I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4223 
To establish the Congressional-Executive Commission on the Socialist 
Republic of Vietnam. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 15, 2007 
Mr. FORTENBERRY (for himself, Mr. TOWNS, Mr. SMITH of New Jersey, Mr. 
ADERHOLT, Mr. FRANKS of Arizona, and Mr. MCCOTTER) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, 
and in addition to the Committee on Rules, for a period to be subse-
quently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To establish the Congressional-Executive Commission on the 
Socialist Republic of Vietnam. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) The United States and the Socialist Repub-
lic of Vietnam share a sensitive history and relation-
ship that has evolved significantly since the 1990s. 
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(2) The total trade volume between the United 
States and Vietnam neared $10 billion in 2006, and 
the United States is currently Vietnam’s largest ex-
port market. United States exports to Vietnam have 
risen by over 500 percent from $172 million in 1994 
to $988 million in 2006. 
(3) United States foreign assistance to Vietnam 
has increased from $1 million in 1991 to over $75 
million in fiscal year 2006. 
(4) Pursuant to Vietnamese Prime Minister 
Phan Van Khai’s visit to the United States in June 
2005, the United States and Vietnam signed an 
agreement to implement a bilateral International 
Military Education Training (IMET) program. 
(5) On December 20, 2006, President George 
W. Bush signed into law H.R. 6111 (Public Law 
109–432), extending nondiscriminatory treatment 
(normal trade relations treatment) to the products 
of Vietnam. 
(6) In January 2007, Vietnam joined the World 
Trade Organization and committed to abide by 
international trade rules. 
(7) In April 2007, the United States modified 
the International Traffic in Arms Regulations to 
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allow the issuance of licenses for trade in certain 
non-lethal defense items and services with Vietnam. 
(8) During the visit of Vietnamese President 
Nguyen Minh Triet to Washington, DC, in June 
2007, which marked the first visit by a Vietnamese 
head of state to the United States since the end of 
the Vietnam conflict, the United States and Vietnam 
signed a trade and investment framework agreement 
on June 22, 2007. 
(9) The people of the United States and the 
people of Vietnam share the desire to foster hope, 
healing, and mutual prosperity for both countries. 
(10) Since the enactment of Public Law 109– 
432, extending normal trade relations treatment to 
the products of Vietnam, several concerns have 
drawn the attention of the United States human 
rights community and the United States Congress, 
prompting renewed focus on human rights issues in 
Vietnam which figured prominently in the congres-
sional debate regarding the extension of such normal 
trade relations treatment. Such concerns include 
concerns about the arrests of political prisoners and 
prisoners of conscience, including Father Nguyen 
Van Ly, Nguyen Van Dai, and Le Thi Cong Nhan. 
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(11) The potential benefits from enhanced bilat-
eral trade should not supplant legitimate matters of 
principle involving human rights, the rule of law, 
and religious freedom. 
(12) Vietnamese-Americans throughout the 
United States continue to emphasize the importance 
of addressing human rights, the rule of law, and re-
ligious freedom in the United States–Vietnam bilat-
eral relationship. 
(13) While the Government of Vietnam has 
made significant efforts over the past decade to ad-
dress the concerns of the United States Government 
regarding United States POW/MIA cases, 2,000 
United States service personnel remain unaccounted 
for in Indochina. 
(14) The Government of Vietnam has made ef-
forts to improve human rights and religious free-
doms, including efforts to conclude a bilateral agree-
ment with the United States under which the Gov-
ernment of Vietnam agreed to take steps to improve 
religious freedom, grant amnesties to prisoners of 
conscience, establish a new Ordinance on Religion 
and issue instructions to prohibit forced renunciation 
of faith, ease restrictions on the training of clergy, 
support fact-finding visits to Vietnam by United 
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States officials and Office of the United Nations 
High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) per-
sonnel, improve worker rights, and make progress 
toward eliminating human trafficking. 
(15) While the Department of State rescinded 
the Country of Particular Concern designation ap-
plied to Vietnam, human rights concerns remain. 
(16) While progress on the human rights situa-
tion in Vietnam’s Central Highlands has been re-
ported, it remains unclear to what extent such 
progress has been made. Also, concerns remain re-
garding the human rights situation prevailing in 
Vietnam’s Northwest Highlands. 
(17) Adequate and fair compensation for land 
seizures, including such seizures affecting ethnic mi-
norities in Vietnam’s Central and Northwest High-
lands remain a concern. While Vietnam has no sys-
tem of private property rights, land use rights can 
be purchased but are subject to reclaim at any time 
by the government. 
(18) A specific mechanism to address Vietnam’s 
progress on human rights, the rule of law, and reli-
gious freedom issues in an in-depth manner, focus-
ing on vulnerabilities and areas of particular concern 
identified by the most recent annual Department of 
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State’s Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 
for Vietnam, the Trafficking in Persons Report, and 
the annual report of the United States Commission 
on International Religious Freedom, including 
progress in Vietnam’s Central and Northwest High-
lands, would serve as a valuable resource to com-
plement existing United States Government efforts 
to address these issues and inform future efforts, re-
inforcing and strengthening the outcome of these ef-
forts. 
SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF CONGRESSIONAL-EXECUTIVE 
COMMISSION ON THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC 
OF VIETNAM. 
There is established a Congressional-Executive Com-
mission on the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (in this Act 
referred to as the ‘‘Commission’’). 
SEC. 3. FUNCTIONS OF THE COMMISSION. 
(a) 
MONITORING
COMPLIANCE
WITH
HUMAN 
RIGHTS.—The Commission shall monitor the acts of the 
Socialist Republic of Vietnam, with particular emphasis 
on the Montagnard peoples and the Central and North-
west Highlands, which reflect compliance with or violation 
of human rights, in particular, those contained in the 
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and 
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