WASHINGTON, June 4 (AFP) - The United States on Monday rebuked Vietnam for placing a leading religious dissident under house arrest, subjecting Hanoi's human rights record to further scrutiny as a key trade pact between the two former foes was headed for Congress.
State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said in a statement that US ambassador to Hanoi Pete Peterson had conveyed Washington's deep concern over the detention of Nobel peace prize nominee Thich Quang Do to the Vietnamese government.
"We regret that the Vietnamese authorities have taken this action," Boucher said.
"The United States calls on the government of Vietnam to respect the autonomy of all religions, to allow all persons to practice their religious faiths freely."
Do, one of Vietnam's best-known dissidents who had previously spent years in detention, was nominated for last year's Nobel peace prize by 30 US Congressmen.
An official in the Ho Chi Minh City municipal government told AFP earlier Monday that Do had been placed under house arrest for two years from June 1. The arrest and the speedy US condemnation came as the White House prepared to ask Congress to ratify a trade pact signed with Hanoi last year which is seen as a crucial part of the slow healing process following the Vietnam War.
"It will be soon," an administration the official said on condition of anonymity, confirming details first revealed Friday by Democratic congressional sources who expect to formally receive the pact early this week. The agreement, signed by the Clinton administration, was held up while new US Trade Representative Robert Zoellick set his priorities, prompting regular warnings of the dangers of delay by Vietnam.
A lack of action on the pact coincided with mounting criticism here over Vietnam's human rights record, including over religious freedom. Vietnamese dissidents have called on lawmakers to delay the agreement's ratification to force Vietnam to improve its record.
Boucher's also used Monday's statement to call on Hanoi to allow another leading religious dissident, Thich Huyen Quang, 83-year-old patriarch of the outlawed Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV) to travel to Ho Chi Minh City for medical treatment.
It also demanded the release of other religious leaders. The historic trade deal grants Vietnam normal trade relations with Washington, effectively giving Hanoi similar low-tariff access to US markets as other trade partners.
In return, US businesses will get more access to Vietnam's emerging market. Owing to the delay in ratifying the pact, Bush on Friday granted Vietnam a one-year extension of limited trade privileges already in force. Congress has 60 days to mount a challenge to Bush's grant of the so-called Jackson-Vanik waiver.
Even thought Vietnam is barred from normal trade relations, US businesses there can claim export guarantees or government credits under an amendment to a 1974 Trade Act.