July 5, 2012
Compiled by DVOV from different news sources
The Vietnamese government in Nghe An Province continues to disrupt religious activities. For the past month, the local authorities have repeatedly sent agents, policemen and “thugs” to prevent Catholic priests from celebrating and believers from attending Sunday Mass in the Con Cuong District, Vinh Diocese. While on a visit to Paris, on July 4 Bishop Nguyen Thai Hop of Vinh Diocese issued a statement calling all Catholics in the diocese to show solidarity with their brothers and sisters in Con Cuong.
On July 1, a large contingent of policemen, armed soldiers and plain-clothed “thugs” physically attacked Catholics as they gathered at their chapel for Sunday mass. Many attending Catholics were injured as a result. One of them suffered cracks in the cranium.
At one point, the police and thugs entered the chapel and smashed the statue of the Virgin Mary.
On his way to the chapel, Rev. Nguyen Dinh Thuc was intercepted and physically assaulted by “thugs”.
This incident was the latest in a consistent pattern of government interference and police brutality. The Sunday before, the government had mobilized a large mob to break up Sunday mass, while the traffic police stopped Catholics from convening.
On June 24, when Rev. Thuc was about to celebrate Sunday Mass in honor of St. John the Baptist, the local government sent approximately 250 individuals to the site; many of them invaded the chapel. Others stood outside to deny entry to the priest. In addition, several traffic policemen were stationed at points controlling access to the chapel to stop those believers who were on their way to attend Mass. Failing in their attempts, government forces used high-powered loudspeakers to interfere with the Mass throughout its duration. Men in civilian clothes pushed and shoved Catholics in attendance in an attempt to provoke fights with them. Some of the government hirelings tried to sabotage the generators and cut power cables, but were deterred by Catholics who attended Mass. Government hirelings forced open a window close to the altar and tried to intimidate the priest and audience. Catholics view these actions not just as an infringement on religious freedom, but also as a fragrant disrespect for their faith.
A local Catholic has been subjected to constant harassment by the government after he had offered their house to the diocese for use as a chapel. The government threatened him with the destruction of his house if local Catholics continued to conduct religious activities there.
On Sunday June 3, 2012, approximately 50 government officials also acted to disrupt Mass. Public security agents disguised as churchgoers tried to turn off the PA’s amplifier and physically stop a member of the congregation from making his scheduled announcement of the Lord’s commands. The government’s operation was led by the Chairman of the Fatherland Front of Con Cuong District.
These latest incidents followed a pattern of government interference with the Con Cuong Catholics’ right to practice their faith. In 2011, the government had conducted many acts of aggression, including the use of home- made bombs to cause heavy damages to the chapel in the night of November 30, 2011.
According to Rev. Pham Ngoc Quang, the priest previously in charge of the Con Cuong Catholics, he had represented the 241 local Catholics in registering their religious activities, not once, but on three separate occasions, in compliance with Vietnam’s Ordinance on Belief and Religion. Yet the government continued its campaign to disrupt their religious activities.
“I emphasized to the government that religious freedom is every citizen’s right, whether each person believes or not. Vietnam’s constitution and law gave citizens rights that they should be able to exercise,” Rev. Quang said last year during an interview on Radio Free Asia.
In recent days the Con Cuong government has sent its agents to each Catholic household in the district to intimidate people into signing an agreement not to attend Mass held at the chapel. This tactic is not new; it was used in 2010 by other local authorities in Vinh Diocese.
The Nghe An government had used the same approach to stop Catholic college students from conducting after-school religious activities at a private home. It had used force against the college students, including hiring thugs to block the students from coming to the house, disrupting their religious activities, and even beating up the students while they were in the house. Finally, the government and the Nghe An Pedagogy College worked together in coercing students to sign an agreement with the clause “no religious activities in private homes”. Nearly all the Catholic students protested and refused to sign, in a display of their faith and courage.
Three leading members of the coordinating committee of the Catholic college students in Vinh Diocese were arrested in August 2011 and charged with “conducting propaganda against the Socialist Republic of Vietnam” according to Article 88 of the Criminal Code.
Recently, Vinh Diocese sent a formal complaint to the government and used its official communication channels to denounce the government’s violation of religious freedom in Con Cuong District.
In his statement of July 4, Bishop Hop expressed solidarity with the Catholic priests and believers in Con Cuong: “Although I am thousands of miles away, more than ever I am in communion and solidarity with my brothers and sisters in my prayers. I pray to God to support and help us stand strong in our faith, regardless of all the adversities.”
The Bishop asked that his statement be read at all Sunday Masses held in Vinh Diocese this Sunday.
