The religions were ever targeted with severe restrictions and elimination. In the first years of the Resistance War (1946-1954) against the French, the Communists in the South under the leadership of Tran Van Giau had carried out plans of execution to eliminate the leaders of the Cao Dai Church and Hoa Hao Buddhism. His Excellency Tran Quang Vinh of Cao Dai was abducted and escaped execution. The Prophet Huynh Phu So, the founder of Hoa Hao Buddhism, was entrapped in an ambush and killed. During the guerrilla war for the liberation of the South Vietnam (1956-1975), the Communists delayed their plans, realizing that it was an ill-time to do this. Nevertheless, as soon as they took over the South Vietnam in April 1975, they resumed their plans. This time, they aggressively dismantled, not only the two indigenous Churches but also all other religions.
To begin with, they confiscated all religious, social, educational, and cultural establishments. Religious activities, and religious practices were subjected to restrictions. Religious intolerance was harsh. Dignitaries, priests, and prominent followers were treated with discrimination, hatred, and detention. On November 11, 1975, only six months after the Communists took control of the South Vietnam, the Venerable Thich Tue Hien and eleven monks and nuns of the Duoc Su Pagoda in Can Tho Province immolated themselves by fire in protest of the government's repressive policy against the religion. The Catholic Archbishop Coadjutor Nguyen Van Thuan of the Saigon prelacy was taken into custody. The Archbishop of Hue Nguyen Kim Diem was placed under surveillance. The Hoa Hao Buddhist dignitary Luong Trong Tuong and his wife were imprisoned for unknown reasons. Fourteen Catholic priests and followers of the St. Vincent Cathedral on Tran Quoc Toan Street, Saigon, were arrested for unfounded charges. The Reverend Nguyen Huu Nghi and two former officers of the Republic of Vietnam, Nguyen Duc Hung and Nguyen Viet Hung were given the death sentence without trial.
Religious persecution escalated and became increasingly rude with the arrest of the Catholic priests and the confiscation of the abbey of the Dong Dong Cong (Order of the Mother Coredemptrix) at Thu Duc, Ho Chi Minh City, in 1987. Hundreds of priests were detained and imprisoned because of profession of faith and religious practices or for unfounded reasons. Among them were Mgsr. Nguyen Van Nam, the Reverend Nguyen Van De, the Reverend Le Thanh Que, the Reverend Joseph Nguyen Cong Doan, Pastor Dinh Thien Thu, Pastor Nguyen Ngoc Anh, Pastor R' Mah Boi, Pastor Tran Dinh Ai, Pastor Tran The Thien Phuoc, Pastor Vo Xuan, the Venerable Thich Quang Do, the Venerable Thich Duc Nhuan, the Venerable Thich Thong Buu, the Venerable Thich Huyen Quang, the Venerable Thich Tri Sieu, and the Venerable Thich Tue Sy.
International organizations raised concerns over the violations of the rights of man in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. The victims of religious intolerance were honored, their cause was justified, and the intervention for their release was affected. Many priests, pastors, and monks were recognized as the prisoners of conscience by International Amnesty. They faced arbitrary sentences and suffered unjust detention:
The Catholic priest Tran Ba Loc was arrested in 1975 and detained at Nhu Xuan reeducation camp, Thanh Hoa Province, North Vietnam. The Catholic priest Nguyen Thai Sanh was arrested in 1975 and detained at Nhu Xuan reeducation camp, Thanh Hoa Province, North Vietnam. The Catholic priest Nguyen Van Ky was arrested in 1983 and detained at Ba Sao reeducation camp, Ha Nam Ninh Province, North Vietnam. The Catholic lawyer Nguyen Khac Chinh was arrested in 1975 and detained at Xuan Loc, Long Khanh Province, South Vietnam. The Buddhist monk Thich Huyen Quang was placed under house arrest in 1982 at Quang Nghia Village, Nghia Binh Province, Central Vietnam. The Buddhist monk Thich Quang Do was placed under house arrest in 1982 at Vu Thu Village, Thai Binh Province, North Vietnam. The Buddhist monk Thich Duc Nhuan was arrested in 1985, then in 1988 and sentenced to 10 years in prison. The Buddhist monk Thich Tri Sieu was arrested in 1984, sentenced to 20 years in prison, and detained at Xuan Loc reeducation camp, Dong Nai Province, South Vietnam. The Buddhist monk Thich Tue Sy was arrested in 1984, sentenced to 20 years in prison, and detained at Xuan Loc reeducation camp, Phu Khanh Province, Central Vietnam. The Buddhist monk Thich Nguyen Giac was arrested in 1984. The Buddhist monk Thich Thien Tan was arrested in 1978, sentenced to life imprisonment, and detained at Xuan Phuoc reeducation camp, Phu Khanh Province, Central Vietnam. The Buddhist monk Thich Phuc Vien was arrested in 1980, sentenced to 20 years in prison, and detained at Xuan Phuoc reeducation camp, Phu Khanh Province, Central Vietnam. Pastor Vo Xuan was arrested in June 1975 and detained in a reeducation camp until 1987. The Reverend was re-arrested on December 12, 1989, and detained at Thuan Hai Province. Pastor Tran Xuan Tu was arrested in 1985 and sentenced to three years of reeducation, (his term in prison was extended to three other additional years in 1990, and he was detained at an unknown forced labor camp (Amnesty International 1992).
A list of 10 pastors of the Vietnamese Evangelical Christian Churches recognized the cases of arrest and detention:
The Reverend Vo Xuan was arrested in June 1975 and detained in camp until April 1987. The Reverend Tran Xuan Tu was arrested in 1985 and sentenced to 3 years of reeducation. His prison term was extended to three other additional years. In 1990, he was detained at Vo Dat forced labor camp in Ham Tan District, Thuan Hai Province. The Reverend Vo Minh Hung was arrested in December 1989 and detained at Camp A20, Dong Xuan District, Phu Yen Province. The Reverend Tran The Thien Phuoc was arrested in November 1989 and detained at Camp Tong Le Chan, Song Be Province. The Reverend had never received a trial. The Reverend Dinh Thien Tu was arrested on February 22, 1991 and detained at Chi Hoa prison, Ho Chi Minh City. The Reverend Tran Dinh Ai was arrested on February 27, 1991 and detained at Chi Hoa prison, Ho Chi Minh City. The Reverend Tran Mai was arrested in October 1991 and detained at Phan Dang Luu prison, Ho Chi Minh City. The Reverend R'Man Boi was arrested in August 1989 and detained at Camp A20, Dong Xuan District, Phu Yen Province. The Reverend Ya Tiem was arrested in August 1990 and detained at Dalat, Lam Dong Province, Central Highlands. The Reverend R'Mah Loan was arrested in June 1991 and detained in Ban Me Thuot, Dac Lac Province, Central Highlands (Indochina Journal, January 1992).
Asia Watch was among the first Western human rights groups to visit Vietnam (mid-March 1993). A Vietnamese official, who requested anonymity, said that the U. S. - based human rights organization checked the civil rights in Vietnam. However, it did not put out a number of political prisoners in the camps it visited. Western diplomats estimated between 100 and 300 political prisoners. News that reached Vietnam Human Rights Watch in February 1993 said that, at the Thu Duc Camp near Saigon only, there were at least 1,000 political prisoners. They were all subjected to strict discipline measures.
Sources from the Office of the Propagation of the Buddhist Faith in Exile in Paris announced in March 1994 that approximately 2,000 political prisoners, be convicted or not, were under detention in various labor camps or prisons in South Vietnam. From 400 to 500 hundred political prisoners were detained at Camp A20 in Xuan Phuoc, Phu Yen Province. About 600 political prisoners were detained at Camp Z30 D & C in Gia Trung, Central Highlands. About 400 political prisoners at Camp Z30 A in Gia Rai, Pleiku Province. Nearly 400 political prisoners were detained at Camp C3 Suoi Mau in Dong Nai Province. Sources also specified with proofs that among the political prisoners at Camp K3 Suoi Mau were the Buddhist Monks Thich Tri Sieu Le Manh That (20 years in prison), Thich Tam Tri Huynh Van Ba (20 years in prison), Thich Tam Can Nguyen Van Tinh (20 years in prison), Thich Hue Dang Nguyen Ngoc Dai (20 years in prison), Thich Nguyen Giac Nguyen Dung (20 years in prison), Thich Thanh Tinh Hoang Van Giang (not convicted), the citizen Nguyen Van Tho (not convicted), citizen Tran Van Tu (not convicted), the citizen Nguyen Van Hoang (not convicted), and the citizen Nguyen Van Trung (not convicted).
The political prisoner Pham Van Thanh (1992) requested the United Nations Commission on Human Rights: To investigate into the deaths of the religious dignitaries, specifically the cases with the Venerable Thich Thien Minh, Buddhist monk, who died at Camp 20; the Most Venerable Thich Tri Thu, Buddhist monk, who died at Thong Nhat Hospital; the Reverend Nguyen Van Vang, Catholic priest who died while under solitary confinement in 1986; and the Reverend Minh, Catholic priest of the St. Vincent Cathedral, who died under solitary confinement in 1986
In a communication dated August 10, 1993, addressed to the Government of Vietnam, the Special Rapporteur of the U.N. Commission on the Implementation of the Declaration of the Elimination of all Forms of Intolerance and Discrimination Based on Religion of Belief brought to the attention of the delegation of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to the United Nations the following information (E/CN, 4/1993, para. 68):
"According to the information received, the practice of religions is subjected to severe restrictions. It has been reported that no one can openly practice religion as a priest or minister without the Government's approval of candidates for ordination and enrollment in seminaries. Restrictions in the exercise of religious freedoms are said to have affected the holding of religious services, gatherings and retreats, religious education and the publication of materials. It has also been reported that sermons are subjected to Government approval and that any type of proselytizing is prohibited.
The Government has already made attempts to unify religious groups by establishing State-sponsored religious associations such as the Committee for the Solidarity of Patriotic Vietnamese Catholics, the Union of Patriotic Priests, the Protestant Association, and the Vietnam Buddhist Church, the only officially recognized Buddhist organization. It has been alleged that growing numbers of clergy as well as religious activists have been imprisoned since 1989 because of their religious beliefs. It has also been reported that the Government had launched a particularly intensive campaign against religious leaders between April and September 1990.
A new decree on the regulation of religious activities passed in May 1991 reportedly stipulates that any nominations to religious office, travel abroad by members of the Vietnamese clergy and visits to Vietnam by representatives of foreign religious organizations, religious meetings such as regional and national conferences, and the opening of religious schools and seminaries must be approved by the Government. Catholic priests, nuns, and lay Catholics are reportedly assigned by the authorities to religious functions and duties at the local level without prior consultation with the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy.
In addition, the Special Rapporteur has been informed that numerous members of the clergy belonging to various religious denominations have been imprisoned since 1975. This is said to particularly be the case with Roman Catholic priests and Buddhist monks as well as Protestant pastors, who have been executed systematically and placed in arbitrary detention for prolonged periods as political prisoners in reeducation and labor camps. Military chaplains allegedly were also sent to such camps after 1975, at a time when all foreign missionaries were expelled from the country, numerous places of worship and religions presses closed and religious property confiscated. Large numbers of religious schools, seminaries, hospitals, and orphanages were reportedly also closed and nationalized, as was the case with the Evangelical Nha Trang Seminary."
The undisputed violations of human rights by the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam were substantially raised in the report submitted by Mr. Abdelfattah, Special Rapporteur in accordance with the Commission on Human Rights resolution 1993/25, specified that at least 40 reeducation and labor camps were in existence and that at least 60 prisoners of conscience were detained in Vietnam on account of their religious beliefs.
The living conditions prevailing in reeducation camps, in particular, were described as extremely harsh. The prisoners suffered illness, hard labor, torture, and inhuman treatment. Lack of food resulted in malnutrition. Lengthy indoctrination sessions were common practices. The Buddhist monk Yoshida, as a case in point, is said to have lost the use of his legs after 13 years of incarceration in a reeducation camp where he was subjected to electric shock torture. Worse still, prisoners who were ill and unable to work were not allowed to eat normal poor food rations since their working capacity was diminished. Handicapped prisoners who worked less were forced to eat less. For instance, they were allowed only 12 kilograms of rice that most prisoners were allowed to receive. It had also been said that many prisoners were not allowed to receive packages of food sent to them by their families.
The Puebla Institute, a human rights group in the United States that defends religion worldwide, reported that repression against all of Vietnam's religions continued. Vietnam, it noted, is one of Asia's most religious societies, with nearly 90 per cent of the population identifying with one of several religions. The Institute's report (1994) examined the situation of Vietnamese Buddhists, Roman Catholics, Evangelical Christians, the Cao Dai, and the Hoa Hao. The organization demonstrated that the repressive apparatus of the regime against all religious groups remained widespread and resilient, despite some free market reforms. It listed as evidences the cases of 22 Catholic Priests and lay persons, 12 pastors, preachers, and lay persons, and 75 Buddhist monks and lay persons who were detained or under police surveillance and house arrest.
Serious problems arise as repression against the religion and dissidence increases. Personal security is one among the most serious problems at camp. According to various sources inside Vietnam, until this day, prisoners of conscience are mixed with both common criminals and horrendous hooligans of the underworld whom the camp supervisors often use as spies to control the political prisoner. Concerns over the problem are always ignored. Health care and medical treatment present another serious problem. In many instances, no doctors or medicine are available. The prisoners, in many instances, are forced to resort to the use of traditional medicines such as herbs and roots when they are available. As a result of such an ill-treatment, the inmates are said to die at the rate of 10 to 15 percent a year.
In the civil society, religious intolerance is pervasive as white regions --where religions are supplanted-- grow. People who are said to have been critical of the State Church hierarchy and the Government are arrested, tried, and given prison terms. The religious and dissidents of all walks of life are targeted with suspicion, discrimination, hatred, and violence because of their profession of belief or faith in their just cause. Many of them are harassed, incarcerated, or placed under surveillance. Quite a few believers of all legitimate Churches face unjust sentences and are drained in prisons and camps.
