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On June 26, 2003, Amnesty
International released a short statement regarding the case of Dr. Pham Hong
Son. The young doctor was brought to a
court in Hanoi for a three-hour trial on June 18, 2003. The prosecution charged
him with espionage against the Vietnam Communist regime. Communist authorities
did not allow general public and journalists in the courtroom.
The
authorities even denied his wife's request to attend the whole three-hour
trial. When she was called in to stand witness, her husband was moved out of
the courtroom. When she had answered all the questions, she was sent out before
her husband reappeared.
Dr.
Pham Hong Son was one of the dissenting intellectuals who made themselves known
to the world outside by their comments and statements strongly castigating the
Communist party and leaders for their incapability of ruling the country and
their oppression imposed on the eighty million people in Vietnam. In fact, Dr.
Son's work that was charged as evidence of espionage had simply been his
translation into Vietnamese of an article titled "What is Democracy"
posted on the web site of the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi, which is read by almost
every Vietnamese computer user who understands English.
Son
was given a sentence of 13 years in prison plus 3 years under house arrest.
When he will have finished his 13-year term, he will be facing that 3-year
"administrative sentence," or house arrest term which could be
renewed by local public security authorities' – not by any court.
Under
the Communist regime Criminal Code 1985 and its amendments, a crime of
espionage must include activities collecting intelligence information –
classified or non-classified - and providing it to external hostile elements
who operate against the Communist regime in Vietnam.
Dr.
Son's activities do not fall into such category. He did not get involved in any
intelligence activity or gathering of any classified material. Last year on
November 8, 2002, another dissident, lawyer Le Chi Quang, was sentenced to only
4 years' imprisonment for his actions that could be considered the more serious
violations of the Communist Criminal Law.
Le
Chi Quang, 32, a law school graduate, had written several essays critical of
the government. One piece, entitled "Beware of Imperialist China,"
criticized Vietnam Communist Party and its government for conceding too much in
land and sea border agreements with China. He was convicted of "acts of propaganda against the
Socialist Republic of Vietnam" after a one-day trial. On February 21,
2002, he was
arrested at an Internet cafe in Hanoi for distributing "reactionary and
subversive materials."
It's
possible that the court pronounced a sentence so severe on Pham Hong Son
because of some hidden reasons. The Communist leadership might have been too
sensible to Son's articles, worrying that they could lead to agitating
influence on the party members, especially the ranking cadres. In the mind of
the Communist leaders, distributing an article about "democracy" made
available in Vietnamese might be more harmful to the political security of the
regime than other materials that only criticize the Party's policies.
It
might be also that the severe punishment was passed to scare away any negative
thought caused by the U.S. House of Representatives' passage of the Human
Rights Bill that links better human rights records as a condition to
non-humanitarian aid to Hanoi. The psychological impact on the party members
and the population could be very serious whether the Bill would be passed by
the U.S. Senate and signed by President Bush.
On
the front of religious freedom, on June 27, 2003, Hanoi released the Most Ven.
Thich Quang Do, the 74-year-old outspoken Buddhist monk who is the second
highest-ranking leader of the banned United Buddhist Church of Vietnam. Its top
leader is the Most Ven. Thich Huyen Quang.
The
Most Ven. Quang Do was under administrative sentence of 2-year house arrest
that ends in September 2003. Huyen Quang, 86, is still under house detention
since 18 years ago in a small remote pagoda in Binh Dinh province after his
short trip to Hanoi and Saigon for medical treatment and meeting with other
monks under Public Security close watch.
Communist
rulers had put Quang Do in prison and under house detention for nearly 12 years
after 1975. In 1995, they sentenced Quang Do to 5 years in prison for his trip
to the Mekong Delta flood areas to visit and distribute relief supply to the
victims. He was released in September 1998 under international powerful
pressure only to be put under house arrest again in September 2001.
The
Communist Party newspaper Nhan Dan (people) reported the early release of the
old monk, saying that it was made because of the Party and State's
"humanitarian policies." But
others are having different opinions.
"Given the number of people who are coming in (to prison), a
high-profile release, in and of itself, is not necessarily a big
improvement," said Brad Adams of New York-based Human Rights Watch, as
quoted by Associated Press.
In
some interviews by foreign correspondents, the respectable old monk said he was
like a fish moved from a bowl to a pond. The fish has a little more freedom but
the net is always ready to comb the pond for him at any time. "I'm under
their watch," he said. Moreover, he asserts to many visitors and reporters
that he "will firmly continue the struggle for religious and other
freedoms."
Some
editorials in the overseas Vietnamese community expect that Hanoi authorities
might be preparing ground for granting more formal freedom to the
non-state-controlled UBCV after strong pressure from Western capitals against
religious intolerance in Vietnam. But more considerate gestures have not been
taken.
Meanwhile,
Hanoi authorities announced last week that they would bring to a court trial
the three well-known dissidents Tran Khue, Pham Que Duong and Tran Dung Tien at
an unscheduled session. Amnesty National also released its denunciation against
a secret directive of the Politburo in Hanoi regarding the prosecution of the
dissidents. The directive decides that the three dissidents are guilty of
espionage. It has been a routine procedure of the Party committees to pass the
sentence before any legal trial and the court is only to implement the Party's
decision.
In
another move, the Communist leaders announced their decision to reduce the
prison sentence given to the Rev. Nguyen Van Ly from 15 to 10 years. Rev. Ly
was convicted in 2001 for his unyielding protest against Communist religious
intolerant policy and his fervent struggle for religious freedom. In his
situation, 10 or 15 years does not mean much. But it might fit Hanoi's trick
for propaganda.
Vietnamese
observers do not expect Communist leaders would accept true reconciliation with
non-state-controlled churches. The less hostile attitude might be the results
of the recent angry voices from all over the world calling for freedom of
religion in Vietnam and harshly criticizing Hanoi for its increasing gross
violations of human rights.
Father
Nguyen Van Ly's two nephews and a niece (children of his younger sister) were
originally charged with "espionage" for their acts supporting him and
appealing for his freedom. Last week, the Communist authorities informed that
instead of "espionage," all the three would be charged with
"abusing freedom and democracy," the violation punishable by lesser
prison sentence. A histrionic trick should not be acted more than once on the
same stage and the same night, many a Vietnamese is saying.
There
is unconfirmed news that Hanoi would release Father Ly and Dr. Nguyen Dan Que,
another famous dissident, if the two agree to immigrate to a foreign country.
Both say they will not accept such condition.
To
the Vietnamese who have some experience with Communists, Hanoi leaders could be
reacting any way they think appropriate. In many cases, they have acted the
ways no one was able to predict. Probably they are doing so just to fool their
enemies and their party members or even for nothing at all.
***