At the United Nations General Assembly in New York:
Global Civil Society Democracy Movement condemns repression of
peaceful demonstrations in Vietnam
NEW YORK, 26 September 2008 (VIETNAM COMMITTEE ON HUMAN RIGHTS) -
Addressing Ministers of over 100 member-states of the United Nations
Democracy Caucus meeting at the UN General Assembly in New York today
(Friday 26th September), the Non-governmental International Steering
Committee of the Community of Democracies (ISC/CD) condemned the
recent arrests and repression of students and youths staging peaceful
demonstrations in Vietnam. In a Statement to the UN Democracy Caucus
which also covered a wide range of concerns including Burma, Russia
and Georgia, the ISC/CD Chairman Mr. Paul Graham (South Africa)
stressed that such repression in Vietnam was especially inappropriate
from a country that sits on the UN Security Council.
Many of the young people arrested in this recent crack-down were
participating in protests against China's claims of sovereignty over
the disputed Spratly (Truong Sa) and Paracel (Hoang Sa) archipelagos.
Dozens were intercepted by Security Police on 10-12 September 2008 on
the eve of a peaceful demonstration planned outside the Chinese
Embassy in Hanoi. Police banned the demonstration, and placed many
activists under surveillance and effective house arrest. Those still
in custody include Pham Van Troi, 35, writer Nguyen Xuan Nghia, Pham
Thanh Nghien, Vu Hung, Nguyen Van Tuc etc. They are reportedly
detained at B14 Prison (Thanh Liet) near Hanoi, charged with
"conducting propaganda against the Socialist Republic of Vietnam"
(Article 88 of the Vietnamese Criminal Code). Several activists were
allegedly arrested during midnight Police raids on their homes, in
violation of Vietnam's Criminal Procedures Code which stipulates that
citizens cannot be arrested at night. Other young people detained in
this crack-down include student Ngo Quynh, arrested on 10 September as
she went to participate in a mass rally by Catholics in Thai Ha parish
in Hanoi. The head of the AP Hanoi Bureau, Ben Stocking, was
intercepted and assaulted by Police for taking photos at this rally.
Another vocal critic of China's policies on the Spratly and Paracel
islands, prominent blogger Dieu Cay (Nguyen Hoang Hai), was sentenced
on 10 September to 30 months in prison at an unfair trial in Ho Ch
Minh City (Saigon). Although he was convicted of "tax evasion", his
lawyer said these were spurious charges. Dieu Cay had been detained
for interrogations a least 15 times since he unfurled a banner outside
the Opera House in Saigon and posted articles on the Internet about
the disputed territories.
Mr. Vo Van Ai, member of the Non-governmental International Steering
Committee of the Community of Democracies and President of the
Paris-based Quê Me: Action for Democracy in Vietnam who was in New
York for the meeting, warmly applauded the ISC/CD members from Africa,
the Middle East, Europe Asia and the Americas for their solidarity
with dissidents in Vietnam. "Raising their plight before the UN
Democracy Caucus is a crucial way of drawing international attention
to the grave, ongoing abuses of human rights and religious freedom in
Vietnam, where citizens face arrest simply for exercising their rights
to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. We urge democratic
nations to work together in the UN to ensure that Vietnam respects its
binding obligations to uphold and guarantee its citizens' freedoms and
rights".
The Non-governmental International Steering Committee of the Community
of Democracies (ISC/CD), established in 2005, is composed of 25
representatives from all over the world. It is the governing body for
civil society of the Community of Democracies, a global grouping of
democratic and democratizing states launched in Warsaw in 2000 as a
forum for strengthening international cooperation for democracy and
human rights promotion. The Community's participants established the
UN Democracy Caucus to coordinate common positions on democracy and
human rights in the United Nations, and the UN Democracy Fund. Since
the UN Democracy Fund was established over two years ago, it has
raised over 100 million US Dollars to fund civil society projects to
promote democratic initiatives worldwide.--
