Repression of Christians in Vietnam 'grave concern,' U.S. bishop says

Published: 2004-04-29

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The violent repression of the Montagnard or Dega people in Vietnam is a matter of "grave concern," the head of the U.S. bishops' international policy committee said in a letter to Vietnam's ambassador to the United States. In his April 28 letter to Ambassador Nguyen Tam Chien, Bishop John H. Ricard of Pensacola-Tallahassee, Fla., also called for the release of Father Thaddeus Nguyen Van Ly, who was sentenced to 15 years in jail following his 2001 submission of written testimony to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. Bishop Ricard told the ambassador that by imprisoning Father Ly, "an otherwise obscure human rights advocate, your government has converted him into one of the world's better-known prisoners of conscience and given greater reason for criticism of Vietnam's record on human rights and religious freedom."

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