FOREIGN MINISTRY COMMENTS ON WHEREABOUTS OF UBCV

UNCLAS HANOI 002610 SIPDIS SENSITIVE STATE FOR EAP/BCLTV E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PHUM VM HUMANR RELFREE SUBJECT: FOREIGN MINISTRY COMMENTS ON WHEREABOUTS OF UBCV PATRIARCH THICH HUYEN QUANG AND PARTY REF: HCMC 0978 (NOTAL) ¶1. (SBU) On October 10, Charge and Acting POLOFF met with Assistant Foreign Minister Nguyen Duc Hung to express our concern about the apparent police actions this week to interfere in the travel of Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang, his deputy Thich Quang Do, and several other monks of the same order (ref). He also raised unconfirmed reports that police officials returned the monks to their home pagodas in different provinces, instead of letting them all travel together to HCMC as planned, and then detained them for questioning. He said the apparent heavy-handed police treatment of the monks was in sharp contrast to the reception that Thich Huyen Quang received during his call on Prime Minister Phan Van Khai earlier in the year, and was an unwelcome prelude to the visit next week of Ambassador at Large for Religious Freedoms John Hanford. Charge urged the GVN to follow its international commitments, as well as its own laws, and fully respect the human rights of its citizens, including freedom of religion, assembly, and movement. ¶2. (SBU) Hung responded that he "agreed with" the Charge's assessment of the unfortunate timing of the police actions, but assured the Charge that the reports of the monks' problems, particularly reports emanating from exiled Buddhist groups in Paris "with an agenda," were "inaccurate." Hung stated that it was not Vietnamese officials or police who were interfering with the monks' travel in Binh Dinh, but rather "local supporters who did not wish to see the monks leave." Hung added that the government could "not control the actions of all people in Vietnam," but was now "ensuring the safety of all involved in the incident." He stated that "both Thich Huyen Quang and Thich Quang Do were now safely back in their respective pagodas in Binh Dinh and HCMC. He further added that "no detentions or suppression of freedoms of either monk have occurred, but caveated this statement by clarifying that his understanding was based on "preliminary information." ¶3. (U) ConGen HCMC is reporting additional information septel. PORTER