From the United States:
From the office of Congressman Ed Royce:
March 15 1999
The Honorable Douglas B. PETERSON
Embassy of the United States
7 Lang Ha Road
Ba Dinh District
Hanoi, Vietnam
Dear Ambassador Peterson
I am writing to express to you my concern over the arrest and detention of Dr. Nguyen Thanh Giang by the Vietnamese government. Dr Nguyen is a respected geophysicist and leading Vietnamese political activist, whom I have had the opportunity to meet on several occasions. Dr Nguyen was arrested in Hanoi on March 4, 1999, reportedly for possessing anti\-government writings. Dr Nguyen's family believes he may be suffering torture while in custody\. They now fear for his life.
Dr. Nguyen apparently was arrested for speaking out the cause of
democracy and human rights in Vietnam. I respectfully request that you
ask the Vietnamese government to release immediately Dr. Nguyen. Until
his release, I would appreciate an update on Dr. Nguyen status. Thank you
for your attention to this important
matter.
Sincerely
Edward R. ROYCE
Vice-Chairman, Asia and the Pacific Subcommittee
cc: The Honorable Stanley O\. Roth, Assistant Secretary of State
for East Asian and Pacific Affairs.
From Texas Friends for a Free Vietnam Committee
Press Release
Arrest of Vietnamese Dissident Nguyen Thanh Giang by Hanoi Texas Friends For A Free Vietnam Committee call for immediate and unconditional release of dissident writer, Dr. Nguyen Thanh Giang, who was arrested by the Public Securities officers on March 04, 1999 in the streets of Hanoi.
Dr. Nguyen Thanh Giang, sixty-three, a respected writer and outspoken intellectual/scientist, has openly advocated human rights, democracy and major issues facing Vietnam today since 1989. He has written several articles calling for peaceful reforms. His criticism of the Vietnamese Communist Party has led to his arrest. Texas Friends For A Free Vietnam Committee considers this arrest unjust and a blatant violation of the Rights to Free Speech guaranteed in Vietnam's own Constitution, the Rights to Freedom of Speech for Individuals, as guaranteed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights which Vietnam has signed.
The State Department of the United States has demanded the release of Dr. Giang: "His arrest is a troubling event, and we call on the Vietnamese authorities to release him immediately and unconditionally," spokeman James P. Rubin said.
US Department of States' Country Report on Human Rights Practices in Vietnam for 1998, released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor on February 26, 1999 confirmed that dissident writers in Vietnam face tight government control and repression in Vietnam. At present, several well-known political prisoners, religious leaders, writers, and dissidents are under surveillance and threat of arrest or held in "administrative detainment" under Directive 31/CP, which authorizes detention without trial for up to two years by the Ministry of Interior.
We, Texas Friends For A Free Vietnam Committee, representing the
freedom-loving people in the State of Texas:
1) Totally support the United States, Department of States, to call on the Vietnamese authorities to release Dr. Giang immediately and unconditionally. We also demand the Vietnam government to release Dr. Nguyen Thanh Giang promptly and unconditionally.
2) Strongly condemn this oppressive action of the Vietnamese authorities to Dr. Giang and the Vietnam government must take responsibility for the illegal arrest of prominent writer Nguyen Thanh Giang.
2) Urgently call on all Texans, Americans, the Congress, the Senate and the President of the United States to exert diplomatic pressure on Vietnamese authorities to demand an immediate and unconditional release of writer Nguyen Thanh Giang.
3) Urgently call on all freedom-loving countries and international organizations, the media in the world to use its influences to demand an immediate and unconditional release of Dr. Giang and to stop the state-sponsored of terrorism on dissidents by the
Vietnamese authorities.
4) Urgently call on the Vietnam government to rescind Directive 31/CP and join the civilized nations of the World.
Houston, Texas, March 18, 1999
Contact: David Stockman, Secretary General, Texas Friends For A
Free
Vietnam Committee: (713) 687-1625 (p)
P.O. Box 262323, Houston, Texas 77207
From Australia:
From the Honorable COMM JULIAN F STEFANI OAM, MLC
16 March 1999
The Prime Minister of Vietnam
The Honourable Phan Van Khai
VP Thu Tuong Hoang Hoa Tham
Hanoi
VIETNAM
Dear Prime Minister
I am writing to you as a Liberal Member of the South Australian Parliament, representing the interests of many South Australian citizens of migrant background. I am, myself, an Italian migrant who settled in Australia with my family in 1950.
I am conscious that the Vietnamese Government is being encouraged
to adopt a more democratic system of government which will provide greater
freedoms and better consideration for the human and civil rights
for all Vietnamese people.
I am particularly aware of the need for a more flexible democratisation process which will embrace the notions of freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of association, as well as other fundamental freedoms for greater democracy.
In this context, I would urge your Government to consider the abolition of the Decree 31/CP, which permits the arrest of people without trial.
I am aware that Mr Nguyen Thanh Giang, a geophysicist who has expressed various views on human rights, has been arrested and is currently being held by the Vietnamese authorities and his family are not aware of his whereabouts or the condition of his health.
I know that Mr Nguyen Thanh Giang has made a number of speeches and has written regarding the rights of Vietnamese workers, focussing on the urgent need for democratic and political reform.
I also believe that a number of other persons who have recently expressed views regarding greater democracy, political choice and corruption are facing the threat of detention.
These people, such as Hoang Minh Chinh, Hoang Tien, Vu Huy Cuong, Nguyen Kien Giang and Hoang Huu Nhan, have been identified by the Vietnamese authorities as dissidents against the communist government.
However, it is the view of many free thinking people around the world that individual expression of views is not considered a threat to the Vietnamese government which is striving to achieve greater democracy and economic development.
In writing this letter to you, I am expressing strong support for the views held by many of my Australian constituents who were born in Vietnam and who retain a strong pride in and affinity with their motherland.
Of particular interest to the many Australians of Vietnamese origin, are the issues of justice; the release of all prisoners of conscience; as well as the freedom of the press which are all part of the fundamental basis for a free and democratic society
Therefore, in accordance with the standards and the international code of practice adopted by the World Association of Newspapers, and in the spirit of fairness, justice and compassion, Vietnamese Australians also believe that human rights and freedoms should be accorded to Mr Nguyen Thanh Giang and all incarcerated journalists and other prisoners of conscience.
I seek your intervention in this matter on behalf of the many thousands of peace loving Vietnamese people who have settled in South Australia and who are making outstanding contributions to our society.
I would appreciate your personal consideration to these issues.
Yours sincerely
HON COMM JULIAN F STEFANI OAM, MLC
Tel: (08) 8237 9100
Fax: (08) 8231 0695