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Quang Trial May Come in September; Some Detainees Allowed Visits

STRASBOURG, France — Some observers in Vietnam expect that Pastor Nguyen Hong Quang may be put on trial in Ho Chi Minh City as early as September. Sources there say that authorities are working hard to "fast track" Quang's trial on charges of "possessing and distributing materials harmful to the State."

Other sources, however, believe the government needs more time to review evidence to make its case in court.

A court decision to prosecute would be followed by publication of the indictment and the trial. If convicted on these charges, Quang, who was arrested on June 8, could face up to 20 years in prison.

Sources also say that it is likely that the four evangelists arrested on March 2 and still held without being charged will face a less serious charge of "resisting an officer doing official duty."

Le Thi Hong Lien, a female evangelist, was arrested in early July and is still imprisoned.

Months after their arrests, despite a Vietnamese law stating visits must be allowed within 30 days of incarceration, authorities have allowed monitored visits from the families of five of "the Mennonite Six," as they have become known. All six are being held in Ho Chi Minh City prison, not in the District 2 jail where they were first held.

Quang's wife and three young children visited him on August 18. This was the second visit by Quang's wife.

The mother of brothers Nguyen Thanh Nhan and Nguyen Huu Nghia was allowed separate visits with them on August 23. Her visit with one son was cut short when he began to describe how his brother had been severely beaten.

The father of Pham Ngoc Thach, who was badly beaten when arrested, visited his son in mid-July.

The wife of Nguyen Van Phuong, who gave birth to the couple's first child just before his March 2 arrest, has also been allowed one visit.

Le Thi Hong Lien has not been allowed a family visit because, according to police, she is "uncooperative."

An August 17 report from ethnic minority Mennonite churches in Gia Lai province says that Christians there are still being arrested. In mid-May, two Mennonite evangelists, Ksor Ti No and Ksor Pui Nai, were arrested on unknown charges. Their families have not been allowed visits.

Vietnamese authorities are apparently surprised by the widespread negative publicity generated by their treatment of the Vietnamese Mennonites. It seems they were unaware that the Vietnamese Mennonites are part of a global church body, many of whose members have spoken out on behalf of the imprisoned leaders.

Other church-related and secular media organizations have published news about the Mennonite Six and several countries are putting pressure on Vietnamese authorities regarding the mistreatment of the Mennonite leaders and churches.

In a related development, representatives from the Hanoi office of the Bureau of Religious Affairs on August 10 met the president of the Vietnam Mennonite Church, Pastor Nguyen Quang Trung. They proposed that the church provide information in preparation for granting legal status to the Vietnam Mennonite Church.

They requested a detailed history and activities of the church both before and after 1975: a Confession of Faith, and an organizational charter, the names of pastors, evangelists and volunteers, pre-1975 buildings, current worship groups and locations.

The timing of the offer while key leaders of the Mennonite church are imprisoned suggests that authorities are attempting to isolate these imprisoned leaders. While many church leaders agree in principle that legal recognition is good, they are concerned that authorities would use detailed information about the believers to further restrict and harass the church, especially in the Central Highlands.

In late August, Pastor Quang's wife was summoned to the police station where she was politely told that it would be best to stop holding meetings in her home, which they said were illegal. When she asked them to put the request into writing, they quickly dropped the matter. Late that night the police came to the house and examined the papers of all who were there.

Behind authorities' determination to silence Pastor Quang is his outspoken advocacy on human rights issues. In 1999, he advised and helped alleged squatter families file petitions of complaint against a land grab for "development." The confiscated land included the property of the Quang residence and Mennonite church office.

On August 13, 2004, the 346 families received the news that the 1999 land confiscation order had been reversed. The order had, in fact, been reversed on September 13, 2003 with a directive to inform the families within 10 days. However, authorities waited until two months after Pastor Quang's incarceration to make the announcement regarding the decision he had helped to achieve.