Free Vietnam Alliance, PEN Canada, and CCPJ appeal for support of freedom of expression in Vietnam

(PEN Canada/CCPJ/IFEX) – The Free Vietnam Alliance, PEN Canada and the Canadian Committee to Protect Journalists have joined together to call for solidarity for all those imprisoned in Vietnam for exercising their right to freedom of expression. They ask supporters to sign the statement and send their signatures to the Free Vietnam Alliance in France, […]

(PEN Canada/CCPJ/IFEX) – The Free Vietnam Alliance, PEN Canada and the
Canadian Committee to Protect Journalists have joined together to call for
solidarity for all those imprisoned in Vietnam for exercising their right to
freedom of expression. They ask supporters to sign the statement and send
their signatures to the Free Vietnam Alliance in France, and to send letters
of appeal to the authorities in Vietnam and to Vietnamese embassies in their
own countries. They also ask people to circulate this statement to
like-minded friends and colleagues. A full list of signatures will be
compiled by 15 August 1998 and sent to the authorities in Vietnam and to
embassies around the world. The full text of the statement follows:

“In light of continuing violations against freedom of expression in Vietnam,
we, the Free Vietnam Alliance, PEN Canada and the Canadian Committee to
Protect Journalists, join together to call for solidarity for those
imprisoned in Vietnam for exercising their right to freedom of expression.

“We support the World Association of Newspapers’ (WAN) decision to award its
1998 Golden Pen of Freedom to a Vietnamese, Professor Doan Viet Hoat, who
has been incarcerated in Vietnam merely for exercising his right to think
and speak freely.

“On 1 June, WAN will present the Golden Pen at its 51st annual World
Newspaper Congress in Kobe, Japan. This conference, and other activities of
WAN, contribute significantly to the struggle to protect the freedom of the
press and expression which is violated in many nations, including Vietnam.
We join WAN in calling for supporters to send letters appealing to the
Vietnamese authorities for the release of Professor Doan and the many others
imprisoned or persecuted in Vietnam for exercising their right to freedom of
expression.

“Professor Doan Viet Hoat’s case is but one of many similar instances of
oppression and persecution of those who dare to express views contrary to
those of the Vietnamese government. What worries us is that the oppression
and persecution continues in Vietnam, challenging the conscience of
humanity:

1. On 6 September 1996, Tran Hoang, Minister of Information and Culture
announced the resolution of the Eighth Plenum to force journalists to study
and be trained in the policies of the Vietnamese Communist Party. This is
meant to control the thoughts and actions of Vietnamese journalists.

2. All media are required to have a “socialist orientation,” praising the
party and communist leaders. Three prominent magazines, “Hanoi Moi” (“New
Hanoi”), “Tien Phong” (“Vanguard”) and “Thuong Mai-Phap Luat” (“Commerce and
Law”) were raided by police under the pretext that state secrets had been
revealed.

3. Article 22 of the Newspaper and Publishing Law strictly prohibits any
publication which:
a. “goes against the socialist state, and sabotages the solidarity of the
people;”
b. “advocates violence, war or international discord;”
c. “distorts history, negates the revolutionary accomplishments of the
Communist Party, denigrates national heroes, or slanders national
organizations;”
d. “reveals state secrets.”

4. On 25 August 1997, Huu Tho, Chief of the department of Culture and
Ideology said in the Party Conference that “…all publications and
publishers need Party leadership and must operate within the law.” According
to Huu Tho, newspapers must be “the voice of the Party, the State, the
social organizations, and a forum for the people.”

5. On 15 September 1996, Vietnam launched a campaign called “Be alert to the
hostile activities of the overseas reactionaries.”

6. In September 1996, a Reuters reporter was beaten up by police when he
photographed a rally held by small-business people outside the People’s
Committee of Hanoi. He was later arrested and was interrogated in the
Ministry of Internal Affairs. All his pictures were confiscated.

7. On 23 October 1996, Vietnam expelled a United States reporter, the Hanoi
bureau chief for the “Far Eastern Economic Review”.

8. On 1 December 1996, a new law limited the number of foreign journalists
allowed to be active in Vietnam, increased control over the press, and
required that any news report, press conference, or exhibition be approved
by the Ministry of Culture.

9. In October 1997, journalist Nguyen Hoang Linh, editor of “Doanh Nghiep”
magazine was arrested after writing an article exposing corruption
surrounding the purchase of several patrol boats for the Customs Service.

10. In December 1997, writer Pham Van Viem was kidnapped by Vietnamese
secret police in Bulgaria and returned to Hanoi after he had translated a
book named “The Fascist Regime” by Dr. Zheliu Zhelev, the first president of
post-communist Bulgaria. He has not been seen nor heard from since.

11. In March 1998, poet Bui Minh Quoc was harassed and isolated by the Hanoi
government after his anthology “Spontaneous Poetry from the Interrogation
Room” found its way into overseas and underground press. The authorities are
forcing his family into poverty and are
subjecting them to extreme psychological stress with constant surveillance
and harassment of visitors.

12. In addition to Bui Minh Quoc, writers Ha Si Phu and Tieu Dao Bao Cu have
also been placed under strict surveillance. The Hanoi government has used
Decree 31/CP allowing local police to strictly control all Vietnamese
without charge to isolate these three people, both materially and
psychologically.

13. In May 1998, journalist Nguyen Ngoc Lan, while en route to the funeral
of dissident Nguyen Van Tran, author of “Write to Mother and Assembly”, was
followed and attacked by government agents. He was seriously injured as a
result. In May 1997, Nguyen Van Tran suffered a similar attack when he was
suspected of writing for the underground newspaper “Nguoi Saigon” (“The
Saigonese”.)

“Beside these outrages, the Hanoi government continues to isolate political
and religious prisoners, forbidding people from visiting or bringing
supplies. Recently, the relatives of professor Doan Viet Hoat went to Thanh
Cam prison near the Laotian border hoping to visit him, but the authorities
steadfastly refused to permit it under the pretext that the professor “has
not progressed
in his education.” Besides Doan Viet Hoat, the government of Vietnam has
applied the same measures to Dr. Nguyen Dan Que, Reverend Thich Huyen Quang,
Reverend Thich Quang Do, and Reverend Thich Khong Tanh.

“The repressive nature of the government of Vietnam is revealed as it tries
to slowly stifle all those who would dare to speak out against it. The Hanoi
government’s monopolistic control of the media has caused considerable harm
to the nation because people and society cannot progress when free thought
and speech are restricted. Realizing this, many people have stood up to
demand freedom of the press and of speech. Among those are many
distinguished former Party members. They too have been oppressed, isolated
and watched by the regime.

“We, the Free Vietnam Alliance, PEN Canada, and the Canadian Committee to
Protect Journalists, believe that the struggle for the prisoners of
conscience and freedom of the press in Vietnam will soon be successful if
these oppressed voices are supported by the world community. We therefore
appeal to you, the journalists of the world, and other supporters of freedom
of expression, to follow your conscience in supporting your colleagues and
the people in Vietnam.”

Recommended Action

Send appeals to Vietnamese authorities:

Vietnam :

Prime Minister of Vietnam

The Honorable Phan Van Khai

VP. Thu Tuong

Hoang Hoa Tham, Hanoi, Vietnam

The Honourable Tran Duc Luong

Office of the State

VP. Chinh Phu

1 Bach Thao, Hanoi

Vietnam
The Honorable Le Kha Phieu

General Secretary

V.P Trung Uong Dang

Nguyen Canh Chan,

Hanoi, Vietnam
Algeria :

Vietnam Embassy

30 rue du Chenoua Hydra

Algeria

Fax: 213-2693778
Angola :

Vietnam Embassy

66 N Zazi Alvalade

Luanda, Angola

Tel : 244-2-3388

Fax: 244-2-397731
Argentina:

Vietnam Embassy

Arribenos 1539, CP 1426

CF Buenos Aires

Tel: 54-1-7830438

Fax: 54-1-7820078
Australia :

Vietnam Embassy

6Timbarra Crescent

O’Malley Act, Canberra,

Australia

Tel: 61-6062866059

Fax: 61-6062864534
Consulate General

489 New South, Head Road

Double Bay, NSW 2028,

Sydney, Australia

Tel: 61-02-3272539

Fax: 61-02-3281653
Belgium :

Vietnam Embassy

130 Ave. de la Floride

1180 Bruxelles

Tel: 322-3749133

Fax: 322-3749376
Brunei :

Vietnam Embassy

Lot 13489 Jalan Manggis Dua (off Jalan Muara) Bandar Seri

Bagawan, Brunei Darussalam

Tel: 673-2-343168

Fax: 673-2-343169
Bulgaria :

Vietnam Embassy

Sofia 1113 UI “1 Petrov”

Tel: 3592-658334
Cambodia :

Vietnam Embassy

436 Bld Preach, Monivong

Phnompenh

Tel: 85-5-18811804

Fax: 85-515345361
Canada :

Vietnam Embassy

226 Maclaren St.

Ottawa, Ontario,

K2P 0L9, Canada

Tel: (613) 236-0772

Fax: (613) 236-2704
China :

Vietnam Embassy

32 Guang Hua Lu

Jian guo Men Wai, Beijing, China

Tel: 86-10-6527908

Fax: 86-10-65325720
Cuba:

Vietnam Embassy

Calle 18, No. 1802, 5 ta

Ave-Miramar, La Habana,

Cuba

Tel: 53-7-331 501

Fax: 53-7-334041
Czech Republic:

Vietnam Embassy

Plzenska 214-1500

Praha 5, Czech

Tel: 57211540

Fax: 57211792
France :

Vietnam Embassy

62 rue Bolleau

75016, Paris, France

Tel: 33-1-44146400

Fax: 33-1-45243948
Germany :

Vietnam Embassy

Konstantin St. 37,

53179, Bonn, Germany

Tel: 49-228-357021

Fax: 49-228-351866
Geneva :

Mission To the UN

34 Chemin Francois, 1218

Grand Saconnex, Geneva

Tel: 41-22-7982485

Fax: 41-22-7980724
Indonesia :

Vietnam Embassy

25 Jalna Teuku Umar, Jakarta, Indonesia

Tel: 62-21-3100358

Fax: 62-21-3149615
Hungary :

Vietnam Embassy

1068 Benczur U. 18,

Budapest, Hungary

Tel: 36-1-3429922

Fax: 36-1-2679362
Italy:

Vietnam Embassy

34 Via Clituno,

00198 Roma, Italy

Tel: 39-6-8543223

Fax: 39-6-8548501
Japan :

Vietnam Embassy

50-11 Motoyoygi-Cho,

Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, 151

Japan

Tel: 81-3-34663313

Fax: 81-3-34663391
South Korea :

Vietnam Embassy

28-58 Samchongdong,

Chongnoky, Seoul, Korea

Tel: 82-2-7392065

Fax: 82-2-7392064
Malaysia :

Vietnam Embassy

4 Persiaran Stonar,

Kualar Lumpur,

Malaysia, 50450

Tel: 60-3-2484036

Fax: 60-3-2483270
Taiwan :

Economic and Cultural Representative Office

3F No. 65 Sung Chiang Road

Taipei, Taiwan

Tel: 88-62-5166626

Fax: 88-62-5166625
Mexico :

Vietnam Embassy

255 Sierra Ventana Lomas de Chapultepec,

D.F., Mexico

Tel: 52-5-5401632

Fax: 52-5-5401612
New York

Mission to The UN

20 Waterside Plaza

New York, NY, 10010

Tel: 212-697 3779

Fax: 212- 686 8534
USA :

Vietnam Embassy

1233 20th St. N.W. Suite 501

Washington DC 20036, USA

Tel: 202- 861 0737

Fax: 202-861-0917
Philippines :

Vietnam Embassy

554 Vito Cruz, Malate,

Manila, Philippines

Tel : 63-2 5240364

Fax: 63-2 5260472
Poland :

Vietnam Embassy

UI Kazimievzowska 14,

Warsaw, Poland

Tel: 4822-446021

Fax: 4822-446723
Romania :

Vietnam Embassy

35 Rosetti

Bucuresti, Romania

Tel: 401-210 9438

Fax: 401-210 9438
Russia :

Vietnam Embassy

Moscow, Bolshaya,

Pirogovskaya 13, Russia

Tel: 7095 2470112

Fax: 7095-9566327
Singapore :

Vietnam Embassy

10 Leedon Park

Singapore, 1026

Tel: 65 462 5938

Fax: 65 462 5936
Sweden :

Vietnam Embassy

Orby Slottsvag 26,

12571 ALVSJO, Stockholm

Tel: 46-8-861218

Fax: 46-8-995713
Switzerland :

Consulate General

13 Chemin Taverney 1218

Grand Saconnex, Geneva

Tel: 41-22-7989866

Fax: 41-22-7989858
United Kingdom:

Vietnam Embassy

Victoria Road 12-14

London, W8-5rd

Tel: 44-171- 9371912

Fax: 44-171-9376108