[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 102 (Thursday, June 19, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1286-E1287]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




IN ANTICIPATION OF VIETNAMESE PRIME MINISTER NGUYEN'S OFFICIAL VISIT TO 
                                THE U.S.

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 19, 2008

  Mr. WOLF. Madam Speaker, next Tuesday, Vietnamese Prime Minister 
Nguyen will visit the White House. I sincerely hope that the President 
will seize this opportunity to be bold and make Vietnam's deplorable 
human rights record a point of focus. Any further cooperation between 
the U.S. and Vietnam should be contingent upon establishing benchmarks 
for improved human rights and increased religious freedom in Vietnam.
  Vietnam's human rights record remains a disgrace despite its 
ascension to the World Trade Organization--a move that many believed 
would help liberalize the political as well as the economic situation. 
The citizens of Vietnam today remain unable to change their government. 
Last November, the government arrested and imprisoned two Vietnamese 
citizens and three foreign citizens for preparing

[[Page E1287]]

pamphlets which advocated democratic change in Vietnam. One of those 
five is an American citizen, Dr. Nguyen Quoc Quan, who continues to 
languish in prison despite numerous appeals by the U.S. government for 
his release.
  According the Human Rights Watch, since mid-2006, 40 peaceful 
activists have been arrested. They join the over 350 religious and 
political prisoners sentenced since 2001. Vietnam it not progressing, 
it is regressing. Government officials continue to harass religious 
groups.
  Religious institutions are required to apply for permits; but many of 
these applications are ignored or denied leaving congregations without 
protection of the law and vulnerable to abuse. In the Central 
Highlands, provincial officials have been trained to deny medical, 
educational, financial and other government services to religious 
families. Local police beat a Protestant man in Phu Yen province for 
refusing to renounce his religion; he later died of internal injuries 
from the beating. The activities of the United Buddhist Church of 
Vietnam are actively banned.
  I was disappointed when the State Department removed Vietnam from its 
list of Countries of Particular Concern in regard to religious freedom. 
I have asked the State Department that Vietnam be added back onto the 
list.
  Trafficking in persons also remains a major problem. Vietnam was 
listed as a Tier Two country in the State Department's 2008 Trafficking 
in Persons Report. Poor women and teenage girls in rural areas remain 
most at risk of being trafficked, primarily for sexual exploitation.
  I was very disappointed when I read of an exchange U.S. Ambassador to 
Vietnam Michael Michalak had with journalists and he only mentioned 
human rights one time. I have written to Ambassador Michalak several 
times and urged him to make promoting human rights his top priority.
  The U.S. Embassy in Vietnam should be an island of freedom and work 
to promote human liberty and dignity. Regrettably, it is not. Several 
of my colleagues have joined me in writing Ambassador Michalak and 
asking that he invite all Vietnamese dissidents to the U.S. Embassy in 
Hanoi on July 4--America's Independence Day. I look forward to his 
response.
  I will continue speaking out for the Vietnamese people who want to 
see their government turn away from violence and repression, and 
embrace the universal principles of human rights and religious freedom.

                          ____________________