VIETNAM - ASEM Summit :

 MEP's Open Letter on Human Rights




 

 

For immediate release
Paris, 7th October 2004


On the Anniversary of the Binh Dinh crack-down on the Unified Buddhist
Church of Vietnam:

Fifth ASEM Summit in Hanoi : 109 Euro MPs call for the immediate release
of Buddhist dissidents Thich Huyen Quang and Thich Quang Do

In an Open Letter to the Presidency of the European Union, 109 prominent
Members of the European Parliament from all political parties have urged
the EU to place human rights, in particular human rights in Vietnam, "at
the centre of discussions at the ASEM Summit in Hanoi", and called for the
"immediate and unconditional release" of Buddhist dissidents Thich Huyen
Quang and Thich Quang Do, leaders of the outlawed Unified Buddhist Church
of Vietnam (UBCV) and six other members of the UBCV leadership.

In the Open Letter, the Euro MPs also expressed their deep concern on the
lack of democracy and press freedom at the ASEM 5 People's Forum in Hanoi
in September 2004, condemning "the deliberate exclusion of Vietnamese
civil society and the banning of access to the national and international
press".

"This Open Letter, launched by such a wide cross-section of MEPs, shows a
real movement of indignation at the abysmal human rights situation in
Vietnam, host country of this ASEM Summit", said Vo Van Ai, President of
the Paris-based Vietnam Committee on Human Rights, noting that the appeal
was endorsed by many leading figures of the EP's enlarged 25-country
membership. Signatures include Edward McMillan-Scott, Vice-President of
the European Parliament ; Hans-Gert Poettering, President of the EP's
largest political group, the European People's Party (Christian Democrats)
and European Democrats ; Harlem Desir, Magda Kosane Kovacs, Pasqualina
Napoletano and Jan Wiersma, Vice-Presidents of the European Socialist
Party ; Graham Watson, President of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals
and Democrats for Europe ; Monica Frassoni and Daniel Cohn-Bendit,
Co-Presidents of the Greens/European Free Alliance ; Elmar Brok, President
of the EP Foreign Affairs Commission ; Helene Flautre, Charles Tannock and
Johan Van Hecke, President and Vice-Presidents of the EP Sub-Commission on
Human Rights ; former EU Commissioner Emma Bonino and Marco Pannella,
leaders of the Transnational Radical ; Max van den Berg, Vice-President of
the EP Commission for Development ; former Lithuanian Head of State
Vytautas Landsbergis ; Prof. Bronislaw Geremek, historian and former
Polish Foreign Minister ; and Alain Lamassoure, former Minister (France).

Noting that the ASEM Summit opens on 8 October, anniversary of the "most
brutal and pervasive crackdown launched by the Vietnamese authorities
against the banned UBCV", the MEPs deplored that, in spite of an Urgent EP
Resolution on 20 Novemb er 2003 and repeated international appeals,
"Vietnam has taken no steps to free these men". Both UBCV leaders "have

spent more than 23 years in detention for their nonviolent advocacy of
religious freedom, democracy and human rights".

The UBCV Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang and his Deputy Thich Quang Do are
currently detained without trial on charges of "possessing state secrets",
but the MEPs said they believed "their sole "crime" is that of steadfastly
defending religious freedom and human rights."

The MEPs recalled that human rights are enshrined in the 1995 EU-Vietnam
Cooperation Agreement, and are essential to the ASEM process, which links
sustainable development with democratic development and the rule of law.
"As an ASEM member and host of this Fifth ASEM Summit, Vietnam has a
double obligation to uphold these binding principles", they said.

The 109 MEPs sent the Open Letter to the Prime Minister of Luxemburg, Mr
Jean-Claude Juncker, who will preside the ASEM Summit to the Dutch Premier
Jan Peter Balkanende and his Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bernard Blot
(the Netherlands currently holds the EP Presidency), the President of the
European Commission and heads of state of several EU member countries (see
full text of the Open Letter and signatures below).

OPEN LETTER TO THE EUROPEAN UNION
FOR THE FIFTH ASEM SUMMIT IN HANOI (8-9 October 2004)

"We the undersigned, Members of the European Parliament, are deeply
concerned by the Vietnamese government's decision to separate, for the
very first time, the official ASEM Summit and the ASEM People's Forum,
thus excluding civil society and separating Asian and European NGOs from
their governments. We further condemn the deliberate exclusion of
Vietnamese civil society from attending the Forum and the banning of
access to the national and international press.

"We are also deeply disturbed by the continued detention of Patriarch
Thich Huyen Quang and the Venerable Thich Quang Do, prominent dissidents
and leaders of the outlawed Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV). We
urge the European Union and EU member states to call for their urgent
release at the forthcoming Fifth Summit of ASEM leaders in Hanoi.

"The ASEM Summit, which gathers heads of state from the 25 EU members,
China, Japan, South Korea, 10 ASEAN nations and the head of the European
Commission, will be held on 8-9 October 2004. This date marks the sombre
anniversary of a most brutal and pervasive crackdown launched by the
Vietnamese authorities against the banned UBCV.

"Exactly one year ago, on 8 October 2003, Security Police intercepted UBCV
monks as they left the Nguyen Thieu Monastery in Binh Dinh province, where
they had held a peaceful assembly to elect a new leadership, following
promises of increased religious tolerance made by Vietnamese Prime
Minister Phan Van Khai. After a tense 10-hour standoff, in which 1,000
Buddhists formed a human wall around the monks' vehicle and Thich Huyen
Quang and Thich Quang Do staged a hunger strike inside, Police arrested 11
members of the new UBCV leadership. Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang (87) and
his Deputy, Nobel Peace prize nominee Thich Quang Do (76), were placed
under house arrest without trial. They were charged of "possessing state
secrets", but we believe that their sole "crime" was that of steadfastly
defending religious freedom and human rights. Venerable Thich Thien Hanh,
Thich Tue Sy, Thich Vien Dinh, Thich Thanh Huyen, Thich Nguyen Ly and
Thich Dong Tho were also condemned to 2 years administrative detention.
Hundreds of UBCV pagodas were placed under surveillance by Security Police
and UBCV followers all over the country were intimidated and harassed.

"The European Parliament condemned the crackdown and called for the
immediate release of the UBCV leaders in a "Resolution on Religious
Freedom in Vietnam" (20 November 2003). Despite this strong outcry, and
despite its binding pledge to respect human rights under the 1995
EU-Vietnam Cooperation Agreement, Vietnam took no steps to free these men.
Today, Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang and Thich Quang Do are detained in
total isolation. They have both spent more than 23 years in detention for
their nonviolent advocacy of religious freedom, democracy and human
rights.

"The aim of the ASEM process is to foster dialogue and development between
Europe and Asia, based on the conviction that "sustainable trade,
investment and economic development cannot be achieved in the absence of
the development of democracy, the rule of law, civil society and human
rights" (EP Resolution on ASEM, 1998). As an ASEM member and host of this
Fifth ASEM Summit, Vietnam has a double obligation to uphold these binding
principles.

"We therefore call upon EU heads of State and governments, the EU
Presidency and the European Commission to place human rights firmly at the
centre of discussions at the ASEM Summit in Hanoi, and specifically to
press for the immediate and unconditional release of UBCV Patriarch Thich
Huyen Quang, Thich Quang Do, the 6 UBCV leaders and all other Vietnamese
citizens detained solely for the peaceful exercise of their right to
freedom of opinion, religion, expression and association".

Signatories :

1.        Mr Alexander Nuno ALVARO

2.        Mr Alfonso ANDRIA

3.        Mr Kader ARIF

4.        Ms Laima Liucija ANDRIKIENE

5.        Ms Margrete AUKEN

6.        Ms Irena BELOHORSKÁ

7.        Mr Max van den BERG

8.        Ms Jana BOBOSÍKOVÁ

9.        Mr Elmar BROK

10.     Ms Emma BONINO

11.     Mr Mihael BREJC

12.     Ms Frederika M.J. BREPOELS

13.     Mr Jan BREZINA

14.     Ms Kathalijne Maria BUITENWEG

15.     Ms Marie-Arlette CARLOTTI

16.     Mr Paulo CASACA

17.     Mr Michael CASHMAN

18.     Ms Charlotte CEDERSCHIÖLD

19.     Mr Daniel COHN-BENDIT

20.     Mr Richard CORBETT

21.     Mr Marek Aleksander CZARNECKI

22.     Mr Ryszard CZARNECKI

23.     Mr Chris DAVIES

24.     Mr Harlem DÉSIR

25.     Mr Panayiotis DEMETRIOU

26.     Mr Nirj DEVA

27.     Mr Agustín DÍAZ DE MERA GARCÍA CONSUEGRA

28.     Mr Gintaras DIDZIOKAS

29.     Ms Rosa M. DÍEZ GONZÁLEZ

30.     Mr Antonio DI PIETRO

31.     Mr Árpád DUKA-ZÓLYOMI

32.     Mr Antoine DUQUESNE

33.     Ms Lena EK

34.     Mr Carlo FATUZZO

35.     Ms Hélène FLAUTRE

36.     Ms Anna Elzbieta FOTYGA

37.     Ms Monica FRASSONI

38.     Mr Michael GAHLER

39.     Ms Kinga GÁL

40.     Mr Patrick GAUBERT

41.     Mr Jas GAWRONSKI

42.     Mr Ignasi GUARDANS CAMBÓ

43.     Mr Bronislaw GEREMEK

44.     Ms Ana Maria GOMES

45.     Ms Lilli GRUBER

46.     Ms Fiona Jane HALL

47.     Mr Malcolm HARBOUR

48.     Ms Satu HASSI

49.     Ms Adeline HAZAN

50.     Mr Roger HELMER

51.     Ms Jeanine HENNIS-PLASSCHAERT

52.     Ms Sophia Helena in 't VELD

53.     Mr Jelko KACIN

54.     Ms Piia-Noora KAUPPI

55.     Ms Ewa KLAMT

56.     Mr Bogdan Adam KLICH

57.     Ms Magda KÓSÁNÉ KOVÁCS

58.     Ms Eija-Riitta Anneli KORHOLA

59.     Mr Ole KRARUP

60.     Mr Wieslaw Stefan KUC

61.     Mr Joost LAGENDIJK

62.     Mr Alain LAMASSOURE

63.     Ms Jean Denise LAMBERT

64.     Mr Vytautas LANDSBERGIS

65.     Mr Romano Maria LA RUSSA

66.     Mr Alain LIPIETZ

67.     Ms Pia Elda LOCATELLI

68.     Ms Caroline LUCAS

69.     Baroness Sarah LUDFORD

70.     Mr Albert Jan MAAT

71.     Mr Edward H.C. McMILLAN-SCOTT

72.     Ms Cecilia MALMSTRÖM

73.     Mr David W. MARTIN

74.     Ms Edith MASTENBROEK

75.     Mr Hans-Peter MAYER

76.     Mr Francesco MUSOTTO

77.     Ms Pasqualina NAPOLETANO

78.     Mr Cem ÖZDEMIR

79.     Mr Justas Vincas PALECKIS

80.     Mr Marco PANNELLA

81.     Mr Rihards PIKS

82.     Mr Pawel Bartlomiej PISKORSKI

83.     Mr Józef PINIOR

84.     Mr Hans-Gert POETTERING

85.     Mr José Javier POMÉS RUIZ

86.     Mr Bernd POSSELT

87.     Ms Frédérique RIES

88.     Ms Zuzana ROITHOVÁ

89.     Mr Raül ROMEVA RUEDA

90.     Mr Dariusz Kajetan ROSATI

91.     Mr Libor ROUCEK

92.     Ms Martine ROURE

93.     Mr Leopold Józef RUTOWICZ

94.     Mr José Ignacio SALAFRANCA SÁNCHEZ-NEYRA

95.     Ms Amalia SARTORI

96.     Ms Luciana SBARBATI

97.     Mr Frithjof SCHMIDT

98.     Ms Gitte SEEBERG

99.     Mr István SZENT-IVÁNYI

100.  Dr Charles TANNOCK

101.  Ms Patrizia TOIA

102.  Mr Johan VAN HECKE

103.  Mr Daniel VARELA SUANZES-CARPEGNA

104.  Mr Ari VATANEN

105.  Mr Graham R. WATSON

106.  Mr Jan Marinus WIERSMA

107.  Mr Luis YAÑEZ-BARNUEVO GARCÍA

108.  Mr Mauro ZANI

109.  Mr Stefano ZAPPALA'

 

 

Quê Mẹ : Action for Democracy in Vietnam / Quê Mẹ : Action pour la Démocratie au Vietnam
Vietnam Committee on Human Rights / Comité Vietnam pour la Défense des Droits de l'Homme
BP 63 - 94472 Boissy Saint Léger cedex - France
Tel : +33 1 45 98 30 85 - Fax : +33 1 45 98 32 61
E-mail : queme@free.fr - Web : http://www.queme.net