•HRES 1572 IH 
problem, and members of the police sometimes acted with 
impunity.’’; 
Whereas according to the United States Department of State 
2009 Country Report on Human Rights Practices, in Au-
gust 2009, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung ‘‘issued a 
decree that offers compensation, housing, and job train-
ing for individuals displaced by development projects. 
Nevertheless, there were widespread reports of official 
corruption and a general lack of transparency in the gov-
ernment’s process of confiscating land and moving citi-
zens to make way for infrastructure projects.’’; and 
Whereas according to the Human Rights Watch 2010 Annual 
Report, the Government of Vietnam ‘‘tightened its con-
trols on internet use, blogging, and independent research, 
and banned dissemination and publication of content crit-
ical of the government. Religious freedom continued to 
deteriorate, with the government targeting religious lead-
ers—and their followers—who advocated for civil rights, 
religious freedom, and equitable resolution of land dis-
putes’’: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That— 
(1) the House of Representatives— 
(A) condemns and deplores the violence, 
threats, fines, and harassment faced by the vil-
lagers of Con Dau, Da Nang, for seeking to 
protect their land, the historic cemetery, and 
other parish properties, and to receive an equi-
table resolution of their property dispute; 
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
20:56 Jul 30, 2010
Jkt 089200
PO 00000
Frm 00007
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\HR1572.IH
HR1572
emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with BILLS
•HRES 1572 IH 
(B) condemns and deplores the arrests of 
parishioners and calls for the immediate and 
unconditional release of Nguyen Huu Liem, 
Phan Thi Nhan, Nguyen Thi The, Doan Cang, 
Le Thanh Lam, Tran Thanh Viet, Nguyen Thi 
Lieu, and Nguyen Huu Minh; 
(C) strongly urges the Government of Viet-
nam to hold accountable police and security 
agents who reportedly beat and mistreated Con 
Dau residents at the funeral procession and 
later while the residents were in detention, in-
cluding a public investigation of those whose ac-
tions led to the death of Nguyen Nam; and 
(D) strongly urges the Government of 
Vietnam to consider the implications of its ac-
tions in Con Dau, as well as of other serious 
human rights violations, issues of police impu-
nity, and corruption for the broader relation-
ship between the United States and Vietnam; 
and 
(2) it is the sense of the House of Representa-
tives that— 
(A) the President should call on the United 
Nations Human Rights Council to appoint a 
Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Viet-
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
20:56 Jul 30, 2010
Jkt 089200
PO 00000
Frm 00008
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\HR1572.IH
HR1572
emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with BILLS
•HRES 1572 IH 
nam to investigate ongoing and serious human 
rights violations in that country, including those 
violations targeting the villagers of Con Dau; 
(B) the Secretary of State should call on 
the Government of Vietnam to uphold commit-
ments made during the United Nations Periodic 
Review of May 2009 to engage with various 
United Nations special procedures, including in-
viting the United Nations Special Rapporteur 
on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or De-
grading Treatment or Punishment and the 
United Nations Special Rapporteur on Reli-
gious Freedom or Belief to inquire, investigate, 
and report on the situation throughout Vietnam 
and specifically in Con Dau, including the dis-
crimination, police impunity, mistreatment in 
detention, desecration of religious and historical 
properties, and the beating death of Nguyen 
Nam; 
(C) the United States Embassy in Vietnam 
should visit those detained, including, Nguyen 
Huu Liem, Phan Thi Nhan, Nguyen Thi The, 
Doan Cang, Le Thanh Lam, Tran Thanh Viet, 
Nguyen Thi Lieu, and Nguyen Huu Minh, as 
well as the family of Nguyen Nam, and other 
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
20:56 Jul 30, 2010
Jkt 089200
PO 00000
Frm 00009
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\HR1572.IH
HR1572
emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with BILLS
•HRES 1572 IH 
parishioners, and report its findings to Con-
gress; 
(D) the United States Embassy should 
continue to raise with the Government of Viet-
nam the issues faced by the village of Con Dau 
including police impunity, beatings, fines, and 
the deaths of individuals engaged in a peaceful 
religious ceremony; 
(E) the United States Department of State 
should examine instances of property disputes 
in Vietnam which involve religious communities, 
including the case of Con Dau, report its find-
ings to Congress, and continue to raise disputed 
religious properties at United States-Vietnam 
meetings and forums, including the bilateral 
United States-Vietnam human rights dialogue; 
and 
(F) the United States Commission on 
International Religious Freedom should visit 
the Con Dau parishioners and report to Con-
gress on the violence and harassment faced by 
the Catholic villagers. 
Æ 
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
20:56 Jul 30, 2010
Jkt 089200
PO 00000
Frm 00010
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6301
E:\BILLS\HR1572.IH
HR1572
emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with BILLS