HAPPY EASTER: SOUTHERN VIETNAM RELIGIOUS FREEDOM UPDATE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HO CHI MINH CITY 000402 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM SOCI PREL PGOV KIRF PREF VM SUBJECT: HAPPY EASTER: SOUTHERN VIETNAM RELIGIOUS FREEDOM UPDATE HO CHI MIN 00000402 001.2 OF 002 ¶1. (SBU) Religious leaders from the Protestant community in southern Vietnam told us that successful Easter celebrations were another sign of continuing progress on religious freedom. The President of the GVN-recognized Southern Evangelical Church of Vietnam (SECV) said that he has not received any reports of his congregations encountering problems over Easter. While he cautioned that bad news still could filter in from more remote areas, he was pleased with the SECV's ability to organize Easter celebrations throughout the southern half of Vietnam. ¶2. (SBU) SECV leaders in the Central Highlands concurred. Pastor Rmah Loan, head of the SECV in Dak Nong Province, said that Easter celebrations were more widespread and relaxed this year than last. Pastor Siu Y Kim in Gia Lai Province reported that he had heard from 90 percent of his over 400 congregations in the province; none had reported problems. Pastor Huynh Cuong in Dak Lak told us that he is not aware of any SECV congregation in the province that was prohibited from celebrating Easter. To date, nine of the SECV's 310 congregations in the province have been recognized and 141 registered under the legal framework on religion. These congregations have been able to hold religious services without any additional permission needed or sought, the pastor told us. Another 135 congregations not yet registered were able to apply for specific permission to hold village-level Easter celebrations, and did so without incident. However, roughly 25 of the SECV's congregations in two districts were ordered not to gather in large groups, but were allowed to hold multiple, smaller Easter ceremonies. ¶3. (SBU) Pastor Pham Dinh Nhan of the United Gospel Outreach (UGOC),Pastor Doan Trung Tim of the Vietnam Good News Mission, Pastor Nguyen Ngoc Hien of the Vietnam Baptist Fellowship, and Pastor Ho Tan Khoa of the Vietnam Presbyterian church (all protect) also reported improved conditions for their congregations throughout southern and central Vietnam. None of their congregations had encountered any significant harassment in recent months. The Baptists and the UGOC were able to work smoothly with HCMC authorities to organize large Easter gatherings in multiple locations for Easter. Pastor Henry added that the Vietnam Baptist Fellowship cooperated with the Evangelical Church of Vietnam North (ECVN) to publish in Hanoi and purchase tens of thousands of bibles. (The SECV has a separate version of the New Testament published in Danang.) However, Pastor Khoa reported that authorities in Binh Phuoc province prevented a house church serving ethnic minority worshipers run by the Inter-Evangelistic Movement (another house church organization) from gathering for Easter. (Comment: We will follow up. End Comment.) ¶4. (SBU) The house church leaders also reported slow but continuing progress in securing local-level registrations for their congregations, especially in HCMC. None of the Pastors was troubled by the fact that the GVN requires house churches to register at the local level before considering provincial- and national-level registration. Pastor Henry's Baptist church has registered 20 of its 150 locations; GVN officials have told him that they will approve national-level registration for the group once 60 percent of his congregations have obtained local-level registration. The Presbyterians -- who only recently decided to apply for registration -- have had six of 116 congregations registered, five in HCMC, one in neighboring Binh Duong province. Pastor Nhan told us that he was pleased with the number of churches registered and the local level thus far and optimistic about the future. Comment -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Protestant churches in the south continue to make steady progress in their relations with government authorities and in conducting their religious affairs, in contrast to the GVN's ongoing crackdown on political dissent. The pastors noted that the GVN appears more able or inclined to differentiate between those religious leaders such as Mennonite Pastor Nguyen Hong Quang or Father Nguyen Van Ly and the vast majority of other religious groups that steer clear of politics. In fact, the house church leaders were the most upbeat and positive that we had seen in the past three years. For over a year following the GVN's creation of its legal framework on religion in 2005, these pastors had been fence-sitting, demurring on whether to register their congregations. Now they fret that the approval process is too slow. In some cases it is. We have asked each church to provide us with a comprehensive list of those congregations that have petitioned for and still await government approval HO CHI MIN 00000402 002.2 OF 002 registration and will work with the authorities to accelerate the process. End Comment. WINNICK