IV 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. CON. RES. 320 
Calling on the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to imme-
diately and unconditionally release Dr. Pham Hong Son and other polit-
ical prisoners and prisoners of conscience, and other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 16, 2005 
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey (for himself, Mr. WOLF, and Mr. ROYCE) submitted 
the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
on International Relations 
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 
Calling on the Government of the Socialist Republic of Viet-
nam to immediately and unconditionally release Dr. 
Pham Hong Son and other political prisoners and pris-
oners of conscience, and other purposes. 
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; 
Whereas Dr. Pham 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’’;
•HCON 320 IH 
Whereas in none of his activities did Dr. Pham advocate vio-
lence in his opposition to the Vietnamese Government or 
its policies; 
Whereas Dr. Pham has been arrested for the peaceful exer-
cise of his fundamental rights to freedom of expression 
and association in violation of Article 69 of the Viet-
namese Constitution which states: ‘‘The citizen shall 
enjoy freedom of opinion and speech, freedom of the 
press, the right to be informed and the right to assemble, 
form associations and hold demonstrations in accordance 
with the provisions of the law’’; 
Whereas Dr. Pham has been arrested, tried, convicted, and 
imprisoned 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. Pham 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. Pham 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; 
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;
•HCON 320 IH 
Whereas Dr. Pham’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. Pham’s sentence, it reduced the sentence of impris-
onment from 13 to five years and increased the sentence 
of house arrest from three to six years; 
Whereas Dr. Pham remains imprisoned in harsh conditions, 
including 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 Khac Toan, 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, Nguyen Van Si, Tran Van 
Thien, and Thich Thien Tam; 
Whereas Dr. Pham and other political prisoners and pris-
oners of conscience have been deprived of their basic
•HCON 320 IH 
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; 
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
•HCON 320 IH 
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-
ciation, and the lack of due process afforded to 
individuals in Vietnam;
•HCON 320 IH 
(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, including the impact on 
trade relations; 
(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; 
(C) make clear to the Government of Viet-
nam that it must adhere to the rule of law and