[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2833 Introduced in House (IH)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2833

             To promote freedom and democracy in Viet Nam.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 5, 2001

   Mr. Smith of New Jersey introduced the following bill; which was 
 referred to the Committee on International Relations, and in addition 
to the Committee on Financial Services, for a period to be subsequently 
   determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
 provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
             To promote freedom and democracy in Viet Nam.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Viet Nam Human 
Rights Act''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
                      TITLE I--GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 101. Findings.
Sec. 102. Purpose.
        TITLE II--PROMOTION OF FREEDOM AND DEMOCRACY IN VIET NAM

Subtitle A--Prohibition on Nonhumanitarian Assistance to the Government 
                              of Viet Nam

Sec. 201. Bilateral nonhumanitarian assistance.
Sec. 202. Multilateral nonhumanitarian assistance.
        Subtitle B--Assistance to Support Democracy in Viet Nam

Sec. 211. Assistance.
               Subtitle C--United States Public Diplomacy

Sec. 221. Radio Free Asia transmissions to Viet Nam.
Sec. 222. United States educational and cultural exchange programs with 
                            Viet Nam.
                Subtitle D--United States Refugee Policy

Sec. 232. Refugee resettlement for nationals of Viet Nam.
 Subtitle E--Annual Report on Progress Toward Freedom and Democracy in 
                                Viet Nam

Sec. 241. Annual report.

                      TITLE I--GENERAL PROVISIONS

SEC. 101. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Viet Nam is a one-party state, ruled and controlled by 
        the Vietnamese Communist Party.
            (2) The Government of Viet Nam denies the people of Viet 
        Nam the right to change their government and prohibits 
        independent political, social, and labor organizations.
            (3)(A) The Government of Viet Nam consistently pursues a 
        policy of harassment, discrimination, and intimidation, and 
        sometimes of imprisonment and other forms of detention, against 
        those who peacefully express dissent from government or party 
        policy.
            (B) Recent victims of such mistreatment, which violates the 
        rights to freedom of expression and association recognized in 
        the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, include Dr. Nguyen 
        Dan Que, Dr. Nguyen Thanh Giang, General Tran Do, Most 
        Venerable Thich Huyen Quang, Most Venerable Thich Quang Do, 
        Father Nguyen Van Ly, numerous leaders of the Hoa Hao Buddhist 
        Church and of independent Protestant churches, and an 
        undetermined number of members of the Montagnard ethnic 
        minority groups who participated in peaceful demonstrations in 
        the Central Highlands of Viet Nam during February 2001.
            (4) The Government of Viet Nam systematically deprives its 
        citizens of the fundamental right to freedom of religion. 
        Although some freedom of worship is permitted, believers are 
        forbidden to participate in religious activities except under 
        circumstances rigidly defined and controlled by the government:
                    (A) In 1999 the Government issued a Decree 
                Concerning Religious Activities, which declared in 
                pertinent part that ``[a]ll activities using religious 
                belief in order to oppose the State of the Socialist 
                Republic of Viet Nam, to prevent the believers from 
                carrying out civic responsibilities, to sabotage the 
                union of all the people, to against the healthy culture 
                of our nation, as well as superstitious activities, 
                will be punished in conformity with the law''.
                    (B) The Unified Buddhist Church of Viet Nam (UCBV), 
                the largest religious denomination in the country, has 
                been declared illegal by the Government, and over the 
                last twenty-five years its clergy have often been 
                imprisoned and subjected to other forms of persecution. 
                The Patriarch of the Unified Buddhist Church, 83-year-
                old Most Venerable Thich Huyen Quang, has been detained 
                for 21 years in a ruined temple in an isolated area of 
                central Viet Nam. Most Venerable Thich Quang Do, the 
                Executive President of the Unified Buddhist Church, has 
                also been in various forms of detention for many years, 
                and was recently rearrested and placed under house 
                arrest after he had proposed to bring Most Venerable 
                Thich Huyen Quang to Saigon for medical treatment.
                    (C) The Hoa Hao Buddhist Church was also declared 
                to be illegal until 1999, when the Government 
                established an organization which purports to govern 
                the Hoa Hao. According to the United States Commission 
                on International Religious Freedom, ``[t]his 
                organization is made up almost entirely of Communist 
                Party members and apparently is not recognized as 
                legitimate by the vast majority of Hoa Haos . . . 
                [n]evertheless, [this government-sponsored 
                organization] has sought to control all Hoa Hao 
                religious activity, particularly at the Hoa Hao 
                village, which is the center of Hoa Hao religious 
                life''. Hoa Hao believers who do not recognize the 
                legitimacy of the government organization are denied 
                the right to visit the Hoa Hao village, to conduct 
                traditional religious celebrations, or to display Hoa 
                Hao symbols. Many have been arrested and subjected to 
                administrative detention, and several Hoa Hao have been 
                sentenced to prison terms for protesting these denials 
                of religious freedom.
                    (D) Independent Protestants, most of whom are 
                members of ethnic minority groups, are subjected to 
                particularly harsh treatment by the Government of Viet 
                Nam. According to the United States Commission on 
                International Religious Freedom, such treatment 
                includes ``police raids on homes and house churches, 
                detention, imprisonment, confiscation of religious and 
                personal property, physical and psychological abuse, 
                and fines for engaging in unapproved religious 
                activities (such as collective worship, public 
                religious expression and distribution of religious 
                literature, and performing baptisms, marriages, or 
                funeral services) . . . [i]n addition, it is reported 
                that ethnic Hmong Protestants have been forced by local 
                officials to agree to abandon their faith''.
                    (E) Other religious organizations, such as the 
                Catholic Church, are formally recognized by the 
                Government but are subjected to pervasive regulation 
                which violates the right to freedom of religion. For 
                instance, the Catholic Church is forbidden to appoint 
                its own bishops without Government consent, which is 
                frequently denied, to accept seminarians without 
                specific official permission, and to profess Catholic 
                doctrines which are inconsistent with Government 
                policy. A Catholic priest, Father Nguyen Van Ly, was 
                arrested in March 2001 and remains in detention after 
                submitting written testimony to the United States 
                Commission on International Religious Freedom.
                    (F) The Government has also confiscated numerous 
                churches, temples, and other properties belonging to 
                religious organizations. The vast majority of these 
                properties--even those belonging to religious 
                organizations formally recognized by the Government--
                have never been returned.
            (5) Since 1975 the Government of Viet Nam has persecuted 
        veterans of the Army of the Republic of Viet Nam and other 
        Vietnamese who had opposed the Viet Cong insurgency and the 
        North Vietnamese invasion of South Viet Nam. Such persecution 
        typically included substantial terms in ``re-education camps'', 
        where detainees were often subjected to torture and other forms 
        of physical abuse, and in which many died. Re-education camp 
        survivors and their families were often forced into internal 
        exile in ``New Economic Zones''. Many of these former allies of 
        the United States, as well as members of their families, 
        continue until the present day to suffer various forms of 
        harassment and discrimination, including denial of basic social 
        benefits and exclusion from higher education and employment.
            (6)(A) The Government of Viet Nam has been particularly 
        harsh in its treatment of members of the Montagnard ethnic 
        minority groups of the Central Highlands of Viet Nam, who were 
        the first line in the defense of South Viet Nam against 
        invasion from the North and who fought courageously beside 
        members of the Special Forces of the United States Army, 
        suffering disproportionately heavy casualties, and saving the 
        lives of many of their American and Vietnamese comrades-in-
        arms.
            (B) Since 1975 the Montagnard peoples have been singled out 
        for severe repression, in part because of their past 
        association with the United States and in part because their 
        strong commitment to their traditional way of life and to their 
        Christian religion is regarded as inconsistent with the 
        absolute loyalty and control demanded by the Communist system.
            (C) In February 2001 several thousand Montagnards 
        participated in a series of peaceful demonstrations throughout 
        the Central Highlands, demanding religious freedom and 
        restoration of their confiscated lands, and the Government 
        responded by closing off the Central Highlands and sending in 
        military forces, tanks, and helicopter gunships.
            (D) Credible reports by refugees who have escaped to 
        Cambodia indicate that the Government has executed some 
        participants in the demonstrations and has subjected others to 
        imprisonment, torture, and other forms of physical abuse.
            (E) The Government of Viet Nam has also taken steps to 
        prevent further Montagnards from escaping, and there are 
        credible reports that Vietnamese security forces in Cambodia 
        are offering bounties for the surrender of Montagnard asylum 
        seekers.
            (7) The Government of Viet Nam has also persecuted members 
        of other ethnic minority groups, including the Khmer Krom from 
        the Mekong Delta, many of whom fought alongside United States 
        military personnel during the Viet Nam war and whose Hinayana 
        Buddhist religion is not among those recognized by the 
        Government.
            (8) The Government of Viet Nam also engages in or condones 
        serious violations of the rights of workers. In August 1997, 
        the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) reported that child 
        labor exploitation is on the rise in Viet Nam with tens 
of thousands of children under 15 years of age being subjected to such 
exploitation. The government's official labor export program also has 
subjected workers, many of whom are women, to involuntary servitude, 
debt bondage, and other forms of abuse, and the reaction of government 
officials to worker complaints of such abuse has been to threaten the 
workers with punishment if they do not desist in their complaints.
            (9)(A) United States refugee resettlement programs for 
        Vietnamese nationals, including the Orderly Departure Program 
        (ODP), the Resettlement Opportunities for Returning Vietnamese 
        (ROVR) program, and resettlement of boat people from refugee 
        camps throughout Southeast Asia, were authorized by law in 
        order to rescue Vietnamese nationals who have suffered 
        persecution on account of their wartime associations with the 
        United States, as well as those who currently have a well-
        founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, 
        nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular 
        social group.
            (B) In general, these programs have served their purpose 
        well. However, many refugees who were eligible for these 
        programs were unfairly denied or excluded, in some cases by 
        vindictive or corrupt Communist officials who controlled access 
        to the programs, and in others by United States personnel who 
        imposed unduly restrictive interpretations of program criteria. 
        These unfairly excluded refugees include some of those with the 
        most compelling cases, including many Montagnard combat 
        veterans and their families.
            (10) The Government of Viet Nam systematically jams 
        broadcasts by Radio Free Asia, an independent broadcast service 
        funded by the United States in order to provide news and 
        entertainment to the people of countries in Asia whose 
        governments deny the right to freedom of expression and of the 
        press.
            (11) In 1995 the Governments of the United States and Viet 
        Nam announced the ``normalization'' of diplomatic relations. In 
        1998 then-President Clinton waived the application of section 
        402 of the Trade Act of 1974 (commonly known as the ``Jackson-
        Vanik Amendment''), which restricts economic assistance to 
        countries with non-market economies whose governments also 
        restrict freedom of emigration. In 1999 the Governments of the 
        United States and Viet Nam announced ``agreement in principle'' 
        on a bilateral trade agreement. This agreement was signed in 
        2000 and has been presented to Congress for approval or 
        disapproval.
            (12) The Congress and the American people are united in 
        their determination that the extension or expansion of trade 
        relations with a country whose government engages in serious 
        and systematic violations of fundamental human rights must not 
        be construed as a statement of approval or complacency about 
        such practices. The promotion of freedom and democracy around 
        the world--and particularly for people who have suffered in 
        large part because of their past associations with the United 
        States and because they share our values--is and must continue 
        to be a central objective of United States foreign policy.

SEC. 102. PURPOSE.

    The purpose of this Act is to promote the development of freedom 
and democracy in Viet Nam.

        TITLE II--PROMOTION OF FREEDOM AND DEMOCRACY IN VIET NAM

Subtitle A--Prohibition on Nonhumanitarian Assistance to the Government 
                              of Viet Nam

SEC. 201. BILATERAL NONHUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE.

    (a) Assistance.--
            (1) In general.--Except as provided in subsection (b), 
        United States nonhumanitarian assistance may not be provided to 
        the Government of Viet Nam--
                    (A) for fiscal year 2002 unless not later than 30 
                days after the date of the enactment of this Act the 
                President determines and certifies to Congress that the 
                requirements of subparagraphs (A) through (D) of 
                paragraph (2) have been met during the 12-month period 
                ending on the date of the certification; and
                    (B) for each subsequent fiscal year unless the 
                President determines and certifies to Congress in the 
                most recent annual report submitted pursuant to section 
                241 that the requirements of subparagraphs (A) through 
                (D) of paragraph (2) have been met during the 12-month 
                period covered by the report.
            (2) Requirements.--The requirements of this paragraph are 
        that--
                    (A) the Government of Viet Nam has made substantial 
                progress toward releasing all political and religious 
                prisoners from imprisonment, house arrest, and other 
                forms of detention;
                    (B) the Government of Viet Nam has made substantial 
                progress toward respecting the right to freedom of 
                religion, including the right to participate in 
                religious activities and institutions without 
                interference by or involvement of the Government;
                    (C) the Government of Viet Nam has made substantial 
                progress toward respecting the human rights of members 
                of ethnic minority groups in the Central Highlands or 
                elsewhere in Viet Nam; and
                    (D)(i) neither any official of the Government of 
                Viet Nam nor any agency or entity wholly or partly 
                owned by the Government of Viet Nam was complicit in a 
                severe form of trafficking in persons; or
                    (ii) the Government of Viet Nam took all 
                appropriate steps to end any such complicity and hold 
                such official, agency, or entity fully accountable for 
                its conduct.
    (b) Exception.--
            (1) In general.--Subsection (a) shall not apply for any 
        fiscal year with respect to the provision of United States 
        nonhumanitarian assistance for any program or activity for 
        which such assistance was provided to the Government of Viet 
        Nam for fiscal year 2001 in an amount not to exceed the amount 
        so provided for fiscal year 2001.
            (2) Continuation of assistance in the national interest.--
        Notwithstanding the failure of the Government of Viet Nam to 
        meet the requirements of subsection (a)(2), the President may 
        waive the application of subsection (a) for any fiscal year if 
        the President determines that the provision to the Government 
        of Viet Nam of increased United States nonhumanitarian 
        assistance would promote the purposes of this Act or is 
        otherwise in the national interest of the United States.
            (3) Exercise of waiver authority.--
                    (A) In general.--The President may exercise the 
                authority under paragraph (2) with respect to--
                            (i) all United States nonhumanitarian 
                        assistance to Viet Nam; or
                            (ii) one or more programs, projects, or 
                        activities of such assistance.
    (c) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Severe form of trafficking in persons.--The term 
        ``severe form of trafficking in persons'' means any activity 
        described in section 103(8) of the Trafficking Victims 
        Protection Act of 2000 (Public Law 106-386 (114 Stat. 1470); 22 
        U.S.C. 7102(8)).
            (2) United states nonhumanitarian assistance.--The term 
        ``United States nonhumanitarian assistance'' means--
                    (A) any assistance under the Foreign Assistance Act 
                of 1961 (including programs under title IV of chapter 2 
                of part I of that Act, relating to the Overseas Private 
                Investment Corporation), other than--
                            (i) disaster relief assistance, including 
                        any assistance under chapter 9 of part I of 
                        that Act;
                            (ii) assistance which involves the 
                        provision of food (including monetization of 
                        food) or medicine; and
                            (iii) assistance for refugees; and
                    (B) sales, or financing on any terms, under the 
                Arms Export Control Act.

SEC. 202. MULTILATERAL NONHUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE.

    The President shall ensure that section 701 of the International 
Financial Institutions Act (22 U.S.C. 262d), relating to human rights, 
is carried out with respect to Viet Nam.

        Subtitle B--Assistance to Support Democracy in Viet Nam

SEC. 211. ASSISTANCE.

    (a) In General.--The President is authorized to provide assistance, 
through appropriate nongovernmental organizations, for the support of 
individuals and organizations to promote human rights and nonviolent 
democratic change in Viet Nam.
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the President to carry out subsection (a) $2,000,000 
for each of the fiscal years 2002 and 2003.

               Subtitle C--United States Public Diplomacy

SEC. 221. RADIO FREE ASIA TRANSMISSIONS TO VIET NAM.

    (a) Policy of the United States.--It is the policy of the United 
States to take such measures as are necessary to overcome the jamming 
of Radio Free Asia by the Government of Viet Nam.
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--In addition to such amounts 
as are otherwise authorized to be appropriated for the Broadcasting 
Board of Governors, there are authorized to be appropriated to carry 
out the policy under subsection (a) $9,100,000 for the fiscal year 2002 
and $1,100,000 for the fiscal year 2003.

SEC. 222. UNITED STATES EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL EXCHANGE PROGRAMS WITH 
              VIET NAM.

    It is the policy of the United States that programs of educational 
and cultural exchange with Viet Nam should actively promote progress 
toward freedom and democracy in Viet Nam by providing opportunities to 
Vietnamese nationals from a wide range of occupations and perspectives 
to see freedom and democracy in action and, also, by ensuring that 
Vietnamese nationals who have already demonstrated a commitment to 
these values are included in such programs.

                Subtitle D--United States Refugee Policy

SEC. 232. REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT FOR NATIONALS OF VIET NAM.

    (a) Policy of the United States.--It is the policy of the United 
States to offer refugee resettlement to nationals of Viet Nam 
(including members of the Montagnard ethnic minority groups) who were 
eligible for the Orderly Departure Program or any other United States 
refugee program and who were deemed ineligible due to administrative 
error or who for reasons beyond the control of such individuals 
(including the inability to pay bribes demanded by officials of the 
Government of Viet Nam) were unable to apply for such programs in 
compliance with deadlines imposed by the Department of State.
    (b) Authorized Activity.--Of the amounts authorized to be 
appropriated to the Department of State for Migration and Refugee 
Assistance for each of the fiscal years 2001, 2002, and 2003, such sums 
as may be necessary are authorized to be made available for the 
protection (including resettlement in appropriate cases) of Vietnamese 
refugees and asylum seekers, including Montagnards in Cambodia.

 Subtitle E--Annual Report on Progress Toward Freedom and Democracy in 
                                Viet Nam

SEC. 241. ANNUAL REPORT.

    Not later than May 31 of each year, the Secretary of State shall 
submit to Congress a report for the 12-month period ending on the date 
of submission of the report, on the following:
            (1)(A) The determination and certification of the President 
        that the requirements of subparagraphs (A) through (D) of 
        section 201(a)(2) have been met, if applicable.
            (B) The determination of the President under section 
        201(b)(2), if applicable.
            (2) Efforts by the United States Government to secure 
        transmission sites for Radio Free Asia in countries in close 
        geographical proximity to Viet Nam in accordance with section 
        221(a).
            (3) Efforts to ensure that programs with Viet Nam promote 
        the policy set forth in section 222 and with section 102 of the 
        Human Rights, Refugee, and Other Foreign Policy Provisions Act 
        of 1996 regarding participation in programs of educational and 
        cultural exchange.
            (4) Steps taken to carry out the policy under section 
        232(a).
                                 <all>