I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1587

To promote freedom and democracy in Viet Nam. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 3, 2003

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey (for himself, Mr. ROYCE, Mr. ROHRABACHER, Mr. 

WOLF, Mr. SOUDER, Mr. PENCE, Mr. CROWLEY, Ms. LOFGREN, Ms. 

ROS-LEHTINEN, Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia, Mr. TOWNS, Mr. MCNULTY, 

Ms. GINNY BROWN-WAITE of Florida, Mr. BALLENGER, Ms. LORETTA

SANCHEZ of California, Mr. SAM JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. CLAY, Mr. 

BEAUPREZ, Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mr. ENGLISH, Mr. GREEN of Wisconsin, Ms. NORTON, Mr. WYNN, Mr. BELL, Mr. MORAN of Virginia, Mr. 

PAYNE, Mr. COX, Mr. GALLEGLY, Mr. MOORE, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, and 

Mr. WELDON of Pennsylvania) 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.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Viet Nam Human Rights Act of 2003’’. 
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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

2 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings. 

Sec. 3. Purpose. 

TITLE I—PROHIBITION ON NONHUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE TO 

THE GOVERNMENT OF VIET NAM 

Sec. 101. Bilateral nonhumanitarian assistance. 

Sec. 102. Multilateral nonhumanitarian assistance. 

TITLE II—ASSISTANCE TO SUPPORT DEMOCRACY IN VIET NAM 

Sec. 201. Assistance. 

TITLE III—UNITED STATES PUBLIC DIPLOMACY 

Sec. 301. Radio Free Asia transmissions to Viet Nam. 

Sec. 302. United States educational and cultural exchange programs with Viet 

Nam. 

TITLE IV—UNITED STATES REFUGEE POLICY 

Sec. 401. Refugee resettlement for nationals of Viet Nam. 

TITLE V—ANNUAL REPORT ON PROGRESS TOWARD FREEDOM 

AND DEMOCRACY IN VIET NAM 

Sec. 501. Annual report.

3 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

4 Congress finds the following: 

5 (1) Viet Nam is a one-party state, ruled and 

6 controlled by the Vietnamese Communist Party. 

7 (2)(A) The Government of Viet Nam denies the 

8 people of Viet Nam the right to change their govern9 ment and prohibits independent political, social, and 

10 labor organizations. 

11 (B) The Government of Viet Nam prohibits and 

12 hinders the formation of civil society in Viet Nam. 
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1 (3)(A) The Government of Viet Nam consist2 ently pursues a policy of harassment, discrimination, 

3 and intimidation, and sometimes of imprisonment 

4 and other forms of detention, against those who 

5 peacefully express dissent from government or party 

6 policy. This policy includes collectively punishing 

7 family members of individuals targeted for persecu8 tion. A government decree allows detention without 

9 trial for 6 months to 2 years. 

10 (B) Following the United States ratification of 

11 the Bilateral Trade Agreement with Viet Nam in 

12 2001, the human rights situation in Viet Nam has 

13 remained extremely poor. For certain groups, such 

14 as the Montagnards, and other ethnic minorities in 

15 Central and North Vietnam, conditions have deterio16 rated dramatically. In late 2002, the Government of 

17 Viet Nam launched a fresh wave of arrests and 

18 crackdowns against peaceful critics of the Viet19 namese Government, its policy of repression, and its 

20 corrupt practices. 

21 (C) Recent victims of such mistreatment, which 

22 violates the rights to freedom of expression and as23 sociation recognized in the Universal Declaration of 

24 Human Rights, include Dr. Nguyen Dan Que, a 

25 leading human rights activist who was arrested on 
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1 March 17, 2003, and has already served two lengthy 

2 prison sentences, Dr. Nguyen Thanh Giang, Most 

3 Venerable Thich Huyen Quang, Most Venerable 

4 Thich Quang Do, linguist Tran Khue, businessman 

5 Nguyen Khac Toan, journalist Nguyen Vu Binh, 

6 publicist Le Chi Quang, writer Hoang Tien, military 

7 historian Pham Que Duong, Hoang Minh Chinh, 

8 Tran Dung Tien, Hoang Trong Dung, Nguyen Vu 

9 Viet, Nguyen Truc Cuong, Nguyen Thi Hoa, Vu Cao 

10 Quan, Nguyen The Dam, Nguyen Thi Thanh Xuan, 

11 Father Chan Tin, author Duong Thu Huong, poet 

12 Bui Minh Quoc, Dr. Nguyen Xuan Tu (Ha Si Phu), 

13 Dr. Pham Hong Son, Mai Thai Linh, Most Vener14 able Thich Huyen Quang, Most Venerable Thich 

15 Quang Do, Father Nguyen Van Ly, Pastor Nguyen 

16 Lap Ma, Father Phan Van Loi, numerous leaders of 

17 the Hoa Hao Buddhist Church and of independent 

18 Protestant churches, and an undetermined number 

19 of members of the Montagnard ethnic minority 

20 groups who participated in peaceful demonstrations 

21 in the Central Highlands of Viet Nam during Feb22 ruary 2001.

23 (4) The Government of Viet Nam systematically 

24 deprives its citizens of the fundamental right or or25 ganized religious activities outside the state’s con-
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1 trol. Although some freedom of worship is permitted, 

2 believers are forbidden to participate in religious ac3 tivities except under circumstances rigidly defined 

4 and controlled by the Government: 

5 (A)(i) In April, 1999 the Government 

6 issued a Decree Concerning Religious Activities, 

7 which declared in pertinent part that ‘‘[a]ll ac8 tivities using religious belief in order to oppose 

9 the State of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, 

10 to prevent the believers from carrying out civic 

11 responsibilities, to sabotage the union of all the 

12 people, and against the healthy culture of our 

13 nation, as well as superstitious activities, will be 

14 punished in conformity with the law’’. 

15 (ii) All public religious activities must be 

16 approved by the Government in advance. The 

17 United States Commission on International Re18 ligious Freedom in October 2002 recommended 

19 that Viet Nam be classified as a country of par20 ticular concern. At its Seventh Plenum in Janu21 ary 2003, the Communist Party’s Central Com22 mittee issued a resolution calling for the estab23 lishment of cells of Communist Party members 

24 within each of Vietnam’s 6 approved religions 

25 in order to foil ‘‘hostile forces’’. 
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1 (B)(i) The Unified Buddhist Church of 

2 Viet Nam (UBCV), the largest religious de3 nomination in the country, has been declared il4 legal by the Government, and over the last 27 

5 years its clergy have often been imprisoned and 

6 subjected to other forms of persecution. The 

7 Patriarch of the Unified Buddhist Church, 85-

8 year-old Most Venerable Thich Huyen Quang, 

9 has been detained for 25 years in a ruined tem10 ple in an isolated area of central Viet Nam. 

11 (ii) Most Venerable Thich Quang Do, the 

12 Executive President of the Unified Buddhist 

13 Church, has also been in various forms of de14 tention since 1977, and was recently rearrested 

15 and placed under house arrest after he had pro16 posed to bring Most Venerable Thich Huyen 

17 Quang to Saigon for medical treatment. 

18 (iii) Many other leading Buddhist figures, 

19 including Thich Hai Tang, Thich Khong Tanh, 

20 Thich Thai Hoa, Thich Tue Si, Thich Quang 

21 Hue, Thich Tam An, Thich Nguyen Ly, Thich 

22 Thanh Huyen, Thich Thong Dat, Thich Chi 

23 Mau, Thich Chi Thang, Thich Chon Niem, 

24 Thich Thanh Quang are under tight surveil-
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1 lance. Several members of the UBCV have fled 

2 to Cambodia. 

3 (C)(i) The Hao Hoa Buddhist Church was 

4 also declared to be illegal until 1999, when the 

5 Government established an organization which 

6 purports to govern the Hao Hoa. According to 

7 the United States Commission on International 

8 Religious Freedom, ‘‘[t]his organization is made 

9 up almost entirely of Communist Party mem10 bers and apparently is not recognized as legiti11 mate by the vast majority of Hao Hoas . . . 

12 [n]evertheless, [this government-sponsored or13 ganization] has sought to control all Hao Hoa 

14 religious activity, particularly at the Hao Hoa 

15 village, which is the center of Hao Hoa religious 

16 life’’. 

17 (ii)(I) Hao Hoa believers who do not recog18 nize the legitimacy of the government organiza19 tion are denied the right to visit the Hao Hoa 

20 village, to conduct traditional religious celebra21 tions, or to display Hao Hoa symbols. Many 

22 have been arrested and subjected to administra23 tive detention, and several Hao Hoa have been 

24 sentenced to prison terms for protesting these 

25 denials of religious freedom. 
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1 (II) The Government interferes with Hao 

2 Hoa efforts to conduct charitable works, and 

3 prohibits public celebration to commemorate the 

4 founder’s disappearance as well as the distribu5 tion of the founder’s teachings. The Govern6 ment controls greatly the leadership selection 

7 process of the Cao Dais, another indigenous Vi8 etnamese religion. 

9 (III) At least the following Hao Hoa be10 lievers are known to be in prison or house de11 tention: Ha Hai, Tran Van Be Cao, Tran 

12 Nguyen Huon, Phan Thi Tiem, Le Quang 

13 Liem, Nguyen Van Dien, Le Minh Triet, and 

14 Vo Van Thanh Liem. 

15 (D)(i) Independent Protestants, most of 

16 whom are members of ethnic minority groups, 

17 are subjected to particularly harsh treatment by 

18 the Government of Viet Nam. According to the 

19 United States Commission on International Re20 ligious Freedom, such treatment includes ‘‘po21 lice raids on homes and house churches, deten22 tion, imprisonment, confiscation of religious and 

23 personal property, physical and psychological 

24 abuse, and fines for engaging in unapproved re25 ligious activities (such as collective worship, 
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1 public religious expression and distribution of 

2 religious literature, and performing baptisms, 

3 marriages, or funeral services) . . . [i]n addi4 tion, it is reported that ethnic Hmong Protes5 tants have been forced by local officials to agree 

6 to abandon their faith’’. 

7 (ii)(I) According to human rights activists 

8 in Viet Nam, 2 secret central plans—Plan 

9 184A and 184B—issued in 1999 by the Com10 munist Party to combat Protestant believers 

11 were fully implemented throughout the country, 

12 and led to a crackdown on the Protestant move13 ment, especially in the Central and Northern 

14 Highland areas. 

15 (II) An estimated 14,000 Christians fled 

16 from the North to the Central Highlands in the 

17 past 5 years. According to the Southern Evan18 gelical Church of Viet Nam, the Government of 

19 Viet Nam forcibly closed 354 of the 412 

20 churches in Dak Lak province, 56 pastors from 

21 the Central Highlands have disappeared, and at 

22 least 43 evangelical Montagnards have been 

23 sentenced to prison. Freedom House has re24 ported on the beating death of Hmong Chris25 tian Mua Bua Senh by police authorities. 
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1 (E)(i) Other religious organizations, such 

2 as the Catholic Church, are formally recognized 

3 by the Government but are subjected to perva4 sive regulation which violates the right to free5 dom of religion. For instance, the Catholic 

6 Church is forbidden to appoint its own bishops 

7 without Government consent, which is fre8 quently denied, to accept seminarians without 

9 specific official permission, and to profess 

10 Catholic doctrines which are inconsistent with 

11 Government policy. Government restrictions on 

12 the seminary process have caused a severe 

13 shortage of priests. 

14 (ii) A Catholic priest, Father Nguyen Van 

15 Ly, was arrested in March 2001 and remains in 

16 detention after submitting written testimony to 

17 the United States Commission on International 

18 Religious Freedom. On October 19, 2001, he 

19 was sentenced to a total of 20 years of impris20 onment and house arrest; the trial in Hue took 

21 place closed to the public and without a defense 

22 lawyer. 

23 (iii) In October 2002, the Vietnamese 

24 Bishops Conference took an unprecedented step 

25 when they protested to the National Assembly 
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1 about the persecutions endured by Catholic eth2 nic minorities. 

3 (F) The Government has also confiscated 

4 numerous churches, temples, and other prop5 erties belonging to religious organizations. The 

6 vast majority of these properties—even those 

7 belonging to religious organizations formally 

8 recognized by the Government—have never 

9 been returned. 

10 (5)(A) Since 1975 the Government of Viet Nam 

11 has persecuted veterans of the Army of the Republic 

12 of Viet Nam and other Vietnamese who had opposed 

13 the Viet Cong insurgency and the North Vietnamese 

14 invasion of South Viet Nam. Such persecution typi15 cally included substantial terms in ‘‘re-education 

16 camps’’, where detainees were often subjected to tor17 ture and other forms of physical abuse, and in which 

18 many died. 

19 (B) Re-education camp survivors and their fam20 ilies were often forced into internal exile in ‘‘New 

21 Economic Zones’’. Many of these former allies of the 

22 United States, as well as members of their families, 

23 continue until the present day to suffer various 

24 forms of harassment and discrimination, including 
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1 denial of basic social benefits and exclusion from 

2 higher education and employment. 

3 (6)(A) The Government of Viet Nam has been 

4 particularly harsh in its treatment of members of 

5 the Montagnard ethnic minority groups of the Cen6 tral Highlands of Viet Nam, who were the first line 

7 in the defense of South Viet Nam against invasion 

8 from the North and who fought courageously beside 

9 members of the Special Forces of the United States, 

10 suffering disproportionately heavy casualties, and 

11 saving the lives of many of their American and Viet12 namese comrades-in-arms. 

13 (B) Since 1975 the Montagnard peoples have 

14 been singled out for severe repression, in part be15 cause of their past association with the United 

16 States and in part because their strong commitment 

17 to their traditional way of life and to their Christian 

18 religion is regarded as inconsistent with the absolute 

19 loyalty and control demanded by the Communist sys20 tem. The Government employs a policy of assimila21 tion and oppression against the Montagnards, forc22 ibly displacing them from their ancestral lands to 

23 make way for North Vietnamese settlers, coffee 

24 plantations, and logging operations. 
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1 (C) Between February and March 2001, several 

2 thousand members of the mountain tribes Djarai, 

3 Bahnar, and Rhade ́ from the provinces of Pleiku, 

4 Gialai, and Daklak took part in a series of peaceful 

5 demonstrations to demand the release of 2 

6 Montagnard Christians, religious freedom and res7 toration of their confiscated lands. The Government 

8 responded by closing off the Central Highlands and 

9 sending in military forces, tanks, and helicopter 

10 gunships. Hundreds of demonstrators were injured. 

11 Altogether, more than 200 people, among them 60 

12 evangelical priests and tribal chieftains, were ar13 rested. Some regions of the Central Highlands re14 main closed to journalists and foreign diplomats. 

15 (D) Credible reports by refugees who have es16 caped to Cambodia indicate that the Government 

17 has executed some participants in the demonstra18 tions and has subjected others to imprisonment, tor19 ture, and other forms of physical abuse. 

20 (E) The Government of Viet Nam has also 

21 taken steps to prevent further Montagnards from es22 caping, and there are credible reports that Viet23 namese security forces in Cambodia are offering 

24 bounties for the surrender of Montagnard asylum 

25 seekers. 
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1 (F) According to Human Rights Watch, in De2 cember 2002 ‘‘[The Government] arrested or de3 tained dozens of highlanders and banned Christmas 

4 church services in order to prevent minority Chris5 tians from gathering. Six highlanders were detained 

6 during the third week in December in Krong Ana 

7 and Cu Jut districts, Dak Lak, during Christmas 

8 prayer services, while another eight were taken into 

9 custody as they were attempting to cross the border 

10 to Cambodia. Villagers throughout the Central High11 lands were warned they would face fines and even 

12 imprisonment if they organized Christmas services. 

13 In many areas authorities banned gatherings of four 

14 or more people.’’. 

15 (7) The Government of Viet Nam has also per16 secuted members of other ethnic minority groups, in17 cluding the Khmer Krom from the Mekong Delta, 

18 many of whom fought alongside United States mili19 tary personnel during the Viet Nam war and whose 

20 Hinayana Buddhist religion is not among those rec21 ognized by the Government. 

22 (8) The Government of Viet Nam also engages 

23 in or condones serious violations of the rights of 

24 workers. In August 1997, the United Nations Chil25 dren’s Fund (UNICEF) reported that child labor ex-
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1 ploitation is on the rise in Viet Nam with tens of 

2 thousands of children under 15 years of age being 

3 subjected to such exploitation. The government’s of4 ficial labor export program also has subjected work5 ers, many of whom are women, to involuntary ser6 vitude, debt bondage, and other forms of abuse, and 

7 the reaction of government officials to worker com8 plaints of such abuse has been to threaten the work9 ers with punishment if they do not desist in their 

10 complaints. The government of Viet Nam has made 

11 some minor efforts to improve this situation, but en12 forcement of child labor laws remains weak, and the 

13 child exploitation still persists. 

14 (9)(A) United States refugee resettlement pro15 grams for Vietnamese nationals, including the Or16 derly Departure Program (ODP), the Resettlement 

17 Opportunities for Returning Vietnamese (ROVR) 

18 program, and resettlement of boat people from ref19 ugee camps throughout Southeast Asia, were author20 ized by law in order to rescue Vietnamese nationals 

21 who have suffered persecution on account of their 

22 wartime associations with the United States, as well 

23 as those who currently have a well-founded fear of

24 persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, 
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1 political opinion, or membership in a particular so2 cial group. 

3 (B) In general, these programs have served 

4 their purpose well. However, many refugees who 

5 were eligible for these programs were unfairly denied 

6 or excluded, in some cases by vindictive or corrupt 

7 Communist officials who controlled access to the 

8 programs, and in others by United States personnel 

9 who imposed unduly restrictive interpretations of 

10 program criteria. These unfairly excluded refugees 

11 include some of those with the most compelling 

12 cases, including many Montagnard combat veterans 

13 and their families. 

14 (C) The Department of State has agreed to ex15 tend the September 30, 1994, registration deadline 

16 for former United States employees, ‘‘re-education’’ 

17 survivors, and surviving spouses of those who did 

18 not survive ‘‘re-education’’ camps to sign up for 

19 United States refugee programs. 

20 (D) The Department of State has agreed to re21 sume the Vietnamese In-Country Priority One Pro22 gram in Viet Nam to provide protection to victims 

23 of persecution on account of race, religion, nation24 ality, political opinion, or membership in a particular 
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1 social group who otherwise have no access to the Or2 derly Departure Program. 

3 (E) The Bureau of Citizenship and Immigra4 tion Service in the Department of Homeland Secu5 rity has agreed to resume the processing of former 

6 United States employees under the U11 program, 

7 which had been unilaterally suspended by the United 

8 States Government. 

9 (F) The Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration 

10 Service has agreed to review the applications of 

11 Amerasians, children of American servicemen left 

12 behind in Viet Nam after the war ended in April 

13 1975, for resettlement to the United States under 

14 the Amerasian Homecoming Act of 1988. 

15 (10) The Government of Viet Nam systemati16 cally jams broadcasts by Radio Free Asia, an inde17 pendent broadcast service funded by the United 

18 States in order to provide news and entertainment 

19 to the people of countries in Asia whose governments 

20 deny the right to freedom of expression and of the 

21 press. 

22 (11) In 1995 the Governments of the United 

23 States and Viet Nam announced the ‘‘normaliza24 tion’’ of diplomatic relations. In 1998 then-President 

25 Clinton waived the application of section 402 of the 
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1 Trade Act of 1974 (commonly known as the ‘‘Jack2 son-Vanik Amendment’’), which restricts economic 

3 assistance to countries with non-market economies 

4 whose governments also restrict freedom of emigra5 tion. In 1999 the Governments of the United States 

6 and Viet Nam announced ‘‘an agreement in prin7 ciple’’ on a bilateral trade agreement. This agree8 ment was signed in 2000 and came into effect on 

9 December 10, 2001. 

10 (12) The Congress and the American people are 

11 united in their determination that the extension or 

12 expansion of trade relations with a country whose 

13 government engages in serious and systematic viola14 tions of fundamental human rights must not be con15 strued as a statement of approval or complacency 

16 about such practices. The promotion of freedom and 

17 democracy around the world—and particularly for 

18 people who have suffered in large part because of 

19 their past associations with the United States and 

20 because they share our values—is and must continue 

21 to be a central objective of United States foreign 

22 policy. 

23 SEC. 3. PURPOSE. 

24 The purpose of this Act is to promote the develop25 ment of freedom and democracy in Viet Nam. 
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1 TITLE I—PROHIBITION ON NON2 HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE 

3 TO THE GOVERNMENT OF 

4 VIET NAM 

5 SEC. 101. BILATERAL NONHUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE. 

6 (a) ASSISTANCE.—

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in sub8 section (b), United States nonhumanitarian assist9 ance may not be provided to the Government of Viet 

10 Nam—

11 (A) for fiscal year 2004 unless not later 

12 than 30 days after the date of the enactment of 

13 this Act the President determines and certifies 

14 to Congress that the requirements of subpara15 graphs (A) through (D) of paragraph (2) have 

16 been met during the 12-month period ending on 

17 the date of the certification; and 

18 (B) for each subsequent fiscal year unless 

19 the President determines and certifies to Con20 gress in the most recent annual report sub21 mitted pursuant to section 501 that the re22 quirements of subparagraphs (A) through (E) 

23 of paragraph (2) have been met during the 12-

24 month period covered by the report. 
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1 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—The requirements of this 

2 paragraph are that—

3 (A) the Government of Viet Nam has made 

4 substantial progress toward releasing all polit5 ical and religious prisoners from imprisonment, 

6 house arrest, and other forms of detention; 

7 (B)(i) the Government of Viet Nam has 

8 made substantial progress toward respecting 

9 the right to freedom of religion, including the 

10 right to participate in religious activities and in11 stitutions without interference by or involve12 ment of the Government; and 

13 (ii) has made substantial progress toward 

14 returning estates and properties confiscated 

15 from the churches; 

16 (C) the Government of Viet Nam has made 

17 substantial progress toward allowing Viet18 namese nationals free and open access to 

19 United States refugee programs; 

20 (D) the Government of Viet Nam has 

21 made substantial progress toward respecting 

22 the human rights of members of ethnic minority 

23 groups in the Central Highlands or elsewhere in 

24 Viet Nam; and
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1 (E)(i) neither any official of the Govern2 ment of Viet Nam nor any agency or entity 

3 wholly or partly owned by the Government of 

4 Viet Nam was complicit in a severe form of 

5 trafficking in persons; or 

6 (ii) the Government of Viet Nam took all 

7 appropriate steps to end any such complicity 

8 and hold such official, agency, or entity fully 

9 accountable for its conduct. 

10 (b) EXCEPTION.—

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) shall not 

12 apply for any fiscal year with respect to the provi13 sion of United States nonhumanitarian assistance 

14 for any program or activity for which such assist15 ance was provided to the Government of Viet Nam 

16 for fiscal year 2003 in an amount not to exceed the 

17 amount so provided for fiscal year 2003. 

18 (2) CONTINUATION OF ASSISTANCE IN THE NA19 TIONAL INTEREST.—Notwithstanding the failure of 

20 the Government of Viet Nam to meet the require21 ments of subsection (a)(2), the President may waive 

22 the application of subsection (a) for any fiscal year 

23 if the President determines that the provision to the 

24 Government of Viet Nam of increased United States 

25 nonhumanitarian assistance would promote the pur-
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1 poses of this Act or is otherwise in the national in2 terest of the United States. 

3 (3) EXERCISE OF WAIVER AUTHORITY.—The 

4 President may exercise the authority under para5 graph (2) with respect to—

6 (A) all United States nonhumanitarian as7 sistance to Viet Nam; or 

8 (B) one or more programs, projects, or ac9 tivities of such assistance. 

10 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

11 (1) SEVERE FORM OF TRAFFICKING IN PER12 SONS.—The term ‘‘severe form of trafficking in per13 sons’’ means any activity described in section 103(8) 

14 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 

15 (Public Law 106–386 (114 Stat. 1470); 22 U.S.C. 

16 7102(8)). 

17 (2) UNITED STATES NONHUMANITARIAN AS18 SISTANCE.—The term ‘‘United States nonhumani19 tarian assistance’’ means—

20 (A) any assistance under the Foreign As21 sistance Act of 1961 (including programs under 

22 title IV of chapter 2 of part I of that Act, relat23 ing to the Overseas Private Investment Cor24 poration), other than—
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1 (i) disaster relief assistance, including 

2 any assistance under chapter 9 of part I of 

3 that Act; 

4 (ii) assistance which involves the pro5 vision of food (including monetization of 

6 food) or medicine; and 

7 (iii) assistance for refugees; and 

8 (B) sales, or financing on any terms, under 

9 the Arms Export Control Act. 

10 SEC. 102. MULTILATERAL NONHUMANITARIAN ASSIST11 ANCE. 

12 (a) HUMAN RIGHTS.—The President shall ensure 

13 that section 701 of the International Financial Institu14 tions Act (22 U.S.C. 262d), relating to human rights, is 

15 carried out with respect to Viet Nam. 

16 (b) RELIGIOUS FREEDOM.—The President shall in17 struct the United States Executive Directors at the World 

18 Bank and the International Monetary Fund to use the 

19 voice and vote of the United States to oppose any loans 

20 or other assistance (except loans or assistance for humani21 tarian purposes) to the Government of Viet Nam until the 

22 President determines that the Government of Viet Nam 

23 has made substantial progress to protect religious free24 dom. 
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1 TITLE II—ASSISTANCE TO SUP2 PORT DEMOCRACY IN VIET 

3 NAM 

4 SEC. 201. ASSISTANCE. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The President is authorized to 

6 provide assistance, through appropriate nongovernmental 

7 organizations, for the support of individuals and organiza8 tions to promote internationally recognized human rights 

9 in Viet Nam. 

10 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

11 are authorized to be appropriated to the President to carry 

12 out subsection (a) $2,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 

13 2004 and 2005. 

14 TITLE III—UNITED STATES 

15 PUBLIC DIPLOMACY 

16 SEC. 301. RADIO FREE ASIA TRANSMISSIONS TO VIET NAM. 

17 (a) POLICY OF THE UNITED STATES.—It is the pol18 icy of the United States to take such measures as are nec19 essary to overcome the jamming of Radio Free Asia by 

20 the Government of Viet Nam. 

21 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—In addi22 tion to such amounts as are otherwise authorized to be 

23 appropriated for the Broadcasting Board of Governors, 

24 there are authorized to be appropriated to carry out the 
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1 policy under subsection (a) $9,100,000 for the fiscal year 

2 2004 and $1,100,000 for the fiscal year 2005. 

3 SEC. 302. UNITED STATES EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL 

4 EXCHANGE PROGRAMS WITH VIET NAM. 

5 It is the policy of the United States that programs 

6 of educational and cultural exchange with Viet Nam 

7 should actively promote progress toward freedom and de8 mocracy in Viet Nam by providing opportunities to Viet9 namese nationals from a wide range of occupations and 

10 perspectives to see freedom and democracy in action and, 

11 also, by ensuring that Vietnamese nationals who have al12 ready demonstrated a commitment to these values are in13 cluded in such programs. 

14 TITLE IV—UNITED STATES 

15 REFUGEE POLICY 

16 SEC. 401. REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT FOR NATIONALS OF 

17 VIET NAM. 

18 (a) POLICY OF THE UNITED STATES.—It is the pol19 icy of the United States to offer refugee resettlement to 

20 nationals of Viet Nam (including members of the 

21 Montagnard ethnic minority groups) who were eligible for 

22 the Orderly Departure Program (ODP), Resettlement Op23 portunities for Vietnamese Returnees (ROVR) or any 

24 other United States refugee program and who were 

25 deemed ineligible due to administrative error or who for
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1 reasons beyond the control of such individuals (including 

2 insufficient or contradictory information or the inability 

3 to pay bribes demanded by officials of the Government of 

4 Viet Nam) were unable or failed to apply for such pro5 grams in compliance with deadlines imposed by the De6 partment of State. 

7 (b) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITY.—Of the amounts au8 thorized to be appropriated to the Department of State 

9 for Migration and Refugee Assistance for each of the fiscal 

10 years 2004, 2005, and 2006, such sums as may be nec11 essary are authorized to be made available for the protec12 tion (including resettlement in appropriate cases) of Viet13 namese refugees and asylum seekers, including 

14 Montagnards in Cambodia. 

15 TITLE V—ANNUAL REPORT ON 

16 PROGRESS TOWARD FREE17 DOM AND DEMOCRACY IN 

18 VIET NAM 

19 SEC. 501. ANNUAL REPORT. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 months after the 

21 date of the enactment of this Act and every 12 months 

22 thereafter, the Secretary of State shall submit to the Con23 gress a report on the following: 

24 (1)(A) The determination and certification of 

25 the President that the requirements of subpara-
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1 graphs (A) through (D) of section 101(a)(2) have 

2 been met, if applicable. 

3 (B) The determination of the President under 

4 section 101(b)(2), if applicable. 

5 (2) Efforts by the United States Government to 

6 secure transmission sites for Radio Free Asia in 

7 countries in close geographical proximity to Viet 

8 Nam in accordance with section 301(a). 

9 (3) Efforts to ensure that programs with Viet 

10 Nam promote the policy set forth in section 302 and 

11 with section 102 of the Human Rights, Refugee, and 

12 Other Foreign Policy Provisions Act of 1996 regard13 ing participation in programs of educational and cul14 tural exchange. 

15 (4) Steps taken to carry out the policy under 

16 section 401(a). 

17 (5) Actions of the Government of Viet Nam 

18 which reflect compliance with or violation of human 

19 rights, in particular, those contained in the Inter20 national Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and 

21 in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in22 cluding, but not limited to, effectively affording—

23 (A) the right to engage in free expression; 

24 (B) the right to peaceful assembly; 
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1 (C) religious freedom, including the right 

2 to worship, to appoint clergy members, to form 

3 religious associations and institutions, to par4 ticipate in religious activities, and to conduct 

5 charity work free of involvement of and inter6 ference by the government; 

7 (D) the right to establish nongovernmental 

8 organizations and civic associations; 

9 (E) the right to liberty of movement and 

10 freedom to choose a residence within Viet Nam 

11 and the right to leave from and return to Viet 

12 Nam; 

13 (F) the right of a criminal defendant—

14 (i) to be tried in his or her presence, 

15 and to defend himself or herself in person 

16 or through legal assistance of his or her 

17 own choosing; 

18 (ii) to be informed, if he or she does 

19 not have legal assistance, of the right set 

20 forth in clause (i); 

21 (iii) to have legal assistance assigned 

22 to him or her in any case in which the in23 terests of justice so require and without 

24 payment by him or her in any such case if 
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1 he or she does not have sufficient means to 

2 pay for it; 

3 (iv) to a fair and public hearing by a 

4 competent, independent, and impartial tri5 bunal established by the law; 

6 (v) to be presumed innocent until 

7 proved guilty according to law; and 

8 (vi) to be tried without undue delay; 

9 (G) the right to be free from torture and 

10 other forms of cruel or unusual punishment; 

11 (H) protection of internationally recognized 

12 worker rights; 

13 (I) freedom from incarceration as punish14 ment for political opposition to the government; 

15 (J) freedom from incarceration as punish16 ment for exercising or advocating human rights 

17 (including those described in this section); 

18 (K) freedom from arbitrary arrest, deten19 tion, or exile; 

20 (L) the right to fair and public hearings by 

21 an independent tribunal for the determination 

22 of a citizen’s rights and obligations; and 

23 (M) free choice of employment. 

24 (6) Lists of persons believed to be imprisoned, 

25 detained, or placed under house arrest, tortured, or 
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1 otherwise persecuted by the Government of Viet 

2 Nam due to their pursuit of the rights described in 

3 paragraph (5). In compiling such lists, the Secretary 

4 shall exercise appropriate discretion, including con5 cerns regarding the safety and security of, and ben6 efit to, the persons who may be included on the lists 

7 and their families. In addition, the Secretary shall 

8 include a list of such persons and their families who 

9 may qualify for protection under United States ref10 ugee programs. 

11 (7) A description of the development of the rule 

12 of law in Viet Nam, including, but not limited to—

13 (A) progress toward the development of in14 stitutions of democratic governance; 

15 (B) processes by which statutes, regula16 tions, rules, and other legal acts of the Govern17 ment of Viet Nam are developed and become 

18 binding within Viet Nam; 

19 (C) the extent to which statutes, regula20 tions, rules, administrative and judicial deci21 sions, and other legal acts of the Government of 

22 Viet Nam are published and are made acces23 sible to the public; 

24 (D) the extent to which administrative and 

25 judicial decisions are supported by statements 
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1 of reasons that are based upon written statutes, 

2 regulations, rules and other legal acts of the 

3 Government of Viet Nam; 

4 (E) the extent to which individuals are 

5 treated equally under the laws of Viet Nam 

6 without regard to citizenship, race, religion, po7 litical opinion, or current or former associa8 tions; 

9 (F) the extent to which administrative and 

10 judicial decisions are independent of political 

11 pressure or governmental interference and are 

12 reviewed by entities of appellate jurisdiction; 

13 and 

14 (G) the extent to which laws in Viet Nam 

15 are written and administered in ways that are 

16 consistent with international human rights 

17 standards, including the requirements of the 

18 International Covenant on Civil and Political 

19 Rights. 

20 (8) A description of projects funded by multilat21 eral organizations operating in Viet Nam, including 

22 projects funded by the World Bank, International 

23 Monetary Fund, Asian Development Bank, United 

24 Nations, and Global Fund. 
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1 (b) CONTACTS WITH OTHER ORGANIZATIONS.—In 

2 preparing the report under subsection (a), the Secretary 

3 shall, as appropriate, seek out and maintain contacts with 

4 nongovernmental organizations and human rights advo5 cates (including Vietnamese-Americans, human rights ad6 vocates in Viet Nam), including receiving reports and up7 dates from such organizations and evaluating such re8 ports. The Secretary shall also seek to consult with the 

9 United States Commission on Religious Freedom for ap10 propriate sections of the report.

Æ