PARIS, 9 May 2008 (IBIB) - Leaders of Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV) in the United States, Canada, Europe and Australia have appealed to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to call for the release of UBCV Supreme Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang and his Deputy Thich Quang Do on the occasion of the UN Day of the Vesak, celebrated in Hanoi from 13-17 May 2008. “We are deeply concerned that Vietnam is exploiting UN Vesak Day for political ends. Faced with growing criticism of its abuses of religious freedom, notably the recommendation, on 2nd May 2008 by the US Commission on International Commission on Religious Freedom to re-designate Vietnam as a “Country of Particular Concern” for egregious violations of religious freedom, the Vietnamese leadership is using the Vesak to enhance its international image, to legitimize State-controlled Buddhism and suppress the traditional UBCV. If they succeed, it would be a tragedy, not only for Buddhists, but for all the people of Vietnam. By eradicating the UBCV, they would stifle an essential voice of civil society, one that is bravely articulating the hopes of millions of Vietnamese for peaceful development, freedom and human rights”. International personalities call on Hanoi to cease religious repression and release Thich Huyen Quang, Thich Quang Do on UN Day of the Vesak in Hanoi PARIS, 9 May 2008 (VIETNAM COMMITTEE) - Forty-nine prominent international personalities including a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, religious leaders from different faiths, Members of the European Parliament, the US Congress, Senators and MPs from Italy, France and the UK launched a joint appeal to the Vietnamese leadership on the occasion of the United Nations Day of the Vesak (Birth, Enlightenment and Passing away of the Buddha) in Hanoi (13-17 May) to cease repression against the banned Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV) and immediately release its Supreme Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang and his Deputy Thich Quang Do. In a letter to Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and other state leaders, the signatories expressed concern at the stark contrast between the grandiose celebration of Buddhism's most sacred festival and the renewed intensity of State repression against Buddhists in Vietnam. "We are deeply disturbed by recent reports of grave repression against Buddhism, the very faith you claim to celebrate", they wrote, noting that "in the run-up to the Vesak, Police have seized UBCV pagodas to use for State-sponsored events, evicted and harassed UBCV monks, nuns and lay-followers in Lam Dong, Hue, Quang Tri…". Only the State-sponsored Buddhist Sangha would be hosting the ceremonies, whilst UBCV leaders "are prisoners in their own pagodas". They called on Vietnam to release Supreme Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang, 88, and the UBCV's second-ranking dignitary Thich Quang Do, 80, who have both spent over 26 years in detention; to re-establish the legitimate status of the banned UBCV; and to cease all repression against the UBCV. Signatories include Irish Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mairead Corrigan-Maguire, US Congressman Frank Wolf, Roman Catholic Bishop Vaclav Maly of Prague, Rabbi Shmuel Herzfeld, prominent MEPs Graham Watson, Marco Pannella, Edward McMillan-Scott, Italian Senate Vice-President Emma Bonino, USCIRF Commissioner Nina Shea, Lord Avebury and Lord Alton of the UK House of Lords . Human Rights Watch called on the Vietnamese government to release people imprisoned for peaceful religious or political activities and end restrictions on independent religious organizations who choose not to affiliate with the officially authorized religious organizations under the control of the government. “Independent religious groups should be allowed to freely organize and manage themselves, conduct religious activities, and even engage in peaceful public protests,” said Pearson. “Vietnam’s respect for human rights and religious freedom has sharply deteriorated since the US removed it from its blacklist of religious freedom violators and Vietnam’s subsequent acceptance into the World Trade Organization.” For more of Human Rights Watch’s work on Vietnam, please visit: http://hrw.org/doc/?t=asia&c=vietnam   more »

UPDATE: The Assembly Appropriations Committee chair Mark Leno has placed AB2064 into Suspension. All are encouraged to ask him to release the bill back to the floor of the Assembly. I am writing in strong support of AB 2064, which would require the State Board of Education to adopt textbooks and instructional materials to include instruction on the Vietnam War. Specifically to include the "Secret War" in Laos, the role of Southeast Asians in that war, and the refugee/immigrant/new American experience as a result of the war. The adoption of Assembly Bill 1076 on February 22, 2005, on this topic excluded the provision in the present AB 2064 for refugee/new American experiences about the Vietnam War. AB2064 also provides curriculum inclusion specifically directed to the next cycle of the History-Social Science Framework which begins in January, 2009. The Timeline of Curriculum Framework and Evaluation Criteria Committee Application and scheduled Focus Groups to advise the CFECC for the mandated State Board of Education provision of thirty months’ notice to publishers for evaluation criteria is imminent for the next submission cycle. Focus groups to solicit public input on the framework update in AB2064 are scheduled for May and June 2008 Applications for the Curriculum Commission to draft the framework between February and June 2009 are due on September 3, 2008. Therefore the opportunity for Southeast Asian citizens and their organizations to influence the framework in the expanded definition of the subject of the Vietnam War and immigrant/new American experience is extremely short. In your discussion on May 7, please include provision for inclusion of participants in the Vietnam War who immigrated because of the war and are now citizens of California and the United States not limited to the ‘Secret War’ in Laos and those who provided intelligence to the U.S. military during the unspecified period of the ‘Vietnam War.’ This should include participants in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) and the Government of the Republic of Vietnam (GRVN) which was allied with the United States, persons rescued from the April, 1975, invasion of South Vietnam including Operation Babylift, medical personnel, and civilians associated with missionary and charitable organizations. Further, include persons who escaped the imprisonment, property confiscation, and discrimination of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam as “Boat People” refugees and Orderly Departure assisted by the United Nations between 1975 and 1990, those who immigrated through the Amerasian Homecoming Act of 1988, and those who immigrated through the Humanitarian Operation (H.O.) program of prisoners of the Socialist government of Vietnam and their families beginning in 1992 and renewed by the U.S. Congress as recently as 2007 All of these are conditions and experiences of present citizens and residents of California. If they are included in Focus Groups and encouraged to apply for the CFCC through organizations such as the Amerasian Fellowship Association, ARVN veterans societies, geographical community associations, religious organizations that are outlawed and adherents persecuted in Vietnam such as the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV) and Catholic parish and Protestant organizations, Overseas Women Associations, ethnic media, medical, and professional organizations, Immigrant Resettlement and Cultural Centers, Southeast Asian student and youth groups seeking memoir such as the Digital Clubhouse at History San Jose by the Assembly Appropriations Committee in your action on AB2064, the spirit as well as the letter of the AB2064 will be upheld. Thank you for your attention to this vital inclusion in the History and Social Science Framework Update for the 2009 – 2011 cycle. Sincerely, Jean Libby, editor VietAm Review http://vietamreview.blogharbor.com   more »

U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedoms includes Vietnam among 11 worst nations The 1998 International Religious Freedom Act requires the United States to identify "countries whose governments have engaged in or tolerated systematic and egregious violations of the universal right to freedom of religion or belief." The act created the federal panel that annually surveys world religious freedom and gives recommendations to the president, secretary of state and Congress. The law allows policy responses to listed countries, such as sanctions. The commission said it is troubled the State Department has not made any designations or redesignations since 2006, even though it issued a report on religious freedom in September. "While IRFA does not set a specific deadline for the CPC [countries of particular concern] designations, the fact that those designations are based on that review indicates that they should be made in a timely way thereafter," the committee said in a report. The group said the inaction "may send the unfortunate signal that the U.S. government is not sufficiently committed to the IRFA process, including by seeking improvements from the most severe religious freedom violators." Myanmar, China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Uzbekistan are on the latest State Department list, prepared in November 2006. The panel recommends adding Vietnam, which had been removed from the last listing, as well as Pakistan and Turkmenistan. The commission made these observations. · Myanmar: "Directed increasing repression at ethnic and religious minorities, democracy activists, and international humanitarian agencies over the past year." The crackdown on September demonstrations by Buddhist monks was cited. · China: "Severe crackdowns targeting Tibetan Buddhists, Uighur Muslims, 'underground' Roman Catholics, 'house church' Protestants, and various spiritual movements such as Falun Gong continue unabated." · Sudan: Pursued "coercive policies of Arabization and Islamization resulting in genocide" in the Darfur region and imposed severe restrictions on religious freedom and other human rights. Christians and followers of local religions have been victimized in a decades-long North-South war. · Iran: Baha'is, Sufi Muslims and evangelical Christians "face relentless arrests, imprisonment, and harassment." Fears among Iran's Jews have grown due to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's repeated denials of the Holocaust and other anti-Semitic statements. · Eritrea: There have been "arbitrary arrests and detention without charge of members of unregistered religious groups, and the torture or other ill-treatment of hundreds of persons on account of their religion, sometimes resulting in death." · North Korea: No "protections for universal human rights, including religious freedom," and religion is perceived as a security threat. · Saudi Arabia: "Serious violations of freedom of religion ... by banning all forms of public religious expression other than that of the government's own interpretation of one school of Sunni Islam and by interfering with private religious practice. " · Uzbekistan: Muslims arrested, groups repressed, mosques closed, targeting groups "that do not conform to government-prescribed practices or that it alleges to be associated with extremist political programs." · Vietnam: "Severe religious freedom restrictions targeting some ethnic minority Protestants and Buddhists, Vietnamese Mennonites, Hoa Hao Buddhists, and monks and nuns associated with the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam." · Pakistan: Sectarian and religiously motivated violence continues, particularly against Shiite Muslims, Ahmadis, Christians and Hindus. The government's response remains "inadequate." · Turkmenistan: "Significant religious freedom problems and official harassment of religious adherents persist." Registered and unregistered religious groups harassed.   more »

Human rights activists arrested in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City during Olympic torch relay   more »

News Brief #1 Saigon on the Eve of the Olympic Torch Relay On April 28, 2008, amidst preparations for the highly anticipated arrival of the 2008 Olympic Torch Relay through the streets of Saigon, Vietnamese citizens have become increasing aware of the heighten sense of unease among the city’s public security officials. Around 9pm, security police swamped the historic Saigon Norte Dame Basilica, the downtown Opera House, and the Bach Dang station in anticipation of large scale protests. When they realized they had been mistaken, security police encircled the Saigon Opera House and the Chinese Consulate. Currently there is a large police presence at each location numbering in the thousands. Cars passing by are being inspected. Police have also cordoned off the major boulevards of Nguyen Thi Minh Khai, Pham Ngoc Thach, Tran Hung Dao and Le Loi. Students and youth in Saigon continue to form small groups to follow the deployment of security officials and look for the best locations to gather without prior coordination. Perhaps this is what has worried security officials. They have tried to detain or isolate those believed to be youth leaders. In the last 24 hours, blogger Dong A, college student Le Ngoc Ho Diep, college student Hoang Duc Tuong, among others, have been detained at their local police station. Police have also prevented democracy activists from across the country from gathering in to Saigon to protest China including writer Nguyen Xuan Nghia and Pham Thi Thanh Nghien in Hai Phong; Nguyen Phuong Anh, Lu Thi Thu Duyen in Hanoi; Trinh Thi Phuong Thuy, wife of imprisoned democracy activist Nguyen Phong, in Hue; and engineer Do Nam Hai in Saigon. The unease of Vietnamese security officials and discontent among the populace led Beijing to make a concession in the last 24 hours. Olympic organizers modified the torch relay map, which had visibly portrayed the Spratly and Paracel Islands as part of China. The edited maps can be seen at http://torchrelay.beijing2008.cn/en/journey/map/. ************************************************************** Radio New Horizon www.radiochantroimoi.com http://radiochantroimoi.wordpress.com/ News Brief #2 Outpouring of Patriotism in Hanoi and Saigon Consideration for Beijing by Communist Party and Government At 9 o’clock in Hanoi on April 29, 2008, about 150 people including democracy activists, aggrieved farmers and families of fishermen from Thanh Hoa province that were killed by the Chinese navy on the Eastern sea, gathered in front of Dong Xuan market protesting against Chinese aggression and invasion of the Spratly and Paracel islands. The protests brought banners, including a large black and white showing five Olympic rings rendered as handcuffs. They also brought megaphones to call for people to participate. Only 15 minutes later, more than 300 security police rushed in to snatch slogans; tearing down banners; twisting arms and bashing people in the protest. Please listen to the report from poet Tran Duc Thach: http://www.radiochantroimoi.com/audio/2008/04/ducthach2.mp3/ The police later arrested all those who were thought organizing the protest, including writer Nguyen Xuan Nghia, teacher Vu Hung, students Ngo Quynh and Tien Nam, Vi Duc Hoi, Kim Thu….at level 1, Dong Xuan Market. At 10 o’clock, police escorted all those that were arrested by cars back to Hanoi’s police station at 87 Tran Hung Dao Street. Meanwhile, those remain had moved to Dong Xuan market rather than going home. At 10:30am on April 29, security police came to arrest more than 100 people in front of Dong Xuan market including poet Tran Duc Thach, Do Duy Thong, Chau, Kieu, Nguyen Ba Dang, Tuc, students Nhat, Toan, Vy and all fishermen from Thanh Hoa, aggrieved farmers from Mai Xuan Thuong, teacher delegation from Ha Dong, students from Hai Phong…etc. Everyone was packed into police cars and transported back to Hanoi’s police station at 87 Tran Hung Dao Street for interrogation. The brutal nature of 300 police astounded the protest. People were shocked by the determination of the Vietnamese authorities and the police in trying to repress patriots, to save face for Beijing. But these brutalities were not able to deter the people. Please listen to democracy activist Duong Thi Xuan announced the sentiments of the protest at Dong Xuan market: http://www.radiochantroimoi.com/audio/2008/04/DuongTXuan.mp3/ In the mean time, the situation in Saigon becomes tenser. Police is now allowed to burst into shops along the street to arrest people without the need for warrant. As it comes closer to the ceremonial sites and toward the end of the Olympic Torch Relay, only Chinese tourists can be seen walking around freely, whereas all Vietnamese are watched with suspicion. Some were sent away, others were taken into police custody. Updated at 3pm Vietnam, April 29, 2008.   more »

INTERNATIONAL BUDDHIST INFORMATION BUREAU (BUREAU INTERNATIONAL D'INFORMATION BOUDDHISTE) Official information service of Vien Hoa Dao, Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam B.P. 63 - 94472 Boissy Saint Léger cedex (France) - Tel.: Paris (331) 45 98 30 85 Fax : Paris (331) 45 98 32 61 - E-mail : ubcv.ibib@buddhist.com Web : http://www.queme.net For immediate release Paris, 29 April 2008 Buddhist dissident leader Thich Quang Do seeks to joins protests at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Torch relay in Saigon PARIS, 29 April 2008 (IBIB) - The Most Venerable Thich Quang Do, prominent dissident and second-ranking leader of the outlawed Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV) left house arrest to attend a rally protesting the Beijing 2008 Olympics torch relay in Ho Chi Minh City today, but found the streets blocked with Security and riot police. He was responding to an appeal launched by young Vietnamese students and activists to protest China’s claims of sovereignty over the Spratly and Paracel archipelagos and mark the UBCV’s solidarity with repressed Buddhist monks and civilians in Tibet. Thich Quang Do, who is under house arrest at the Thanh Minh Zen Monastery in Saigon, told Vo Van Ai, Director of the International Buddhist Information Bureau by telephone that he had taken advantage of his monthly hospital check-up to escape house arrest and attend the rally. “I am only allowed out once a month, and luckily, it was today”. He left his monastery early, and went straight from hospital to the Notre Dame Cathedral where the rally was secretly planned. He found the area completely blocked by Security Police, with vehicle access denied all around the Opera House, where the Olympic torch parade was set to begin. Thich Quang Do waited from 3.40pm until after 5.00pm, but saw no banners nor any sign of demonstrators. He told Vo Van Ai that the rally had clearly been pre-empted by security forces, who had orders to prevent all incidents and ensure “absolute security”. “There were no protesters. But the streets were filled with young Chinese waving China’s five-star red flags, singing loudly and shouting out slogans. This made me feel terribly sad. In Vietnam today, young Chinese can proudly parade their flag. Whereas young Vietnamese, the children of this land, whose ancestors shed their blood to preserve our territory, civilisation and our identity, are forbidden by their own government, in their own land, from expressing their national pride and protesting this indignity”. He deplored that “Vietnam is too cowardly to confront China to claim back its lands. And when the people do it for them, instead of encouraging them to stand up for their country, the government represses them and treats them as criminals”.   more »

Rolling Buses in Australia – a Chinese and Vietnamese comparison Herald Sun Australia China sent in the clowns Andrew Bolt April 25, 2008 12:00am IF I hadn't seen the circus with my own eyes, I'd think the $2 million we spent running a torch around Canberra yesterday was wasted. But I watched almost every comical minute of that three-hour relay of the Beijing Olympic torch and thought - hallelujah! - money well spent. Far from blowing yet more cash on the most over-hyped sports day in history, we'd been given a lesson on truth and politics that's worth even Kevan Gosper's head in gold. I don't think we'll soon forget seeing Australian police wrestling the Chinese "flame attendants" - actually members of China's People's Armed Police - in a confrontation over who had the right to guard the torch. . . . That wasn't the only joke - and lesson - of the day. The other memorable image of this "Journey of Harmony" was the torch being run past brawling protesters, many bused in by the Chinese Government, while a dogfight broke out in the skies above. Somehow a battle with a newly muscled China was being staged on our soil, with China's regime even mobilising troops. Some 50 buses, we've learned, were laid on to take thousands of aggressively pro-Chinese supporters from Sydney and Melbourne to Canberra, where they were deployed to drown out and intimidate people protesting against China's record on Tibet and human rights. Indeed, Uighur, Tibetan and other protesters yesterday claimed they'd been howled down, abused, punched and kicked by some of the pro-China demonstrators, several of whom were arrested. So who were all these people singing patriotic Chinese songs and waving huge red flags for the cameras? Who formed this insta-crowd that filled the TV screens and allowed China's Xinhua newsagency to report back home the bright news that "tens of thousands of spectators, many of them enthusiastic Chinese expatriates and students, had lined both sides of the streets . . . chanting support for the Beijing Olympics"? They were mainly students from China's elite, it appears - students who, as a condition of their visas, had actually signed agreements promising "not (to) become involved in any activities that are disruptive to, or in violence threaten harm to, the Australian community or any group in the Australian community". Dear Andrew Bolt of the Herald Sun : Please watch the streets in Canberra on Sunday, April 27, the anniversary of the Communist invasion of South Vietnam that resulted in the largest migration in Vietnamese history as well as the imprisonment of a million officers and officials of the South Vietnamese military and government after 1975. The Vietnamese Diaspora in Australia are riding buses from Sydney and Melbourne now, funded by $12,000 raised among themselves. They are protesting the Communist Vietnamese government. Thank you for your attention, Jean Libby, editor VietAm Review http://vietamreview.blogharbor.com   more »

The People's Democratic Party Call To Protest the Olympic Torch Relay in Sai-Gon on April 29, 2008 For Immediate Release Viet Nam - April 22, 2008 – The Ha Noi government has announced preparation for the reception of the Beijing Olympics 2008 Torch Relay in Sai Gon on April 29, 2008, regardless of strong opposition and vocal protest from the Vietnamese people inside and abroad. The People's Democratic Party (PDP) has participated in various events to protest the Beijing Torch Relay. We urgently call on the people to peacefully join in and protest the coming event in Sai Gon on April 29, 2008 and: - To protest China's invasion of Vietnam's sovereignty and explicitly show to the Chinese government that the Spartly and Paracel Islands belong to Vietnam. - To protest China's suppression of the Tibetan movement for autonomy and the blatant violation of human rights. - To call on the Ha Noi government to find a direct and responsible solution to deal with China’s occupation of the Paracel and Spratly Islands. Regards Nam Tran Spokesperson of the People's Democratic Party   more »

Radio Free Asia article in Vietnamese about the Olympic torch relay coming to Saigon on April 29, 2008. Students protest inside and outside Vietnam. Article in English by Reuters: Torch in Vietnam "symbol of Olympic spirit" –China. HANOI, April 24 (Reuters) - Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said on Thursday next week's Olympic torch relay in fellow-Communist Vietnam "will be a symbol of the Olympics spirit" while exiled Vietnamese activists called for peaceful protests. Yang spent part of Wednesday and Thursday in Hanoi, with which Beijing has amicable diplomatic ties despite tensions over long-disputed islands in the South China Sea that drew rare nationalist protests outside Chinese missions in December. The torch, dogged by anti-China and pro-China protests around the world, is to be paraded in Ho Chi Minh City on April 29 amid tight security. Details of the relay have not yet been released. Another banned party, The People's Democratic Party, called for peaceful demonstrations at the relay "to protest China's invasion of Vietnam's sovereignty and explicitly show to the Chinese government that the Spratly and Paracel Islands belong to Vietnam". The ruling Communist Party, which has opened Vietnam's economy and foreign policy to the world, usually clamps down on public, non state-sanctioned civilian activism. Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung on Sunday warned government agencies that "hostile forces" may try to disrupt the relay, a phrase used by Hanoi to describe activists who oppose one-party rule. (Reporting by Grant McCool) ("Countdown to Beijing Olympics" blog at http://blogs.reuters.com/china) http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/feedarticle/7482216 Published in the Sports section of the Guardian (British)   more »

The Olympic Torch is making its way to Australia -- with a large Vietnamese Diaspora who know how to make their anticommunist viewpoint known effectively -- on April 24. From Canberra it will travel to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon to you and me). The brave Vietnamese torchbearer who wrote to the Olympic Committee from his university studies in Sweden has been persuaded by his government to renounce his objection. He was interviewed by Radio Free Asia. Relatives of Vietnamese objecting to the Beijing Olympics in the free world have been detained by the Communist government in Vietnam. The letter from Larry Cox, executive director of Amnesty International, blames China for the crackdown on activists as caused by Chinese authorities who are attempting to silence such protest worldwide by increased repression in China.   more »

Canada welcomes Vietnamese refugees lost in limbo: Asian Pacific Post Wed, March 12 2008 The Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration announced last week the arrival of the first of a number of Vietnamese who have been living in the Philippines without status since the 1970s. http://www.asianpacificpost.com/portal2/c1ee8c4418a404dc0118a56d107f011f Refugees in Vancouver: Asian Pacific Post Last of the Boat People Thu, March 20 2008 By Lucy-Claire Saunders It’s taken over two decades, but the first wave of the last remaining Vietnamese boat people set foot last week on Canadian soil — their new and final home. http://www.asianpacificpost.com/portal2/c1ee8c4418c3a89d0118cd71520400e6 Toronto welcomes 65 forgotten boat people Mar 22, 2008 04:30 AM Nicholas Keung Immigration/Diversity Reporter The first of 65 Vietnamese "boat people" who languished for years in refugee camps after the West slammed the door, landed in Toronto yesterday, 18 years late for the start of a new life of freedom. Thai Van Nguyen is just one of 2,200 lost refugees, all uprooted by a war that ended more than a quarter of a century ago. They were left stranded after the United Nations declared in 1990 they were no longer in need of protection. The declaration led the West to slam its doors, leaving people like Nguyen out of luck. But Nguyen's luck changed yesterday when he landed at Pearson, joining a welcoming community of 150,000 Vietnamese-Canadians who settled here long ago. http://www.thestar.com/News/GTA/article/349687 Vietnamese families given 'chance to rebuild their lives' in Ottawa 'Stateless' people spent decades in Philippines Jessey Bird, Ottawa Citizen Published: Thursday, April 17, 2008 The first of several Vietnamese families moving to Ottawa arrived late last night, after nearly two decades of living in limbo in the Philippines. Nhan Thanh Nguyen, 55, and his wife, Hue Thi Le, 46, descended the escalator right on time, where they were greeted by a group of anxious and excited members of Ottawa's Vietnamese community. "This is a chance to rebuild their lives," said Can D. Le, national co-ordinator of the Vietnamese Canadian Federation's project Freedom at Last. Canada recently granted stateless Vietnamese people living in the Philippines permanent entry on humanitarian and compassionate grounds. After the fall of Saigon in 1975, hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese fled, mainly by boat, with many arriving in the Philippines. Though a number were able to settle in other countries, those who remained in the Philippines were considered stateless. Freedom at Last has raised more than $500,000 to support families immigrating to Canada as well as the United States and Australia. The Forgotten Ones by Brian Doan, a photographic history published by VAALA in 2004, followed by The Story of Palawan by Honglien Do, now an American citizen I am Honglien and I lived on Palawan as a detainee with my daughter and three nieces for seven years before we were returned to communist Vietnam. We recognized many of the faces in Brian’s book. Our journey to Palawan started aboard a small open boat without a working motor with 62 other refugees, four of whom died. The sea adventure lasted 22 days without proper food and water. But we were among the lucky ones: we survived it all and made it to the U.S.A in good time. One of our cousins was on Palawan for 16 years. He just got to America last year. It was illegal to leave Vietnam once the communists took over. But more than a million people made the attempt anyway: and tens of thousands lost money to disreputable “brokers” in the process and wound up in communists jails, over and over again. http://www.nowpublic.com/book_marvelously_documents_forgotten_saga_of_war_refugees_and_freedom_seekers   more »

“Exit Saigon – Enter Little Saigon, Vietnamese America Since 1975” Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition at San Jose City College March 7, 2008 – June 1, 2008 Student Center, second floor. Free parking at 4th level, campus garage. Staffed by volunteers Monday – Wed. 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Thursdays 10 a.m. – 8 p.m., Saturdays 10 to 2 p.m. Enjoy a preview of the exhibit with The Viet Connection, a new online talk show featuring interviews with Vietnamese American artists and authors: www.thevietconnection.com Hang Nguyen Holoyda, co-host and producer, interviews Alice Gosek – a well-known teacher at SJCC to the Vietnamese community; Andy Nguyen, photographer; Ted Griffith, Associated Students representative; Jean Libby, editor of VietAm Review and contributor to the exhibition; Anh Tran – Vietnamese student at Evergreen Valley College. Anh Tran, who came by coincidence doing his homework, is just six months in America from Vietnam. His story of a boat people escape with his family in 1988 which did not succeed because they were captured by the Communist government and imprisoned is exactly what the Vietnamese American experience is about. Does the Traveling Exhibition speak well to the Vietnamese experience in America? The reviews are mixed. “Too simple,” said one local community leader. “Made me understand what my parents went through to get here” said a student. “They try to explain but I could not understand before.” Exhibit curator Dr. Vu Pham explains: “We left half our soul and our Vietnamese identity behind when we left as refugees. What is here is what we celebrate, how we changed America. We created a new identity – not Vietnamese+Americans but something brand new into the American fabric.” March 17, 2008 – San Jose City College   more »

The 2008 Charles B. Burdick Memorial Military History Symposium takes place on Wednesday, April 30, at the Engineering Auditorium (ENG 189) at San Jose State University, from 6:30 - 9 p.m. Admission to the event is free and open to the public. Panelists: Al Conetto, who served for five months in Vietnam during 1965 as a First Lieutenant with both the First Cavalry Division and the 173rd Airborne Bridage. In 1967, he returned as a Captain in the First Cavalry for 12 months, in the field, in logistics and in intelligence. He became the briefing officer to the commander of the division. Mr. Conetto has just completed a manuscript for a book on Operation Hump, the first major American battle with the Vietcong, in which he fought. Quang X. Pham, who is the son of the late Hoa Pham, a South Vietnamese fighter pilot who rescued his family in the American evacuation of April, 1975, but stayed behind because of A Sense of Duty -- the title of his book published by Ballantine Books in 2005 (subtitle: My Father -- My American Journey). Lt. Col. Hoa Pham spent twelve years in the reeducation camp prisons in Vietnam while his son was growing up in the USA, making the decision in 1985 to join the U.S. Marines. Quang X. Pham became the first Vietnamese American marine aviator, serving in combat in Somalia. Jerry Underdal, who joined International Voluntary Services (IVS), a private organization supporting development in South Vietnam, in 1968. He taught English for a year in Quang Nam province and spent a second year on the Saigon staff of IVS as Assistant Team Leader for Education. After the war, Mr. Underdal taught English to Vietnamese refugees and was responsible for the first Vietnamese language program in Northern California. Moderator: Larry Engelmann, Emeritus Professor in the History Dept. at SJSU, and author of Tears Before the Rain: An Oral History of the Fall of South Vietnam published by Oxford University Press in 1990. Welcoming remarks: Jonathan Roth, chair of the History Dept. at SJSU. For further information contact Dr. Roth at 408-924-5505 or jonathanroth@sjsu.edu ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ A booksigning by Mr. Pham and Mr. Engelmann will benefit the SJSU History Dept. It is organized by Jean Libby, editor of VietAm Review http://vietamreview.blogharbor.com/blog/_archives/2008/4/16/3641930.html   more »

Violations of human rights in Vietnam today, the first four months of 2008, are listed by The Committee for Human Rights in Vietnam, based in Hanoi. Religious freedom issues are noted for Catholics, the Protestant Church of Vietnam, and the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam. The UBCV has particular repression because of the upcoming Vesek 2008 in May. Prisons are noted; in one case a prisoner died and in another a man was handcuffed in prison for a year.   more »

Attn : Count Jacques Rogge President Subject: Request to De-politicise the Beijing2008 Olympics Dear Mr. President, First of all, I am proud and delighted to inform you that I will be one of sixty Vietnamese nationals carrying the 2008 Beijing Olympic torch through Ho Chi Minh City on the coming 29th April 2008. It is my great honour to have been chosen as a bearer of the Olympic torch – the symbol of olympism, of peace and of solidarity of all people in the world – which will be relayed in Vietnam for the first time. However, after studying closely the Planned Route Map for the Beijing 2008 Olympic and Paralympic Torch Relay published on the official website of the BOCOG, I find that the torch that I will bear is not the torch of pure olympism, but it is a torch of an olympism politicized by the the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad (“BOCOG”). Even in hosting the 2008 Olympic and Paralymic games, China has not missed the opportunity to politicize the Olympic and Paralymic Games. Via the official website of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, China deceives the world that they have sovereignty over the Paracel islands, an area which China illegitimately took from Vietnam in 1974. I will prove this to you through the following: ... Le Minh Phieu A Beijing 2008 Olympic torch-bearer Ph.D Candidate at Center for European and International Documentation and Research Post-graduate School of Law – Bordeaux IV – Montesquieu University Avenue Léon Duguit, 33600 Pessac, France Published by Andrew Lam at New America Media on April 14, 2008; http://blogs.newamericamedia.org/andrew-lam/1144/letter-to-mr-president-of-olympic-international-committe UPDATE: Mr. Le Minh Phieu was interviewed by RFA yesterday and has decided to appear in the torch relay. Vigils are being planned to coincide with the Olympic torch presence in Saigon on April 29.    more »

Excerpts and links to articles, video, and interview by these authors gathered by Jean Libby, editor, VietAm Review from published sources. All authors support the protest of human rights violations in China except for Voice of America, who support Beijing position and the anti-American and antiEuropean rantings of President Musharraf of Pakistan. Senator John McCain recommends that President Bush not attend opening ceremonies in Beijing in August.   more »

U.S.-Asia Pacific Council John D. Negroponte, Deputy Secretary Washington, DC April 11, 2008 Our relationship with Vietnam has also entered a new chapter. Our countries enjoy significant and growing trade and economic ties; an emerging military-to-military relationship; successful cooperation on health and development issues; growing cultural and educational links; and a shared interest in ensuring peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region.... I see three major tasks that the United States faces in the coming decade as we look at Asia: (1) further improving regional cooperation to complement our existing bilateral security alliances, (2) promoting continued prosperity, and (3) accommodating rising Asian powers into the international system while also challenging them to assume global leadership on major international issues. Entire speech: http://www.state.gov/s/d/2008/103464.htm ************************************************************* No mention of human rights issues, political imprisonment, labor trafficking, Congressional resolutions (H.R. 3096). Why should Hanoi bother about any of these issues when the U.S. Deputy Secretary of State does not? Jean Libby, editor VietAm Review   more »

Dear Community Partners, I am delighted to inform you that the Assembly Education Committee passed Assembly Bill 2064 with a 6-0 vote in yesterday’s hearing. As many of you are aware, AB 2064 will require the State Board of Education and the Curriculum Development and Supplemental Materials Commission to adopt textbook and instructional materials that include instruction on the Vietnam War. This bill specifically requires textbook and instructional materials to include the “Secret War” in Laos; the role of Southeast Asians in that war; AND the refugee/immigrant/new American experience as a result of the Vietnam War. The bill is attached to the letter from Assemblyman Juan Arambula, 31st District.   more »

China: Verdict on Activist Hu Jia statement by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on April 3, 2008: The United States is dismayed by the sentence of three and a half years in prison announced today in the case of prominent Chinese human rights activist Hu Jia under the specious charge of 'inciting subversion of state power.' Mr. Hu has consistently worked within China’s legal system to protect the rights of his fellow citizens. These types of activities support China’s efforts to institute the rule of law and should be applauded, not suppressed or punished. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice pressed Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi for Hu’s immediate release during her February visit to China, and U.S. officials continue to take every opportunity to raise our concerns about Mr. Hu’s case with Chinese officials at all levels, both in Beijing and in Washington, D.C. In this Olympic year, we urge China to seize the opportunity to put its best face forward and take steps to improve its record on human rights and religious freedom. Interview by the BBC World Service Christopher R. Hill, Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Jakarta, Indonesia April 4, 2008 QUESTION: The situation in Tibet has drawn the attention of your government recently. Yesterday China jailed a human rights activist for three and a half years. Where do you stand on the position of China’s hosting of the Olympics now? It was supposed to improve their human rights track record, and it doesn’t seem to have done that. ASSISTANT SECRETARY HILL: Well, first of all, we’re obviously very concerned about the developments in recent weeks. We’ve been especially concerned about the outbreak of violence and the apparent lack of restraint we’ve seen. The amount of destruction in Lhasa was certainly cause for great concern. We would like to see a much greater effort in dialogue. We know there were some efforts in the past between representatives of the Dalai Lama and the Chinese authorities. We think this is the way to go, and we’d like to see some greater restraint. With respect to the Olympics, our President has been pretty clear that we don’t think it is appropriate to be boycotting Olympics or Olympic ceremonies. We don’t think this is going to solve a problem. And, as Secretary Rice made clear, we think that sort of activity can really be taken as great insult by the Chinese people, by 1.3 billion Chinese people. And I think it’s very important for people outside of China to understand the degree to which the Chinese are very proud of hosting these Olympics. This is not some government issue versus a popular issue. Everyone in China is very proud of this. And so people who sort of put this issue at play -- that is, talk about boycotting the Olympics in some respects -- need to understand that they are doing so in a way that could really cause problems with the sensitivities of Chinese people at large, not just the Chinese government. Jean Libby, editor of VietAm Review, compares this contradiction with a similar one of Christopher Hill and the State Dept.'s 2007 country report on Vietnam. Criticism from Vo Van Ai, director of QueMe, Action for Democracy in Vietnam was published by VietAm Review on March 13, 2008.    more »

CONCERNS ABOUT THE DEPORTATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIANS IN THE UNITED STATES TO SOUTHEAST ASIA 1628 – 16th Street, N.W. _ Washington, D.C. 20009-3099 _ Tel: 202/667-4690 _ Fax: 202/667-6449 Email: searac@searac.org _ Website: www.searac.org SUMMARY OF CHALLENGES FACING SOUTHEAST ASIAN AMERICANS • In 1996 laws were put into place requiring that non-citizens who were convicted of crimes called “aggravated felonies” be deported from the United States. At the same time and since 1996, the definition of “aggravated felony” has been expanded to include crimes that carry sentences of two years or more – even if no actual time was spent in jail because of suspended sentences or parole. • In 2002, Cambodia and the U.S. signed an agreement making it possible to deport non-citizens to Cambodia. As of December 2004, 126 people had been deported to Cambodia. As far as we know, no deportations of refugees to Laos or Vietnam have taken place yet, although the U.S. and Southeast Asian governments are negotiating agreements. DETENTION BEFORE DEPORTATION • Before they are deported from the United States people from Southeast Asia and other parts of the world are often kept in “detention,” where they have little access to visits from family or friends, and where they have few legal rights. • Hundreds of people are in detention, and thousands are in danger of being deported to Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam (if and when agreements are made between the U.S., Laos, and Vietnam WHAT CAN WE DO? 1. Educate more community members about deportation so they will be able to avoid it, and so the laws can change. 2. If you or someone you know is facing a criminal charge, or deportation, get a lawyer. A list of “pro bono” lawyers is available on SEARAC’s website: http://www.searac.org/probono_legal.html 3. Learn more about deportation by visiting SEARAC’s website: http://www.searac.org/cambrepbak6_02.html 4. Support organizations that work with deportees and their families in the U.S. and Southeast Asia. Organizations in the U.S. can be found by searching the keyword “deportation” at http://www.searac.org/maa/. The Returnee Assistance Project, of Cambodia, can be visited at http://www.rapcambodia.org   more »

KATHMANDU, April 4, 2008—Paramilitary police in China’s southwestern Sichuan province fired on a crowd of Tibetan protesters demanding the release of two detained monks, killing and wounding an unknown number of people, Radio Free Asia (RFA) reports. The shooting came after nearly three weeks of violence and unrest in Tibetan areas of China , in which scores of people are believed to have died and hundreds of people arrested. The Chinese government has effectively locked down Tibetan regions with a massive security presence. Original reporting by RFA's Tibetan, Cantonese, and Mandarin services. Translation by Karma Dorjee. Tibetan service director: Jigme Ngapo. Cantonese service director: Shiny Li. Mandarin service director: Jennifer Chou. Written and produced in English by Sarah Jackson-Han.   more »