[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.J. Res. 295 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. J. RES. 295

Expressing the sense of the Congress that the United States should not 
  establish diplomatic relations with the Government of the Socialist 
  Republic of Vietnam until that government abides by internationally 
                accepted standards of religious liberty.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           November 18, 1993

  Mr. Gilman (for himself, Mr. Rohrabacher, Mr. Roth, Mr. Porter, Mr. 
     Faleomavaega, and Mr. Lantos) introduced the following joint 
   resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                            JOINT RESOLUTION


 
Expressing the sense of the Congress that the United States should not 
  establish diplomatic relations with the Government of the Socialist 
  Republic of Vietnam until that government abides by internationally 
                accepted standards of religious liberty.

Whereas approximately 85 percent of the population of Vietnam belongs to the 
        Buddhist faith;
Whereas at least 131 prominent leaders from the Buddhist, Catholic, and 
        Protestant faiths are in prison or under house arrest for expressing 
        their beliefs; and members of other faiths, such as Cao Dai and Hoa Hao, 
        have also suffered persecution;
Whereas more than 500 Buddhists have been arrested protesting religious 
        intolerance and government interference in religious affairs during the 
        current crackdown in Hue and Baria (Vung Tau);
Whereas at least 5 Buddhist have self-immolated themselves since May 1993 to 
        protest the repressive policies of the communist regime;
Whereas the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam was established in 1964 by 
        leaders of the various sects and traditions of Buddhism in South 
        Vietnam, in order to continue and strengthen Buddhism's 2,000 year 
        tradition in the country;
Whereas the Unified Buddhist Church was recognized throughout the world during 
        the Vietnam conflict for its integrity and its commitment to peace and 
        human rights;
Whereas the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam's most prominent monk abroad, 
        Thich Nhat Hanh, was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967 by the 
        Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.; and 2 other Unified Buddhist Church 
        monks, Thich Huyan Quang and Thich Quang Do, were also nominated for the 
        Nobel Peace Prize in 1967 while they were in prison;
Whereas in November 1981, the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam 
        sponsored the creation of the Vietnam Buddhist Church, which declared in 
        its founding charter that it was the only legitimate representative of 
        Vietnamese Buddhism within the country and abroad;
Whereas the 2 most prominent leaders of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam, 
        Executive Director Thich Huyan Quang and Secretary General Thich Quang 
        Do, were arrested in February 1982 for protesting the forced 
        incorporation of their church into the state's Vietnam Buddhist Church 
        and have remained under house arrest in subsequent years;
Whereas since April 1992, Venerable Thich Huyan Quang has made several 
        statements publicly challenging the government's repression of Buddhists 
        and asserting the right of the United Buddhist Church to exist and 
        function independently of the government;
Whereas on August 3, 1993, the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam 
        responded with an order of its Religious Affairs Commission, ordering 
        Venable Quang to stop all protests and stating that his attempts to 
        revive the Unified Buddhist Church were illegal;
Whereas several other monks were arrested in Vietnam during 1993 for supporting 
        Venable Quang's demands, including Venerable Thich Hai Tang, Venerable 
        Thich Tri Tuu, Venerable Thich Hai Thinh, and Venerable Thich Hanh Duc;
Whereas 18 Catholic clergy and religious workers remain imprisoned or under 
        house arrest solely for activities connected with their religious duties 
        (such as translating and distributing spiritual literature from abroad, 
        writing articles expressing their religious beliefs, and organizing 
        adult religious education classes and other social programs);
Whereas Vietnamese authorities continue to restrict Catholic clergy (for 
        example, by arbitrarily preventing the ordination of more than 20 
        seminarians on ideological grounds in June 1992, by refusing to allow Ho 
        Chi Minh City Archbishop Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan permission to 
        return to Vietnam following a visit to the Vatican in 1991, and by 
        refusing to permit clergy who were named to head dioceses by the Vatican 
        to assume their posts);
Whereas Vietnamese authorities continue to persecute and harass Evangelical 
        Protestants who worship in homes to avoid government oversight (for 
        example by currently punishing as many as 35 church leaders with 
        imprisonment, house arrest, or other restrictions, by closing house 
        churches, and by particularly targeting those thought to have ties with 
        or to receive funding from United States churches);
Whereas decree 69 of the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, 
        adopted in 1991, strictly controls all religious activity, including 
        worshiping, teaching, training and appointing clergy, publishing, 
        preaching, and evangelizing;
Whereas decree 69 further allows the government to punish any religious activity 
        construed as a threat to the regime;
Whereas the practice of one's religion and the adherence to a religious 
        organization are fundamental rights that must be respected in all 
        societies; and
Whereas it is a violation of these rights for a government to impose its own-
        established church on all followers of a particular region: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United 
States of America in Congress assembled, That it is the sense of the 
Congress that the United States should not establish diplomatic 
relations with the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam 
until--
            (1) the demands of Venerable Thich Huyan Quang for the 
        right of the Unified Buddhist Church to exist and function in 
        Vietnam are fully met;
            (2) Venerable Quang and all other monks, as well as clergy 
        of other religions, who have been detained for the nonviolent 
        expression of dissent are released;
            (3) the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam 
        abides by internationally accepted standards of religious 
        liberty as outlined in the United Nations Declaration on the 
        Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination 
        Based on Religion or Belief, including freedom of conscience 
        and belief and the freedom to worship, to teach religion, to 
        train and appoint clergy, to publish and express religious 
        views, and to meet with coreligionists abroad; and
            (4) other major issues of concern in United States 
        bilateral relations with the Government of the Socialist 
        Republic of Vietnam have been fully resolved.

                                 <all>