VZCZCXRO2745
PP RUEHHM
DE RUEHHI #2033 3380550
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 040550Z DEC 07
FM AMEMBASSY HANOI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6819
INFO RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH 4013
RHEHNSC/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS HANOI 002033 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS, DRL/IRF AND DRL/AWH 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KIRF PHUM PREL PGOV ASEC VM
SUBJECT:  USCIRF MEETS WITH GVN NATIONAL ASSEMBLY 
 
 
SUMMARY 
------- 
¶1. (SBU) On October 22, a delegation of the United States Commission 
on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) met with Foreign 
Relations Committee Chairman Nguyen Van Son and deputies of the 
National Assembly (NA - Vietnam's parliament) to discuss the NA's 
oversight and legislative role in protecting religious practitioners 
in Vietnam.  The Commissioners expressed concern over broad and 
vague laws in Vietnam's legal code that give the power of subjective 
legal interpretation to the government.  Chairman Son said the NA 
sought to remove injustice and inequity in Vietnam and agreed that 
there is a need for further legal reform.  He asked for 
understanding that Vietnam is a developing country with limited 
resources that still needs 20-30 years to develop its legal system. 
End summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) National Assembly (NA) Foreign Relations Committee Chairman 
Nguyen Van Son, recently returned from a working visit to the United 
States, welcomed the United States Commission on International 
Religious Freedom (USCIRF) Delegation to the National Assembly HQ of 
Vietnam, in Hanoi on October 22.  Son told the USCIRF commissioners 
that he hoped they would see the significant changes in Vietnam 
since their last visit in 2002 and said Vietnam lacked the tools of 
mass media so it could not effectively spread the word of its many 
changes and successes in recent years. 
 
¶3. (SBU) USCIRF Chairman Cromartie thanked the Chairman for his 
availability during the busy legislative session period.  The 
Commissioners then asked about ways the NA could hold the police 
more accountable in cases of abuses of religious freedom, whether 
the Chairman received reporting on such abuse cases, and whether the 
Assembly had considered drafting a specific law against religious 
discrimination.  Son told the delegation that the NA does get 
reports but that it had not heard of many abuse cases.  He said that 
there are laws in Vietnam against discrimination based on religion 
and that all violators are punished.  He added that the NA wanted to 
remove injustice and inequity in Vietnam. 
 
¶4. (SBU) USCIRF Commissioner Don Argue raised the case of an ethnic 
minority child in the Central Highlands who was reportedly denied 
admission to a Boarding School because he was a Christian on the 
basis of the Ministry of Education and Training's (MOET) Circular 16 
of 1997, which gave authority to schools to deny admission to 
students from families belonging to "reactionary" religions.  Son 
was surprised about the case and took the documentation offered by 
Commissioner Argue.  He said all children in Vietnam had the right 
to education, regardless of their religion, and said he would 
investigate this particular case.  Son said education policy in 
Vietnam is set by the central government and this only could have 
happened if local level authorities misinterpreted central 
government policy.  Commissioner Argue expressed concerns about lack 
of implementation of the laws at the local level and cases of abuse 
by Vietnam's police and security services. 
 
¶5. (SBU) USCIRF Commissioner Bansal questioned Article 16 of the 
2004 Ordinance on Religion and Belief, Vietnam's master law on 
religion, which states that religious organizations cannot be 
"contrary to the fine customs and habits and the interests of the 
nation."  Commissioner Gaer said she was struck by Vietnam's broad 
and vague common laws that incorporate national security language 
that can negate any law.  She said this had a negative effect on 
national unity and society and, more importantly, these vague terms 
could lead to significant abuse.  She asked Son who determines 
violations of these broad laws. 
 
¶6. (SBU) Son said the NA facilitated government policies on religion 
and would continue to push for their implementation in all of 
Vietnam's provinces.  He noted that Vietnam is a poor country with 
many mountainous and remote regions; this made it more difficult for 
the central government to promulgate laws with limited resources. 
Since the move to a market economy in the late 1980s, Vietnam has 
been trying to build a state based on the rule of law.  Son agreed 
with the USCIRF Commissioners that Vietnam needs to revise many of 
its laws and that many of the current laws were vague.  He said 
there is currently a backlog of 200 bills and laws, with several 
laws drafted but without implementing decrees.  The Chairman asked 
for patience and understanding, emphasizing that Vietnam is a 
developing country, and said Vietnam's legal system still needs 20 - 
30 more years to develop. 
 
MICHALAK