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and house arrest, destroy religious property, and 
harass and threaten local practicing Buddhists. 
(E) The Government of Vietnam continues to 
suppress the activities of other religious adherents, 
including Cao Dai and Hoa Hao who lack official 
recognition or have chosen not to affiliate with the 
state-sanctioned groups, including through the use 
of detention and imprisonment. 
(F) During Easter weekend in April 2004, 
thousands of Montagnards gathered to protest their 
treatment by the Government of Vietnam, including 
the confiscation of tribal lands and ongoing restric-
tions on religious activities. Credible reports indicate 
that the protests were met with violent response as 
many demonstrators were arrested, injured, went 
into hiding, and that others were killed. Many of 
these Montagnards are still serving long sentences 
for their involvement in peaceful demonstrations in 
2001 and 2004. 
(G) Ethnic minority Hmong in the Northwest 
Highlands of Vietnam also suffer restrictions, 
abuses, and persecution by the Government of Viet-
nam, and although the Government is now allowing 
some Hmong Protestants to organize and conduct 
religious activity, some government officials continue 
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to deny or ignore additional applications for reg-
istration. 
(10) The Government of Vietnam controls all 
print and electronic media, including access to the 
Internet, jams the signals of some foreign radio sta-
tions, including Radio Free Asia, and has detained 
and imprisoned individuals who have posted or sent 
democracy-related materials via the Internet. 
(11) People arrested in Vietnam because of 
their political or religious affiliations and activities 
often are not accorded due legal process as they lack 
full access to lawyers of their choice, may experience 
closed trials, have often been detained for years 
without trial, and have been subjected to the use of 
torture to admit crimes they did not commit or to 
falsely denounce their own leaders. 
(12)(A) United States refugee resettlement pro-
grams, including the Humanitarian Resettlement 
(HR) Program, the Orderly Departure Program 
(ODP), Resettlement Opportunities for Vietnamese 
Returnees (ROVR) Program, general resettlement of 
boat people from refugee camps throughout South-
east Asia, the Amerasian Homecoming Act of 1988, 
and the Priority One Refugee resettlement category 
have helped rescue Vietnamese nationals who have 
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suffered persecution on account of their associations 
with the United States as well as Vietnamese nation-
als who have been persecuted because of race, reli-
gion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in 
a particular social group. 
(B) While previous programs have served their 
purposes well, a significant number of eligible refu-
gees from Vietnam were unfairly denied or excluded, 
including Amerasians, in some cases by vindictive or 
corrupt Vietnamese officials who controlled access to 
the programs, and in others by United States per-
sonnel who imposed unduly restrictive interpreta-
tions of program criteria. In addition, the Govern-
ment of Vietnam has denied passports to persons 
who the United States has found eligible for refugee 
admission. 
(C) The Department of State has agreed to ex-
tend the September 30, 1994, registration deadline 
for former United States employees, ‘‘re-education’’ 
survivors, and surviving spouses of those who did 
not survive ‘‘re-education’’ camps to sign up for 
United States refugee programs, as well as the Viet-
namese In Country Priority One Program in Viet-
nam to provide protection to victims of recent perse-
cution on account of race, religion, nationality, polit-
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ical opinion, or membership in a particular social 
group. 
(D) The former United States Immigration and 
Naturalization Service agreed to resume the proc-
essing of former United States employees under the 
U11 program, which had been unilaterally sus-
pended by the United States Government, as well as 
to review applications of Amerasians, children of 
American servicemen left behind in Vietnam after 
the war ended in April 1975, for resettlement to the 
United States under the Amerasian Homecoming 
Act of 1988. 
(13) Congress has passed numerous resolutions 
condemning human rights abuses in Vietnam, indi-
cating that although there has been an expansion of 
relations with the Government of Vietnam, it should 
not be construed as approval of the ongoing and se-
rious violations of fundamental human rights in 
Vietnam. 
(14) Enhancement of relations between the 
United States and Vietnam has proved an oppor-
tunity for a human rights dialogue and could lead to 
future progress on human rights issues in Vietnam. 
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SEC. 3. PURPOSE. 
The purpose of this Act is to promote the develop-
ment of freedom and democracy in Vietnam. 
TITLE I—PROHIBITION ON NON-
HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE 
TO 
THE 
GOVERNMENT 
OF 
VIETNAM 
SEC. 101. BILATERAL NONHUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE. 
(a) ASSISTANCE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in sub-
section (b), United States nonhumanitarian assist-
ance may not be provided to the Government of 
Vietnam in an amount exceeding the amount so pro-
vided for fiscal year 2007— 
(A) for fiscal year 2008 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 subpara-
graphs (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 Con-
gress in the most recent annual report sub-
mitted pursuant to section 501 that the re-
quirements of subparagraphs (A) through (E) 
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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 Vietnam has made 
substantial progress toward releasing all polit-
ical and religious prisoners from imprisonment, 
house arrest, and other forms of detention; 
(B)(i) the Government of Vietnam has 
made substantial progress toward respecting 
the right to freedom of religion, including the 
right to participate in religious activities and in-
stitutions without interference by or involve-
ment of the Government; and 
(ii) the Government of Vietnam has made 
substantial progress toward returning estates 
and properties confiscated from the churches; 
(C) the Government of Vietnam has made 
substantial progress toward allowing Viet-
namese nationals free and open access to 
United States refugee programs; 
(D) the Government of Vietnam has made 
substantial progress toward respecting the 
human rights of members of all ethnic minority 
groups; and 
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(E)(i) neither any official of the Govern-
ment of Vietnam nor any agency or entity whol-
ly or partly owned by the Government of Viet-
nam was complicit in a severe form of traf-
ficking in persons; or 
(ii) the Government of Vietnam took all 
appropriate steps to end any such complicity 
and hold such official, agency, or entity fully 
accountable for its conduct. 
(b) EXCEPTION.— 
(1) CONTINUATION OF ASSISTANCE IN THE NA-
TIONAL INTEREST.—Notwithstanding the failure of 
the Government of Vietnam to meet the require-
ments 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 Vietnam of increased nonhumani-
tarian assistance would promote the purpose of this 
Act or is otherwise in the national interest of the 
United States. 
(2) EXERCISE
OF
WAIVER
AUTHORITY.—The 
President may exercise the authority under para-
graph (1) with respect to— 
(A) all United States nonhumanitarian as-
sistance to Vietnam; or 
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(B) one or more programs, projects, or ac-
tivities of such assistance. 
(c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) SEVERE FORMS OF TRAFFICKING IN PER-
SONS.—The term ‘‘severe form of trafficking in per-
sons’’ 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
AS-
SISTANCE.—The term ‘‘United States nonhumani-
tarian assistance’’ means— 
(A) any assistance under the Foreign As-
sistance Act of 1961 (including programs under 
title IV of chapter 2 of part I of that Act, relat-
ing to the Overseas Private Investment Cor-
poration), other than— 
(i) disaster relief assistance, including 
any assistance under chapter 9 of part I of 
that Act; 
(ii) assistance which involves the pro-
vision of food (including monetization of 
food) or medicine; 
(iii) assistance for refugees; and 
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(iv) assistance to combat HIV/AIDS, 
including any assistance under section 
104A of that Act; and 
(B) sales, or financing on any terms, under 
the Arms Export Control Act. 
TITLE II—ASSISTANCE TO SUP-
PORT DEMOCRACY IN VIET-
NAM 
SEC. 201. ASSISTANCE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The President is authorized to 
provide assistance, through appropriate nongovernmental 
organizations and the Human Rights Defenders Fund, for 
the support of individuals and organizations to promote 
internationally recognized human rights in Vietnam. 
(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 
2008 and 2009. 
TITLE III—UNITED STATES 
PUBLIC DIPLOMACY 
SEC. 301. RADIO FREE ASIA TRANSMISSIONS TO VIETNAM. 
(a) POLICY OF THE UNITED STATES.—It is the pol-
icy of the United States to take such measures as are nec-
essary to overcome the jamming of Radio Free Asia by 
the Government of Vietnam. 
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(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—In addi-
tion 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 
2008 and $1,100,000 for fiscal year 2009. 
SEC. 302. UNITED STATES EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL 
EXCHANGE PROGRAMS WITH VIETNAM. 
It is the policy of the United States that programs 
of educational and cultural exchange with Vietnam should 
actively promote progress toward freedom and democracy 
in Vietnam by providing opportunities to Vietnamese na-
tionals from a wide range of occupations and perspectives 
to see freedom and democracy in action and, also, by en-
suring that Vietnamese nationals who have already dem-
onstrated a commitment to these values are included in 
such programs. 
TITLE IV—UNITED STATES 
REFUGEE POLICY 
SEC. 401. REFUGEE RESETTLMENT FOR NATIONALS OF 
VIETNAM. 
(a) POLICY OF THE UNITED STATES.—It is the pol-
icy of the United States to offer refugee resettlement to 
nationals of Vietnam (including members of the 
Montagnard ethnic minority groups) who were eligible for 
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the Humanitarian Resettlement (HR) Program, the Or-
derly Departure Program (ODP), Resettlement Opportu-
nities for Vietnamese Returnees (ROVR) Program, the 
Amerasian Homecoming Act of 1988, 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 insufficient or con-
tradictory information or the inability to pay bribes de-
manded by officials of the Government of Vietnam) were 
unable or failed to apply for such programs in compliance 
with deadlines imposed by the Department of State. 
(b) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITY.—Of the amounts au-
thorized to be appropriated to the Department of State 
for Migration and Refugee Assistance for each of the fiscal 
years 2008, 2009, and 2010, such sums as may be nec-
essary are authorized to be made available for the protec-
tion (including resettlement in appropriate cases) of Viet-
namese 
refugees 
and 
asylum 
seekers, 
including 
Montagnards in Cambodia. 
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TITLE V—ANNUAL REPORT ON 
PROGRESS 
TOWARD 
FREE-
DOM 
AND 
DEMOCRACY 
IN 
VIETNAM 
SEC. 501. ANNUAL REPORT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 months after the 
date of the enactment of this Act and every 12 months 
thereafter, the Secretary of State shall submit to the Con-
gress a report on the following: 
(1)(A) The determination and certification of 
the President that the requirements of subpara-
graphs (A) through (E) of section 101(a)(2) have 
been met, if applicable. 
(B) The determination of the President under 
section 101(b)(1), if applicable. 
(2) Efforts by the United States Government to 
secure transmission sites for Radio Free Asia in 
countries in close geographical proximity to Vietnam 
in accordance with section 301(a). 
(3) Efforts to ensure that programs with Viet-
nam promote the policy set forth in section 302 and 
with section 105 of the Human Rights, Refugee, and 
Other Foreign Policy Provisions Act of 1996 regard-
ing participation in programs of educational and cul-
tural exchange. 
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(4) Steps taken to carry out the policy under 
section 401(a). 
(5) Lists of persons believed to be imprisoned, 
detained, or placed under house arrest, tortured, or 
otherwise persecuted by the Government of Vietnam 
due to their pursuit of internationally recognized 
human rights. In compiling such lists, the Secretary 
shall exercise appropriate discretion, including con-
cerns regarding the safety and security of, and ben-
efit to, the persons who may be included on the lists 
and their families. In addition, the Secretary shall 
include a list of such persons and their families who 
may qualify for protections under United States ref-
ugee programs. 
(6) A description of the development of the rule 
of law in Vietnam, including, but not limited to— 
(A) progress toward the development of in-
stitutions of democratic governance; 
(B) processes by which statutes, regula-
tions, rules, and other legal acts of the Govern-
ment of Vietnam are developed and become 
binding within Vietnam; 
(C) the extent to which statutes, regula-
tions, rules, administrative and judicial deci-
sions, and other legal acts of the Government of 
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Vietnam are published and are made accessible 
to the public; 
(D) the extent to which administrative and 
judicial decisions are supported by statements 
of reasons that are based upon written statutes, 
regulations, rules, and other legal acts of the 
Government of Vietnam; 
(E) the extent to which individuals are 
treated equally under the laws of Vietnam with-
out regard to citizenship, race, religion, political 
opinion, or current or former associations; 
(F) the extent to which administrative and 
judicial decisions are independent of political 
pressure or governmental interference and are 
reviewed by entities of appellate jurisdiction; 
and 
(G) the extent to which laws in Vietnam 
are written and administered in ways that are 
consistent with international human rights 
standards, including the requirements of the 
International Covenant on Civil and Political 
Rights. 
(b) CONTACTS WITH OTHER ORGANIZATIONS.—In 
preparing the report under subsection (a), the Secretary 
shall, as appropriate, seek out and maintain contacts with 
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nongovernmental organizations and human rights advo-
cates (including Vietnamese-Americans and human rights 
advocates in Vietnam), including receiving reports and up-
dates from such organizations and evaluating such re-
ports. The Secretary shall also seek to consult with the 
United States Commission on International Religious 
Freedom for appropriate sections of the report. 
Passed the House of Representatives September 18, 
2007. 
Attest: 
LORRAINE C. MILLER, 
Clerk. 
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