN 003 / 1003 / OBS 059
Administrative detention
VIETNAM
October 29th, 2003
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint FIDH and OMCT programme, requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Vietnam.
Brief description of the situation :
The Observatory has been informed by International Buddhist Information Bureau of a new wave of repression against the leaders of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV).
According to the information received, on October 8th, Security Police intercepted UBCV Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang (86-year-old), and his deputy Thich Quang Do (75-year-old), as they were leaving the Nguyen Thieu Monastery, in Binh Dinh province, to travel to Ho Chi Minh City. At 5.00 am, the two UBCV leaders had just set off in a mini-van along with other UBCV monks, when Security Police suddenly appeared along with a group of about 40 people. The Police blocked the road, intercepted the monks' vehicle and banned them from leaving the Monastery. Thich Huyen Quang – who has been in assigned residence since 1982, at the exception of some journeys he recently made under the surveillance of the authorities - and Thich Quang Do – who was release from administrative detention in June 2003 - strongly protested and refused to move.
At 10.00 am, police drew up a report claiming that the vehicle was "disturbing public order". They ordered the UBCV monks to sign the report, but they refused. Police declared that they would tow the van back to the Nguyen Thieu Monastery. Deeply distressed, local Buddhists and monks from the Nguyen Thieu Monastery gathered around the van to protect them. By 2.00 pm, 200 monks and 1,000 Buddhist followers had formed a human wall around the van and the convoy was able to pursue its road after 10 hours of immobilization by the police.
Following this incident, Thich Huyen Quang and Thich Quang Do were placed under house arrest and their monasteries subjected to round-the-clock surveillance. Since then, they both have been held in total isolation, respectively at the Nguyen Thieu Pagoda, in Dinh Binh Province, and the Thanh Minh Zen Monastery in Ho Chi Minh City and have been denied access to medical care. Phone lines to scores of UBCV Pagodas have been cut and mobile phones confiscated in a widespread campaign to isolate UBCV supporters and prevent them from reorganizing the banned UBCV.
On October 9th, the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the two monks were accused of "carrying state secrets" (article 80 of the Penal Code). They have still not been cleared of these accusations.
Moreover, on October 11th, three other Buddhist monks who were travelling with the two UBCV leaders, Thich Tue Sy, vice-President of Vien Hoa Dao, the UBCV's Institute for the Dissemination of the Faith, Thich Thanh Huyen, head of its Youth Department and its treasurer Thich Nguyen Ly, have been sentenced to two years administrative detention by the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Chairman invoked "national security" legislation (Article 27 and Decree 31/CP). Decree 31/CP is among "national security" legislation strongly denounced by the UN Human Rights Committee as being totally incompatible with international human rights law.
Venerable Thich Huyen Quang declared that his personal assistant, Venerable Thich Dong Tho, was arrested on October 16th, and sent into internal exile without charge to a Pagoda in a remote mountainous region.
According to the same sources, between October 14th and 19th, several other senior UBCV monks, all new appointees to the UBCV Executive Committee, were "orally" sentenced to house arrest by Security Police. They include Venerable Thich Thien Hanh, Secretary-general of the UBCV's Institute of the Sangha in Hue; Thich Thai Hoa, head of the UBCV's Religious Instruction Department in Hue; Thich Dong Tho, the UBCV Patriarch's personal assistant, in Binh Dinh province; Thich Nguyen Vuong, personal assistant to Venerable Thich Tue Sy, at Gia Lam Pagoda in Ho Chi Minh City. Moreover, Venerable Thich Phuoc An, newly-appointed head of the UBCV's Cultural Department, was summoned for "working sessions" at the People's Committee in Khanh Hoa Province and ordered by Bui Huu Thanh, a Religious Security Police official, to give up this function.
On October 17th, Venerable Thich Vien Dinh, the new Vice-President of the UBCV's Institute for the Dissemination of the Faith, who was arrested during the October 9-10 incidents and who is now under effective house arrest in Ho Chi Minh City, called on the Vietnamese leadership to grant urgent medical access to Thich Huyen Quang and Thich Quang Do, who are in very poor health. The Observatory has not received any new information concerning this request.
According to the last information received, on October 21st, the Head of the Binh Dinh Provincial Security Police came to the Monastery and pressured Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang to resign from his position as Fourth Supreme Patriarch of the UBCV. He threatened Thich Huyen Quang with serious reprisals if he did not break off all contact with Venerable Thich Quang Do and the UBCV.
The Observatory notes that these events follow a wave of interrogations and harassment of UBCV monks which began in early September 2003, when police were informed that Venerables Thich Huyen Quang and Thich Quang Do had called a special UBCV Assembly on 16-19 September to reorganize UBCV structures and appoint a number of monks to new functions.
This new crackdown on the UBCV comes after a landmark meeting on April 2nd, 2003, between Prime Minister Phan Van Khai and UBCV Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang which had raised hopes that Vietnam might move towards greater religious tolerance. It also comes after the release, on June 28th, 2003, of Venerable Thich Quang Do, who was in administrative detention since June 2001, for launching a “Call for democracy in Vietnam “ in February 2001 (See annual report of the Observatory 2001)
The Observatory recalls that the UBCV monks have been subjected to systematic repression on the part of the Vietnamese authorities for many years because of their commitment to religious freedom, human rights and democracy in Vietnam (Cf. See Urgent appeals VTN 001/9909/OBS 061 and VTN 001/0105/OBS 042).
The Observatory considers that these facts constitute a blatant violation of the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 9 December 1998, whose Article 1 states that "everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to promote and to strive for the protection and realisation of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international levels" and whose Article 6(b) states that "Everyone has the right, individually and in association with others (...) to publish, impart or disseminate to others views, information and knowledge on all human rights and fundamental freedoms".
Action requested :
Please write to the Vietnamese authorities urging them to :
i. Guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Venerables Thich Huyen Quang, Thich Quang, in particular by granting them access to medical care;
ii. Release immediately Venerables Thich Huyen Quang, Thich Quang Do and the other UBCV monks arbitrarily detained and guarantee their freedom of movement and expression;
iii. Put an end to all forms of harassment to which Venerables Thich Quang Do, Thich Huyen Quang and all other human rights defenders in Vietnam have been subjected;
iv. Respect the terms of the Declaration of defenders of human rights adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 9 December 1998, and in particular its Articles 1 and 6(b) mentioned above;
v. Respect the terms of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and other international instruments ratified by the Socialist Republic of Vietnam
Addresses :
- President :Tran Duc Luong, President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Office of the State, 1 Bach Thao, Hanoi, Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Fax : (+84) 4199 2682
- Premier Ministre : Phan Van Khai, Prime Minister, Office of the Prime Minister, 1 Bach Thao
Hanoi, Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Fax : (+84) 4823 1872
- Secrétaire général du Parti Communiste du Vietnam : M. Nong Duc Manh, Hanoi Fax: (+84) 48 23514
- M. Nguyen Nang Tien, Mission permanente de la République socialiste du Vietnam auprès de l’Officce des Nations Unies à Genève, Fax : (+ 41 22) 798 24 69 (+ 41 22) 798 07 24
e-mail : mission.vietnam@ties.itu.int
**************
Geneva – Paris, October, 29th, 2003
Kindly inform the Observatory of any action undertaken, quoting the code number of this appeal in your reply.
The Observatory, a joint FIDH and OMCT venture, is dedicated to the protection of Human Rights Defenders and aims to offer them concrete support in their time of need.
To contact the Observatory, call the Emergency Line: Fax : 33 (0) 1 55 80 83 92
Tel. : FIDH 33 (0) 1 43 55 20 11 OMCT : + 41 22 809 49 39 E-mail observatoire@iprolink.ch