IA
103D CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. J. RES. 295
Expressing the sense of the Congress that the United States should not
establish diplomatic relations with the Government of the Socialist
Republic of Vietnam until that government abides by internationally
accepted standards of religious liberty.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
NOVEMBER 18, 1993
Mr. GILMAN (for himself, Mr. ROHRABACHER, Mr. ROTH, Mr. PORTER, Mr.
FALEOMAVAEGA, and Mr. LANTOS) introduced the following joint resolu-
tion; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
JOINT RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of the Congress that the United States
should not establish diplomatic relations with the Govern-
ment of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam until that
government abides by internationally accepted standards
of religious liberty.
Whereas approximately 85 percent of the population of Viet-
nam belongs to the Buddhist faith;
Whereas at least 131 prominent leaders from the Buddhist,
Catholic, and Protestant faiths are in prison or under
house arrest for expressing their beliefs; and members of
•HJ 295 IH
other faiths, such as Cao Dai and Hoa Hao, have also
suffered persecution;
Whereas more than 500 Buddhists have been arrested pro-
testing religious intolerance and government interference
in religious affairs during the current crackdown in Hue
and Baria (Vung Tau);
Whereas at least 5 Buddhist have self-immolated themselves
since May 1993 to protest the repressive policies of the
communist regime;
Whereas the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam was estab-
lished in 1964 by leaders of the various sects and tradi-
tions of Buddhism in South Vietnam, in order to con-
tinue and strengthen Buddhism’s 2,000 year tradition in
the country;
Whereas the Unified Buddhist Church was recognized
throughout the world during the Vietnam conflict for its
integrity and its commitment to peace and human rights;
Whereas the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam’s most
prominent monk abroad, Thich Nhat Hanh, was nomi-
nated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967 by the Reverend
Martin Luther King, Jr.; and 2 other Unified Buddhist
Church monks, Thich Huyan Quang and Thich Quang
Do, were also nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in
1967 while they were in prison;
Whereas in November 1981, the Government of the Socialist
Republic of Vietnam sponsored the creation of the Viet-
nam Buddhist Church, which declared in its founding
charter that it was the only legitimate representative of
Vietnamese Buddhism within the country and abroad;
Whereas the 2 most prominent leaders of the Unified Bud-
dhist Church of Vietnam, Executive Director Thich
•HJ 295 IH
Huyan Quang and Secretary General Thich Quang Do,
were arrested in February 1982 for protesting the forced
incorporation of their church into the state’s Vietnam
Buddhist Church and have remained under house arrest
in subsequent years;
Whereas since April 1992, Venerable Thich Huyan Quang
has made several statements publicly challenging the gov-
ernment’s repression of Buddhists and asserting the right
of the United Buddhist Church to exist and function
independently of the government;
Whereas on August 3, 1993, the Government of the Socialist
Republic of Vietnam responded with an order of its Reli-
gious Affairs Commission, ordering Venable Quang to
stop all protests and stating that his attempts to revive
the Unified Buddhist Church were illegal;
Whereas several other monks were arrested in Vietnam dur-
ing 1993 for supporting Venable Quang’s demands, in-
cluding Venerable Thich Hai Tang, Venerable Thich Tri
Tuu, Venerable Thich Hai Thinh, and Venerable Thich
Hanh Duc;
Whereas 18 Catholic clergy and religious workers remain im-
prisoned or under house arrest solely for activities con-
nected with their religious duties (such as translating and
distributing spiritual literature from abroad, writing arti-
cles expressing their religious beliefs, and organizing
adult religious education classes and other social pro-
grams);
Whereas Vietnamese authorities continue to restrict Catholic
clergy (for example, by arbitrarily preventing the ordina-
tion of more than 20 seminarians on ideological grounds
in June 1992, by refusing to allow Ho Chi Minh City
•HJ 295 IH
Archbishop Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan permis-
sion to return to Vietnam following a visit to the Vatican
in 1991, and by refusing to permit clergy who were
named to head dioceses by the Vatican to assume their
posts);
Whereas Vietnamese authorities continue to persecute and
harass Evangelical Protestants who worship in homes to
avoid government oversight (for example by currently
punishing as many as 35 church leaders with imprison-
ment, house arrest, or other restrictions, by closing house
churches, and by particularly targeting those thought to
have ties with or to receive funding from United States
churches);
Whereas decree 69 of the Government of the Socialist Repub-
lic of Vietnam, adopted in 1991, strictly controls all reli-
gious activity, including worshiping, teaching, training
and appointing clergy, publishing, preaching, and evan-
gelizing;
Whereas decree 69 further allows the government to punish
any religious activity construed as a threat to the regime;
Whereas the practice of one’s religion and the adherence to
a religious organization are fundamental rights that must
be respected in all societies; and
Whereas it is a violation of these rights for a government to
impose its own-established church on all followers of a
particular region: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives
of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
That it is the sense of the Congress that the United States
•HJ 295 IH
should not establish diplomatic relations with the Govern-
ment of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam until—
(1) the demands of Venerable Thich Huyan
Quang for the right of the Unified Buddhist Church
to exist and function in Vietnam are fully met;
(2) Venerable Quang and all other monks, as
well as clergy of other religions, who have been de-
tained for the nonviolent expression of dissent are
released;
(3) the Government of the Socialist Republic of
Vietnam abides by internationally accepted stand-
ards of religious liberty as outlined in the United
Nations Declaration on the Elimination of All
Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based
on Religion or Belief, including freedom of con-
science and belief and the freedom to worship, to
teach religion, to train and appoint clergy, to publish
and express religious views, and to meet with coreli-
gionists abroad; and
(4) other major issues of concern in United
States bilateral relations with the Government of
the Socialist Republic of Vietnam have been fully
resolved.
Æ