Geneva, Palais des Nations. Speaking at the UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva today, Mr. Vo Van Ai, President of the Paris-based Vietnam Committee on Human Rights (VCHR) and Vice-President of the International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH) condemned the recent crack-down on members of the outlawed Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV) and accused Vietnam of using charges of “espionage” as a pretext to arrest dissidents and stifle freedom of expression. Mr. Ai spoke on behalf of the FIDH, the France-based “Working Together for Human Rights” and the VCHR.

He expressed concern for Buddhist Pham Van Tuong (Thich Tri Luc), to whom he spoke by telephone one day after the former UBCV monk’s release from prison on 26, March 2004. In this conversation, Thich Tri Luc confirmed the fears expressed by the Vietnam Committee on Human Rights to the UN Human Rights Commission last year : the Buddhist was abducted in Phnom Penh by Cambodian Police under orders of a Vietnamese Security agent and forcibly repatriated to Vietnam.

Thich Tri Luc, 50, fled to Cambodia in 2002 to escape religious persecution and obtained refugee status from the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in June 2002. He then “disappeared” on the night of July 25th 2002. Mr Vo Van Ai said that Vietnam had deliberately lied to the international community by denying all knowledge of Thich Tri Luc’s whereabouts until August 2003, when they announced his forthcoming trial. “Vietnam detained him in secret for one year… then “legalized” his his arbitrary detention by giving him an unfair prison sentence of 20 months. He must be given immediate access to the UNHCR and placed under UN protection”.

On Monday, March 29th, the UNHCR representative in Hanoi, Vu Anh Son said that he would visit Thich Tri Luc to consider his refugee status “on condition he did nothing to oppose Vietnam”. The same day, Thich Tri Luc’s phone was cut, and all contacts are now impossible.

Mr. Ai also condemned a recent brutal crackdown on the outlawed UBCV, which dashed the hopes of increased religious tolerance raised in April 2003 after a landmark meeting between the Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van Khai and the UBCV Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang. “In October 2003, the Vietnamese government launched one of the worst ever campaigns to suppress the UBCV, surrounding its Pagodas and imposing a total information black-out. Telephones were cut, all visits prohibited. UBCV monks, nuns and followers were harassed, interrogated and imprisoned”. Eleven members of the newly elected UBCV leadership were placed under “administrative detention” in the crackdown.

The plight of the UBCV’s two charismatic leaders, Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang and Venerable Thich Quang Do is particularly alarming. “The UBCV Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang, who has already spent over 20 years in detention without trial, was sent forcibly back to his prison-pagoda at the Nguyen Thieu Monastery in Binh Dinh province, after enjoying but a few months of very limited freedom. The UBCV’s Deputy leader, the Very Venerable Thich Quang Do, his Deputy, who was just released from 2 years in administrative detention, was also sent back to his prison-pagoda, the Thanh Minh Zen Monastery in Ho Chi Minh City”. Although the two monks have not been formally charged, they are under investigation for “possessing State secrets”, a crime which carries the death penalty in Vietnam.

Mr. Ai also denounced increasing restrictions “both in law and in practice” on the right to freedom of expression, notably Vietnam’s new Decree on the death penalty (January 2004) which classifies all information and statistics on executions as “State secrets”. This Decree is aimed at deflecting growing international criticism on the increased use of capital punishment in Vietnam. “This measure is deeply regrettable in view of the UN’s constant efforts to abolish the death penalty”.

In the post-11th September era, “the Hanoi authorities have used and abused the crime of espionage to arrest and sentence dissidents to heavy prison sentences”. He raised the cases of “cyber-dissidents” Le Chi Quang (4 years in prison), Pham Hong Son (13 years, reduced to 5 after international protests), Nguyen Khac Toan (12 years), Nguyen Vu Binh (7 years) – all sentenced under Vietnam’s broadly-defined “national security” laws. Mr. Ai alerted the Commission of the forthcoming trial of Pham Que Duong, 76, a renowned military historian and former Colonel in the People’s Army. Arrested on December 28th 2002, this Communist Party veteran and prominent dissident is awaiting trial on charges of “espionage” simply for applying to set up an independent anti-corruption association and calling for political reforms.

On behalf of the FIDH, Working Together for Human Rights, and the Vietnam Committee on Human Rights, Mr. Ai “call(ed) on the Commission on Human Rights to strongly urge the Vietnamese government to respect its international obligations; to extend an invitation to the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression to visit Vietnam; and immediately and unconditionally release Thich Huyen Quang, Thich Quang Do, Pham Que Duong, Nguyen Dan Que and all other persons detained for the legitimate exercise of their civil and political rights”.

At a Round table discussion held at the UN Commission on the theme of “Human Rights and Democracy – building common purpose among the Un’s democracies” this week, Mr. Vo Van Ai warned against the alliance of dictatorships and authoritarian countries within the UN, i.e. the “Like Minded Group” which seeks “beyond all ideologies, to fight against democracy and human rights”. ”For years, the Like Minded Group has done its utmost to stifle all attempts to investigate or denounce human rights abuses”. Other speakers on the panel were Ambassador Richard Williamson, head of the US Delegation, Ambassador Krysztof Jakubowski, Permanent UN Representative of Poland, Ambassador Gordan Markotic, Permanent UN Representative of Croatia and Vice-President of the UN Commission on Human Rights, and Marco Pannella, Member of the European Parliament (Transnational Radical Party).

This alliance of dictatorships, which unites authoritarian, military and totalitarian regimes such as Burma, China, Cuba, Sudan and Vietnam “is discrediting the UN Commission on Human Rights. Little by little, they are working to reduce the Commission’s human rights mechanisms and procedures into a mere talking shop, or even worse, into a podium for authoritarian and repressive states to expound their own propaganda”. For example, the Like Minded Group has succeeded in putting a proposal on this Commission’s agenda to examine country resolutions only once every three years, in an attempt to avoid adverse publicity from annual debates on the “China resolution” etc… ”This will mean three years of peace for the oppressors and three years of repression for the victims”, he said.

To combat this situation, said Mr Ai, it is vital to “constitute an alliance of democracies which has its own structure within the UN to protect and advance democratic principles and human rights... We know from experience that dictatorships cannot be turned into democracies by kow-towing, but by the firmness and unity of democracies around the world”.

Que Me : Action pour la Démocratie au Vietnam / Que Me : Action for Democracy in Vietnam Comité Vietnam pour la Défense des Droits de l'Homme / Vietnam Committee on Human Rights 48 rue Parmentier - 94450 Limeil Brévannes - France Tel. +33 1 45 98 30 85 - Fax +33 1 45 98 32 61 - E-mail : queme@free.fr