New Vietnamese Ordinance on Religions does not provide freedom, says Archbishop of Huê

Huê (AsiaNews) – The new Ordinance on Beliefs and Religions adopted by the government of Vietnam does not satisfy Catholic Bishops. The new rules do not grant the Church the freedom it needs to organise its own affairs. “We are still in the situation of asking for permission,” Mgr Étienne Nguyên Nhu Thê, Archbishop of Huê (central Vietnam), told AsiaNews. The Bishop asked Catholics around the world to “pray for the Church in Vietnam”.

According to Bishop Nguyên Nhu Thê, the Ordinance is not “sufficiently open” vis-à-vis religious freedom because “we still remain within a framework contrary to religious freedom, namely that of asking for permission that the government concedes”.

Under the Ordinance, which goes into effect on November 15, people “must ask the government for permission to do anything. If it chooses not to allow something, we cannot do anything. Hence the Church cannot organise its affairs as it should,” the Archbishop explained. “We do not have the right to organise ourselves as we see fit and must seek authorisation for every choice and decision. This means there is no full religious freedom,” he added.

Vietnam’s Bishops share the views of the Archbishop of Huê. In late September, during the General Assembly of the Bishops’ Conference of Vietnam, they wrote a letter to the government’s Office of Religious Affairs in Hanoi claiming that the “new ordinance on religion follows a logic that defines religious freedom in terms of ‘ask and concede’. This is still far from full religious freedom because we are still under control”.

Archbishop Nguyên Nhu Thê ended his interview with AsiaNews asking Catholics around the world to pray “for Catholics and the Church in Vietnam”.

Contacted by AsiaNews, other bishops chose not to make any statement fearing government reprisal.

The Ordinance on Beliefs and Religions “is even more restrictive than previous ones,” this according to Fr André Maïs, of the Missions étrangères de Paris, who was a missioner in Vietnam for many years before his evangelisation activities led to his expulsion.

“The new law,” he said, “increases government control over religion. The authorities want to control religious sentiment as such,” he added.

In essence, according to Father Maïs, this means that in Vietnam religions are under increasing restrictions and that religious freedom is increasingly limited. “Until now, the government tried to control religious worship. Now, it wants to directly determine people’s religious sentiment”. (LF)

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New law to stifle religious freedom

Hanoi (AsiaNews/UCAN) – Vietnam is imposing new restrictions on religious freedom. The Ordinance on Beliefs and Religions—which was adopted on June 18 by the Standing Committee of the National Assembly — will come into effect on November 15. It regulates religious activities as well those related to ancestor worship.

The text reaffirms the constitutional principle that guarantees religious freedom. The first article of the ordinance declares: “Citizens have freedom of belief and religion, to adopt or not to adopt a religion.” However, the significance of the principle is circumscribed by the other articles, which “permit” various activities on condition that they receive government “authorisation”.

Government control is exercised at district, provincial and national levels. The first two are under the jurisdiction of People’s Committees; the third falls to the Office of religious Affairs and the Prime Minister.

Control is also exercised through the Vietnam Fatherland Front whose members are duty-bound to “encourage ecclesiastics, religious, believers, belief followers, religious organizations and people to carry out laws on belief and religion” and “take part in building and supervising the implementation of policies and laws on belief and religion ».

The government exerts its control over religious activities by virtue of its power to:

- recognise and register every organisation through its agencies for Religious Affairs. This also applies to “congregations, convents and other analogous forms of collective religious life”;

- authorise through the Prime Minister’s Office educational institutions that train religious personnel. School curriculum, extra school programmes and admission are the prerogative of the government and must include the history and laws of Vietnam as mandatory subjects;

- authorise annually planned activities and initiatives. Events not in the plan must be approved by government agencies for religious affairs. The same principle applies to parties, observances, congresses and conferences;

- approve all forms of ecumenism, collaboration, unification, scission among and between religious organisations as well as the transfer and allocation of religious personnel;

- evaluate the moral and civic character of candidates for ordination, promotions and appointment within the various religious hierarchies, which are regulated according to the “codes and procedures” of each community”;

- authorise the publication, printing and circulation of religious material. Manufacturing and sale of objects for worship and religious activities must conform to government regulations;

- allow preaching only in places of worship which are designated by government authorities;

- confiscate property, if the lands where religious buildings stand are not regularly and permanently used.

Religious freedom in Vietnam could be suspended on the following grounds:

- threats to national unity: The clergy is required to teach believers to respect the fatherland and its laws;

- threats to national security and public order;

- threats to life, dignity, honour and property;

The Ordinance encourages religious communities to provide care for children, the sick, the poor and the disabled, but always in accordance with government regulations.

The Ordinance states that anyone who spent time in prison for religious reasons and who has purged his or her sentence can engage in religious activities such as prayers, evangelisation, observances only on the condition that government agencies for Religious Affairs approve.

Vietnam has a population of 78 million people, which includes 52 million Buddhist, 7 million Christians and 4 million members of the Cao-Dai sect. Officially, Catholics are 6 million. (MA)

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