Press Release
Oslo, October 20, 2001
Father Nguyen Van Ly was sentenced to 15 years in prison by a "People's Court" in Vietnam on October 19, 2001 in a one day trial. This is a clear violation of human rights and further evidence that the Vietnamese authorities do not respect international human rights conventions which Vietnam is a signatory, says Lars Rise who is a member of parliament in Norway and also member of the parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
Lars Rise is the first and only foreign parliamentarian to have met with Father Nguyen Van Ly. During a visit to Vietnam on April 9, 2001, Mr. Rise was arrested and sent out of the country after visiting the Catholic priest in An Truyen, Hue. Father Ly, adopted by Amnesty International as a prisoner of conscience, was jailed from 1977 to 1978 and then again from 1983 to1992 for his peaceful calls for religious freedom, adds Mr. Rise.
- I am outraged that the Vietnamese authorities regard peaceful expression to be a crime
punishable by long years in prison. Father Nguyen Van Ly had simply issued public statements calling for true religious freedom and democracy.
- This harsh conviction shows the lack of rule of law in Vietnam. The trial was neither open nor
fair. According to credible sources, Father Nguyen Van Ly did not have a lawyer for his defense.
- I have the utmost respect for Father Nguyen Van Ly, having had the chance to visit with him at
An Truyen Church during my trip to Vietnam in April. I was impressed by his faith and humanity. Father
Nguyen Van Ly embodies the goodness in the Vietnamese people.
- I resolve to work with the Norwegian government as well as human rights groups to try to
achieve the immediate and unconditional release and freedom of Father Nguyen Van Ly and that of other
prisoners of conscience in Vietnam, says Lars Rise.
Lars Rise
Member of Parliament Norway Stortinget
Karl Johans gt. 22 N-0026 Oslo, Norway
Tel: +47 23 31 31 92 - Fax: +47 23 31 38 55
Email: lars.rise@stortinget.no