December 9, 2003
On October 9, 2003, the Vietnamese government arrested top leaders from the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV) at the conclusion of a meeting in which the UBCV elected its new leadership. In all, eleven monks and laity were detained when their vehicle was stopped at a roadside. The Vietnamese government accused the UBCV of organizing a meeting without permission from the government
Below is a summary of the whereabouts of key UBCV leaders:
• The Most Venerable Thich Huyen Quang, patriarch of the UBCV, along with Venerable Thich Dong Tho were transferred to Nguyen Thieu pagoda in Binh Dinh where they are under house arrest and virtual isolation.
• The Venerable Thich Quang Do is under house arrest at Thanh Minh monastery in Saigon. The 75-year old deputy leader of the UBCV is reportedly in poor health.
• The Venerable Thich Tue Sy immediately went on a hunger strike after being detained. Authorities subsequently transferred him to Gia Lam pagoda in Saigon and through a hastily organized secret tribunal sentenced him to two years of administrative detainment.
• The Venerable Thich Nguyen Dinh was taken to the Gia Lam pagoda following three days of interrogation. He is also being isolated.
Members of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam have been under constant persecution since the Vietnamese authorities dissolved the UBCV in 1981 and created an official Buddhist church controlled by the Communist Party. This latest crackdown has generated strong reactions from the international community. The US House of Representatives has passed a Resolution (H.Res. 237) condemning the arrests. The European Parliament also passed a similar measure.
Vietnamese Americans and Vietnamese around the world are deeply concerned about the situation. We propose the following actions:
1. The United Nations to actively and closely monitor cases of abuse of religious belief and practice.
2. International and human rights organizations to appeal to the Vietnamese government to immediately release all religious and political dissidents in Vietnam.
3. The international community to take stronger measures against Vietnam for repressing basic human rights. Without international pressure, the travesty of justice in Vietnam will continue.
4. Vietnam must be warned that continuing harassment, false imprisonment of religious and human rights activists could have impact on future diplomatic and trade relations with other nations.