US embassy cable - 03HOCHIMINHCITY710

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HO CHI MINH CITY 000710 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EAP/BCLTV, AND DRL 
 
E. O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM, PGOV, SOCI, PREL, KIRF, VM, RELFREE, HUMANR 
SUBJECT: PROTESTANT CHURCH CAN STAY -- FOR NOW 
 
REF:  (A) HCMC 520  (B)  HCMC 551 
 
1.  (SBU)  Summary:  The HCMC People's Committee has decided that 
an illegally constructed Protestant church in the Thu Thiem area 
of District 2 can remain open as a house of worship, pending 
approval of the required permits.  While city officials made clear 
that they hold both church leaders and local authorities 
responsible for the current impasse, they have nonetheless 
promised to speed necessary approvals to allow the church to build 
a new, legal structure.  End summary. 
 
2.  (SBU)  Acting Consul General raised the issue of a Protestant 
house church recently constructed without permission in HCMC's 
District 2 (reftels) during a meeting with Mr. Nguyen Thanh Tai, 
Vice Chairman of the HCMC People's Committee.  Vice Chairman Tai's 
portfolio includes religious affairs.  Noting that the new 
church's difficulties in obtaining the required permits had been 
publicized in a press release by Compass Direct, A/CG offered the 
Vice Chairman an opportunity to provide his views on the 
situation. 
 
3.  (SBU)  Vice Chairman Tai seemed immediately aware of the 
controversy surrounding the new structure and took advantage of 
the opportunity to present the "official" version of events to 
avoid "misinformation."  Recounting the recent history of the 
disputed property, he said that people from the local house church 
congregation had originally bought the land under their own names, 
then later claimed they wanted to use it for their "house of 
worship" (this term was used repeatedly, rather than the more 
common Vietnamese word for "church").  That change from a private 
to a public purpose led to the current dispute over land-use 
rights and created delays in the issuance of permits. 
 
4.  (SBU)  Permission to build was also held up pending official 
recognition for the "new" congregation.  (Note:  Pastor Truong Van 
Nganh, leader of the District 2 congregation, is a legally 
recognized pastor with the official Southern Evangelical Church of 
Vietnam (SECV).  It is not clear, however, whether that status 
entitles him automatically to open a legal church in another 
location.  End note.)  A lack of clear communication between the 
parties only exacerbated the problem.  Meanwhile, some members of 
the congregation "took advantage" of the situation to commence the 
unauthorized construction. 
 
5.  (SBU) Upon learning of the problem, Vice Chairman Tai 
immediately convened a meeting with SECV representatives and local 
authorities from District 2.  (Note:  This would appear to be the 
meeting that was described in the Compass Direct report as an 
appointment with the Committee for Religious Affairs.  End note.) 
He reprimanded Pastor Nganh for setting a bad example and 
chastised him for failing to observe safe building practices at a 
site that was deemed to be "sacred" (the Vice Chairman's word) and 
would house many worshippers. 
 
6.  (SBU)  Stating up front that the Pastor had broken the law and 
would need to eventually tear down the structure, the Vice 
Chairman laid out additional steps the church could take to build 
a legal structure on the site.  Based on what he called the 
"spiritual need" for a church in the area, however, he gave the 
congregation permission to use the illegal building until they 
received their permit for a new building.  At the same time, he 
blamed the local authorities for delaying the permits and required 
them to sign a document admitting their mistakes.  He then 
directed the relevant authorities to make sure the land was 
properly demarcated and the permits issued. 
 
7.  (SBU)  Pastor Nganh reported to ConGenoffs earlier that he had 
submitted an application for an address for the new church on July 
21.  The local authorities had denied his request on the grounds 
that the construction was illegal.  On July 25, the People's 
Committee of District 2 had levied a fine for the illegal 
construction and ordered him to remove the offending structure. 
He was also instructed to withdraw an earlier complaint regarding 
the initial denial of his permit and write a letter seeking 
reexamination of the issues related to his violation.  While 
Pastor Nganh felt compelled to comply with these requirements 
during the meeting, he had subsequently complained to the HCMC 
Committee for Religious Affairs.  He was still awaiting their 
response.  A number of house church pastors associated with the 
project but unaffiliated with the SECV criticized Pastor Nganh for 
his compromise and pledged to hold the line against removing the 
current structure. 
 
8.  (SBU) Comment:  At this point, the ball seems to rest firmly 
in the hands of Pastor Nganh and his followers.  Are they willing 
and financially able to remove the old church and build a new one? 
If so, can they overcome "hard-line" elements in the church that 
consider the victory already won and don't want to back down? 
While there would still seem to be many questions regarding the 
legal status of the congregation in District 2, the highest levels 
of the city administration have clearly given them the go-ahead to 
carry on religious activities at the site now and in the future if 
they accept the compromise that has been offered. 
WHITE