US embassy cable - 04HANOI555

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HANOI 000555 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
STATE FOR H, DRL/IRF, EAP/BCLTV, AND DRL 
 
H PLEASE PASS TO OFFICE OF SENATOR BROWNBACK 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM, KIRF, PREL, OREP, VM, HUMANR, RELFREE 
SUBJECT: OPEN 2003 LETTER FROM FATHER LY TO US CONGRESS 
 
Ref: A: Hanoi 155   B: Hanoi 59  C. 03 Hanoi 1821 
 
1. (U)  In a January 8 meeting in Hanoi, Vice Minister of 
Public Security Le Van Huong gave Senator Samuel Brownback a 
copy of an open letter in Vietnamese to the US Congress 
dated June 27, 2003 by imprisoned Catholic Priest Nguyen Van 
Ly (Ref A).  The letter, the text of which follows in para 
3, is similar in content to Ly's comments during his meeting 
with Senator Brownback (Ref B).  In it, Ly criticized 
Congressional bills condemning Vietnam on grounds of human 
rights and religious freedom, and asserted that freedoms of 
speech and thought do exist in Vietnam and that the 
Government does not repress religion.  He invited Members of 
Congress to visit and "meet with anyone you want" in order 
to authenticate these claims.  Father Ly noted his own 
conviction, but made no further comments his own case, nor 
any admission or denial of guilt. 
 
2. (SBU)  Comment: Given Father Ly's many years of outspoken 
criticism of the Government of Vietnam, this letter more 
likely reflected the exigencies of prison existence rather 
than his personal views on individual rights in Vietnam. 
Indeed, the text sticks closely to the standard GVN claims 
of personal freedoms -- tempered by the needs of national 
security -- repeated frequently in newspapers, speeches, and 
meetings.  This letter may well have been an explicit or 
implicit prerequisite to the cut in Father Ly's sentence by 
five years in July 2003 (ref c).  End Comment 
 
3. Begin text (unofficial Embassy translation) 
 
Petition to the Two Houses of the US Congress 
 
Vietnam, June 27, 2003 
 
The Speakers of the Houses, 
Senators and Representatives, 
 
May God protect and let the American people live in peace 
and happiness. 
 
I am Theodore Nguyen Van Ly.  Before I was arrested on May 
17, 2003, I was the priest in charge of An Truyen Parish in 
Hue Diocese of the Catholic Church of Vietnam.  I was 
invited by the US Government and Congress to speak on 
religious freedom in Vietnam on February 13 and May 16, 
2001, in Washington D.C.  I was sentenced to fifteen years' 
imprisonment for the charge of "acting against an order of 
probation and sabotaging the national unity," and have been 
serving my term in a prison in accordance with the current 
law of Vietnam.  Through the media, I know that the Houses 
of the US Congress are going to pass the Vietnam Human 
Rights Act and therefore I would like respectfully to send 
this petition to you. 
 
I would like sincerely to thank those who have kindly paid 
attention to the religious situation in Vietnam and to me 
personally.  But for the long-term interests of the two 
countries and especially for the sake of national 
sovereignty of my country, I find myself obliged to make 
this petition, without being influenced by any outside 
pressure, to request the Houses of the US Congress to cancel 
the Vietnam Human Rights Act and the Bill on Religious 
Freedom in Vietnam for the following reasons: 
 
1. The parliament of one country should not and does not 
have the right to pass a bill on another country because it 
infringes the right to equality of the other country.  The 
passing of a bill on another country by the US Congress may 
be interpreted as that somebody in the US Congress wanted to 
take advantage of the issue of human rights for unhealthy 
purposes.  Perhaps the US Congress is the only Parliament 
that dares inconsiderately to pass bills on other countries. 
Any matter of mutual concern should be much better and more 
efficiently settled through dialogues and diplomatic 
channels. 
 
2. Vietnam has simultaneously achieved four essential 
successes that many other countries have not, i.e. 
independence and unity, social justice for every of its 54 
ethic groups, not being enslaved by or dependent on foreign 
power, and being one of the most secure and stable countries 
in the world.  These four successes themselves are enough to 
ensure Vietnam's prestige in the international community. 
These four very difficult goals have been very well attained 
by Vietnam.  Economic development and loosening of control 
over people's legitimate rights to freedom in harmony with 
the security conditions of the country are two easier goals 
that are naturally essential and the State of Vietnam has 
been carrying out various reforms in order to achieve these 
two goals in a more and more efficient and practical manner, 
day by day and in all fields, especially with respect to 
human rights and religious issues. 
 
3. If one looks at Vietnam's ethical, cultural, and 
socialist ideological bases, there are now both freedom of 
speech and freedom of thought in Vietnam.  Presently all of 
the nearly 600 newspapers in Vietnam are using these bases 
in making critical remarks and comments on various issues. 
In the international market economy into which Vietnam is 
trying to integrate, these two freedoms are naturally more 
adequate and practicable.  But as priorities are given to 
the national security and people's conduct, like many other 
countries, Vietnam needs to impose restrictions on certain 
adversely loose freedoms that may cause disturbances to the 
country. 
 
4. The State of Vietnam does not repress religions.  Only 
some restrictions set by Vietnam are not satisfactory to 
certain people, but the Resolution of the 7th Plenum of the 
CPV Central Committee provided that "religions have been and 
will be in existence together with the nation in the process 
of socialist construction in Vietnam," and pointed out 
directions satisfactorily to address the issues of religious 
freedom for the six formally-recognized religions in 
Vietnam.  In my opinion, these six religions are all pleased 
with this major and positive fact and any minor point that 
they may still find unsatisfactory shall be easily agreed 
upon in a reasonable manner and in harmony with the overall 
interests of the nation.  Specifically, the Catholic Church 
of Vietnam is now permitted to conduct broader selection and 
training of priests, that is to say that directions for 
smooth and definite resolution of this most crucial and 
burning issue have been given. 
 
5. You are respectfully invited to visit Vietnam to see with 
your own eyes how positively Vietnam is changing and 
directly meet with anyone you want to.  It is certain that 
such a visit shall authenticate what I am writing above. 
 
I pray night and day for the US President, US Congress, and 
the American people to live in ever-increasing peace, moral 
values, and happiness in the family of brotherly humanity. 
Please also pray for my Vietnamese homeland and for me. 
 
Thank you very much indeed for your kind reading of this 
petition and I hope you share my legitimate view. Please 
accept my respectful compliments. 
 
Sincerely, 
 
Prisoner Theodore Nguyen Van Ly 
(Priest of Hue Diocese) 
end text 
BURGHARDT