The four famous prisoners and their periods of imprisonment in the Communist gulags of Vietnam are: Nguyen Chi Thien (27 years), Vo Dai Ton (12 years), Phan Nhat Nam (14 years). They are moderated and connected by Ly Tong Ba, a Brigadier General of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) (12 years). You can find their descriptions and information about connecting to Paltalk in Vietnamese on http://www.vietvungvinh.com/Portal.asp?goto=VietNam/2007/20071128_03.htm These brief histories in English are written in the hope they may be useful for the planned Paltalk event on December 1, 2007. Scholarly references used for preparation are available on request. Jean Libby, editor VietAm Review   more »

WASHINGTON– “Today’s decision by Vietnam’s Supreme Appeals Court to uphold bogus jail sentences for pro-democracy advocates Nguyen Van Dai and Le Thi Cong Nhan marks another in a series of sham trials and is further evidence that the regime in Hanoi continues to carry-out human rights abuses with impunity,” said U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) a leading human rights lawmaker in the U.S. Congress. Smith added, “Some of the finest human rights activists are persecuted by the Government of Vietnam and we will continue to work for real justice and their release.” Smith’s comments were in response to today’s reports that the Supreme Appeals Court in Hanoi upheld the previous conviction of human rights lawyers Nguyen Van Dai and Le Thi Cong Nhan. Citing good behavior and past history, the Court reduced the sentences of Dai and Nhan by one year each while still unjustly maintaining the bulk of their prison terms. “The U.S. government must take a stand against these repeated abuses and let the Vietnamese Government know that continued human rights violations will not go unnoticed or unpunished,” said Smith, author of legislation promoting human rights in Vietnam. On September 18, 2007, by a resounding vote of 414-3, the U.S. House of Representatives forcefully condemned human rights abuses in Vietnam and approved the “Vietnam Human Rights Act of 2007” to sanction the Vietnamese Government until real progress is made on the release of political prisoners and other fundamental human rights reforms take place. “Today’s deplorable events reiterate the need to immediately bar U.S. non-humanitarian assistance to the Government of Vietnam,” said Smith. Specifically, Smith’s bill, H.R. 3096, prohibits increased U.S. non-humanitarian assistance to the Government of Vietnam unless there is verifiable evidence that the Vietnamese Government has made substantial progress towards the release of its political and religious prisoners, respecting the right to freedom of religion, returning properties, allowing free and open access to refugee programs, respecting the human rights of members of all ethnic minority groups, and taking appropriate steps to end trafficking in persons. Article is sent by Ryan Goodwin, Legislative Assistant to Rep. Smith   more »

The People' s Democratic Party (PDP) strongly protests the sentences of lawyers Le Thi Cong Nhan and Nguyen Van Dai 's appeal trial and the use of brutal force to attack and prevent pro-democracy activists who came to attend the appeal trial including Lawyer Le Quoc Quan, Nguyen Phuong Anh, Nguyen Xuan Nghia, Pham Van Troi, Nguyen Vu Binh. The accusation of violation of the so-called criminal code‘s “Article 88” was baseless and also in contradiction to "Article 69" of the current Vietnam Constitution. Letter is in Vietnamese and in English by Cong Thanh Do, Spokesperson of the People’s Democratic Party   more »

VIỆT NAM – Bản tin của BBC cho biết, một nguồn tin chưa kiểm chứng nói rằng ông Hoàng Minh Chính đã được đưa vào bệnh viện ngày 26 tháng 11, 2007, trong tình trạng hôn mê. Bản tin nói, gần đây, sức khỏe của ông Hoàng Minh Chính kém đi thấy rõ. Nguồn tin chưa kiểm chứng cũng nói rằng, cách đây ít tháng, ông Hoàng Minh Chính đã nhập viện nhưng “các bác sĩ không chữa được vì ông bị ung thư tiền liệt tuyến di căn.” Tuy nhiên, bác sĩ Nguyễn Xuân Ngãi, người đóng góp vai trò đưa ông Hoàng Minh Chính ra nước ngoài tiếp xúc nhiều giới, nói với BBC rằng “sức khỏe ông Chính đã rất kém, nhưng trong cuộc nói chuyện vừa rồi ông vẫn tỉnh táo.” The full story on BBC is at this link. http://www.bbc.co.uk/vietnamese/vietnam/story/2007/11/071126_hoangminhchinh.shtml Xin đọc thêm bài về ông Hoàng Minh Chính ở đường dẫn bên tay phải. Cuộc phỏng vấn với BS Nguyễn Xuân Ngãi được phát về Việt Nam trên đài BBC, làn sóng AM1503, sóng ngắn 25, 41 và 49 mét trong buổi phát thanh 21:30-22:00 giờ Hà Nội.   more »

Dan Thang Tien Viet Nam -- Vietnam Progression Party report from Frankfurt on November 23, 2007. The main office in Hue is closed due to pressures and arrests by the Vietnam government. This group is one of the founders of Bloc 8406, manifesto for referendum in Vietnam whose members as well as other freedom seekers have been imprisoned for speaking their viewpoint. As an independent democracy activist in America who is not of Vietnamese descent, it is my mission to acknowledge and to catalog many associations and political parties of seekers of free elections for Viet Nam who are Vietnamese. Jean Libby, editor VietAm Review   more »

Author Nguyen Chi Thien's booksigning in San Jose on November 17, 2007, revealed that he had intervened for a young girl (age 19) who was sentenced to death for burning a harassing policeman and his family in their house in Hanoi in the 1980s by helping her write to Truong Chinh, General Secretary of Vietnam, for clemency. This had never been granted before by Truong Chinh Dang Xuan Khu (1907-1988), who was a founder of the Communist government with Ho Chi Minh. The New York Times obituary by Glenn Fowler is quoted which states Truong Chinh had personal responsibility for killing as many as 50,000 of at least 200,000 killed by the Communist government during the Land Reform of 1953-1956. The story excerpt of "The Moon and Waters of the Red River" with the character of the young woman and another prisoner who was later executed was read in his written dialogue for the author at the event. A presentation of poetry reading was made by two Vietnamese Americans who are now teachers about their translation on May 1, 1981 at UC Berkeley, when they were students. The booksigning was organized by Internet Bookselling--Multicultural Perspectives. Jean Libby, editor, VietAm Review.   more »

LIST OF POLITICAL AND RELIGIOUS PRISONERS STILL UNDER DETAINMENT; THE LIST OF MEMBERS OF HOA HAO BUDDHIST CHURCH; MENNONITE MEMBERS/CHRISTIANS AND DE GAR CHRISTIANS IMPRISONED IN COMMUNIST VIETNAM, 2007 by Viet Si, Speaker, International Movement for Religious Freedom and Democracy in Vietnam, Former Prisoner of Conscience after April 30th, 1975 in Vietnam. The list of 148 names and their locations of imprisonment (name of prison camp and province) includes 11 political prisoners who have died in Vietnamese prisons in the past two years in Xuan Loc prison camp, Dong Nai Province.   more »

The San Jose City Council is paying attention at last to the people who demand that their city, the 10th largest city in the United States, have a gateway entry to a redeveloped section which properly reflects the heritage of the people who came there as refugees. These refugees rebuilt the city house-by-house, store-by-store, one small business at a time. They sent the children to public schools and made that success a priority of life that puts other groups to shame. The power struggle over human rights in Vietnam is now on the table, thanks to your efforts and those of San Jose Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren and now California Senator Barbara Boxer. Will you lead that struggle from a strong moral position of ecumenism that includes "Americans" not as foreigners but as fellow immigrants and citizens with a stake in society who need to learn about Vietnam today in order to bring freedom there? You can't do it alone. Ask the government of South Africa about that. All the larger society see among Little Saigon in San Jose leadership are jackals howling at each prey before they rip it to shreds. Such good press to target a vulnerable young woman, Madison Nguyen. Now how about targeting the real power in San Jose, Chuck Reed's international business machine called the Chamber of Commerce? How about requiring them to speak out and ask for human rights in Vietnam? Get them while their stocks are down. There are Democrats and Republicans in Congress who are in leadership for human rights in Vietnam. How about asking every presidential candidate for the election in 2008 to take a stand for human rights in Vietnam? Most of them are riding on rhetoric of "no more Vietnams." How about educating them about that history? Can you do it without requiring that more young Americans (including Vietnamese Americans) die in Iraq to prove your valor in the 1960s and 1970s? I dare you to try. More than 50% of the engineers at Cisco Systems, San Jose's largest employer, are of Vietnamese heritage. Do they say anything as a power group about the meaning of Little Saigon as a name of cultural heritage to share? Do they even say anything as a group about human rights in Vietnam? What about it, VACETS? The Veterans of Foreign Wars in the USA showed the flag of South Vietnam with pride as they honored the 58,000 Americans who died fighting communism in Vietnam last week in Washington D.C. at the 25th anniversary of The Wall, which is the most-visited memorial in the country. Was there anyone from the Vietnamese American power structure thanking the VFW for recognition of the heritage flag? I know the Amerasian Family was there with pride in Vietnamese American heritage. How about showing the nonVietnamese City Council members that you can work together as Vietnamese people, that is your strength in society? It is the strength of any minority group in American society. Some do it well, and become "seamless" in the fabric, but when you examine the texture of the cloth you see their culture and values as part of the whole. Strengthen the fabric of our society by reweaving, not unraveling. The whole world's watching. Jean Libby, editor VietAm Review    more »

On Saturday November 17, final Vietnamese American Authors Book Fair. It is scheduled at ViVo, (Vietnamese Voluntary Foundation, Inc.) 2260 Quimby Road, San Jose 95122 from 1 to 5 p.m. The Internet Bookselling Collection of books by Vietnamese American authors are listed on the attached order form. They may be ordered by mail as well as at the event at ViVo on November 17. The collection is also featured online at www.atozproductions.com/Vietnamese_Titles.html . There will be a Vietnamese language literary program of readings of the work of Nguyen Chi Thien beginning at 2 p.m. This is followed by a major speech by the author Nguyen Chi Thien about Human Rights in Vietnam Today, which will begin after 3 p.m. The readings and Mr. Thien's speech are in Vietnamese language which will be briefly translated. Please join me in honoring the author with his new work published by Yale University Council on Southeast Asia Studies, the Hoa Lo/Hanoi Hilton Stories. This is English translation of the original Vietnamese Hoa Lo published by Nguyen Ngoc Bich in 2001. Mr. Bich is one of the volunteer translators. The others are journalist Saroyan Vann Phan, Tran Van Dien (the father of Assemblyman Van Tran of Garden Grove), and Nguyen Kiem Phong of Canada. Both hardback and paper editions will be available for signing by the author. Sincerely, Jean Libby Internet Bookselling proprietor Editor, VietAm Review   more »

Vietnamese language article about the Congressional Hearing on Human Rights in Vietnam by Cong Do of The People's Democratic Party, an American citizen who was imprisoned in Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) in 2006 for Internet communication using the word "democracy". The article by Cong Do will be distributed at the Vietnamese American Authors Book Fair in San Jose, California on November 17. The theme of the program, which will be conducted in Vietnamese, is "Human Rights for Vietnam"   more »

The United States Commission On International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has recently arrived in Vietnam to conduct thorough investigations on the issue of religious repression in Vietnam because, for years, Vietnam has been designated in the U.S. State department’s list of CPC (Countries of Particular Concern) in 2004 and 2005 after Vietnam authorities torn/ burned down and/ or destroyed more than 4,000 churches and worship facilities in 2001 and 2002. They had imprisoned and killed many religious faithful and prohibited them from practicing their religions, especially to the Christians in big cities and in tribal hamlets in highland regions of Vietnam . This information may be referenced in the U.S. State Department’s official website. Vietnam authorities had promised President George W. Bush and the State Department that they would implement appropriate policy and administrative measures to fully comply with State Department’s required benchmarks in order to be taken off from the list of CPC and be granted status of Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) and admitted into the World Trade Organization (WTO). However, after achieving their goals, Vietnam authorities mendaciously turned around and did not keep their promise. Yet, they have drastically increased persecution and imposing harsh jail terms for more than 50 popular political and religious dissidents since August 2006. Vietnam authorities formally welcomed USCIRF Delegation during its visit in Vietnam . However, when USCIRF was still working out issues with Vietnam and about to leave, the Communist authorities have instructed more than 600 state-controlled daily newspapers and periodicals to start igniting their war with full force by publishing this following article, written in Vietnamese, in their “Cong An Nhan Dan & An Ninh The Gioi” Newspaper (People Police and World Security” Newspaper on their article dated October 27, 2007, written in Vietnamese by Colonel Nguyen Nhu Phong, the Executive Editor. URL referenced below: http://www.cand.com.vn/vi-VN/binhluan/2007/10/77733.cand Please remember all communication media in Vietnam are strictly controlled by the government. Therefore, the above-mentioned newspaper was instructed to publish the following article. We have translated this article, intact, into English and highlighted important paragraphs/ phrases for your quick reference. The communists have particularly attached the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam and the Venerable Thich Quang Do. They have also denigrated the religious beliefs of the people of the Central Highlands.   more »

U.S. Representative Dana Rohrabacher of California, Dr. Janos Horvath of Hungary and the late Tran Van Ba of South Vietnam are the 2007 recipients of the Truman-Reagan Medal of Freedom. The Medal of Freedom is awarded each year by the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation to those individuals and institutions that have demonstrated a life-long commitment to freedom and democracy and opposition to communism and all other forms of tyranny. The presentations will be made Thursday evening, November 15, at the Embassy of Hungary with the Ambassador of Hungary, His Excellency Ferenc Somogyi, as co-host of the event. Born in South Vietnam in 1945, Mr. Ba as a young man watched his country ravaged by the civil war waged by the North Vietnamese communists. In 1966, his father Tran Van Van, a respected member of the South Vietnamese parliament, was assassinated by the communists. Sent to France to complete his education, Mr. Ba returned to Vietnam in 1980 to continue the fight for freedom and democracy in his homeland. He was arrested in 1984 by the Communists who executed him on false charges of treason. A memorial has been erected to Mr. Ba in Liege, Belgium, and a street dedicated to him in Falls Church, Virginia, by the Vietnamese community. The award will be accepted for the martyred Vietnamese patriot, executed for treason by the communists, by his brother, Tran Van Tong.    more »

Subcommittee on International Organizations, Human Rights, and Oversight chaired by William D. Delahunt (D-MA), will hold a hearing on human rights in Vietnam at the Rayburn Office Building at 2 p.m. November 6. Panel includes Congresswomen Lofgren and Sanchez; State Dept. Scott Marciel; Sophie Richardson Human Rights Watch; Cong Thanh Do The People's Democratic Party   more »