109TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. CON. RES. 320
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Whereas in March 2002, Dr. Pham Hong Son was arrested 
after he had translated an article entitled ‘‘What is De-
mocracy?’’ from the Web site of the United States Em-
bassy in Vietnam and sent it to both friends and senior 
party officials;
•HCON 320 EH 
Whereas Dr. Son has written and published on the Internet 
articles entitled ‘‘The Promotion of Democracy: A Key 
Focus in a New World Order’’, ‘‘Sovereignty and Human 
Rights: The Search for Reconciliation’’, and ‘‘Hopeful 
Signs for Democracy in Viet Nam’’; 
Whereas in none of his activities did Dr. Son advocate vio-
lence in his opposition to the Vietnamese Government or 
its policies; 
Whereas Dr. Son has been arrested for the peaceful exercise 
of his fundamental rights to freedom of expression and 
association in violation of Article 69 of the Vietnamese 
Constitution which states: ‘‘The citizen shall enjoy free-
dom of opinion and speech, freedom of the press, the 
right to be informed and the right to assemble, form as-
sociations and hold demonstrations in accordance with 
the provisions of the law’’; 
Whereas Dr. Son has been arrested, tried, convicted, and im-
prisoned in contravention of the rights enshrined in the 
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights 
(ICCPR) to which Vietnam is a state party, specifically 
Article 19 (freedom of expression) and Article 22 (free-
dom of association); 
Whereas Dr. Son did not have a trial that would be consid-
ered fair and that met even the most basic standards of 
internationally accepted justice, in contravention of Arti-
cle 14 (right to a fair trial) of the ICCPR; 
Whereas Dr. Son was sentenced in June 2003, after a half-
day closed trial in Hanoi, to 13 years of imprisonment 
and three years of house arrest on spurious espionage 
charges;
•HCON 320 EH 
Whereas such spurious charges are routinely used to suppress 
peaceful democracy activists, as in the notorious cases of 
Father Thadeus Nguyen Van Ly, his two nephews and 
niece, and in the cases of Pham Que Duong, Tran Khue, 
and Tran Dung Tien; 
Whereas Dr. Son’s appeal was held on August 26, 2003, in 
a closed trial before Vietnam’s Supreme Court, from 
which international observers and Western journalists 
were barred, although diplomats from more than eight 
countries gathered outside the courthouse during the trial 
to register their concern; 
Whereas, although the Vietnamese Supreme Court upheld 
Dr. Son’s sentence, it reduced the sentence of imprison-
ment from 13 to five years; 
Whereas Dr. Son remains imprisoned in harsh conditions, in-
cluding imprisonment for more than a year in solitary 
confinement, which have endangered his health; 
Whereas Vietnam has imprisoned, detained, placed under 
house arrest, or otherwise restricted numerous other 
peaceful democratic and religious activists for reasons re-
lated to their political or religious views, such as Do Van 
My, Mai Thi Dung, Nguyen Thanh Phong, Nguyen Thi 
Ha, Nguyen Van Dien, Nguyen Vu Binh, Phan Van Ban, 
To Van Manh, Vo Van Buu, Vo Van Thanh Liem (Nam 
Liem), Bui Thien Hue, Nguyen Lap Ma, Nguyen Nhat 
Thong, Nguyen Van Ly, Phan Van Loi, Thich Dong Tho, 
Thich Huyen Quang, Thich Nguyen Ly, Thich Nguyen 
Vuong, Thich Phuoc An, Thich Quang Do, Thich Tam 
Lien, Thich Thai Hoa, Thich Thanh Huyen, Thich Tien 
Hanh, Thich Tue Sy, Thich Vien Dinh, Ngo Van Ninh, 
Le Van Chuong, Le Van Tinh, Phuong Van Kiem,
•HCON 320 EH 
Nguyen Van Si, Tran Van Thien, Thich Thien Tam, 
Hoang Chinh Minh, and Do Nam Hai (Phuong Nam); 
Whereas Dr. Son and other political prisoners and prisoners 
of conscience have been deprived of their basic human 
rights by being denied their ability to exercise freedom of 
opinion and expression; 
Whereas the arbitrary imprisonment and the violation of the 
human rights of citizens of Vietnam are sources of con-
tinuing, grave concern to Congress; 
Whereas Vietnam continues to restrict access to Western dip-
lomats, journalists, and humanitarian organizations to 
the Central Highlands and the Northwest Highlands, 
where there are credible reports that ethnic minorities 
suffer serious violations of their human and civil rights, 
including property rights, and ongoing restrictions on re-
ligious activities, including forced conversions; 
Whereas there are continuing and well-founded concerns 
about forcibly repatriated Montagnard refugees, access to 
whom is restricted; 
Whereas on December 1, 2005, the European Parliament 
adopted a resolution calling on the Vietnamese authori-
ties, among other measures, to undertake political and in-
stitutional reforms leading to democracy and the rule of 
law, starting by allowing a multi-party system and guar-
anteeing the right of all currents of opinion to express 
their views; 
Whereas the resolution further calls on Vietnamese authori-
ties to end all forms of repression against members of the 
Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam and officially recog-
nize its existence and that of other non-recognized 
Churches in the country;
•HCON 320 EH 
Whereas the resolution further calls on Vietnamese authori-
ties to release all Vietnamese political prisoners and pris-
oners of conscience detained for having legitimately and 
peacefully exercised their rights to freedom of opinion, 
expression, the press, and religion; 
Whereas the resolution further calls on Vietnamese authori-
ties to guarantee full enjoyment of the fundamental 
rights enshrined in the Vietnamese Constitution and the 
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, in 
particular by allowing the creation of a genuinely free 
press; and 
Whereas the resolution further calls on Vietnamese authori-
ties to ensure the safe repatriation, under the Cambodia-
Vietnam-UNHCR Agreement, of the Montagnards who 
fled Vietnam, and allow proper monitoring of the situa-
tion of the returnees by the UNHCR and international 
nongovernmental organizations: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
concurring), That—
(1) Congress—
(A) condemns and deplores the arbitrary 
detention of Dr. Pham Hong Son by the Gov-
ernment of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam 
and calls for his immediate and unconditional 
release, and for the immediate and uncondi-
tional release of all other political prisoners; 
(B) condemns and deplores the violations 
of freedom of speech, religion, movement, asso-
•HCON 320 EH 
ciation, and the lack of due process afforded to 
individuals in Vietnam; 
(C) strongly urges the Government of Viet-
nam to consider the implications of its actions 
for the broader relationship between the United 
States and Vietnam; 
(D) urges the Government of Vietnam to 
allow unfettered access to the Central High-
lands and to the Northwest Highlands by for-
eign diplomats, the international press, and 
nongovernmental organizations; and 
(E) applauds the European Parliament for 
its resolution of December 1, 2005, regarding 
human rights in Vietnam, and urges the Gov-
ernment of Vietnam to comply with the terms 
of the resolution; and 
(2) it is the sense of Congress that the United 
States should—
(A) make the immediate release of Dr. 
Pham Hong Son a top concern; 
(B) continue to urge the Government of 
Vietnam to comply with internationally recog-
nized standards for basic freedoms and human 
rights;
•HCON 320 EH 
(C) make clear to the Government of Viet-
nam that it must adhere to the rule of law and 
respect the freedom of the press in order to 
broaden its relations with the United States; 
(D) make clear to the Government of Viet-
nam that the detention of Dr. Son and other 
persons and the infliction of human rights vio-
lations on these individuals are not in the inter-
est of Vietnam because they create obstacles to 
improved bilateral relations and cooperation 
with the United States; and 
(E) reiterate the deep concern of the 
United States regarding the continued impris-
onment of Dr. Son and other persons whose 
human rights are being violated and discuss the 
legal status and immediate humanitarian needs 
of such individuals with the Government of 
Vietnam.
Passed the House of Representatives April 6, 2006. 
Attest:
Clerk.
109TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. CON. RES. 320
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 
Calling on the Government of the Socialist Republic 
of Vietnam to immediately and unconditionally 
release Dr. Pham Hong Son and other political 
prisoners and prisoners of conscience, and other 
purposes.