Vietnamese government officials have moved to seize the property of a Catholic monastery in Hue province, in the latest in a series of steps to appropriate real estate from Church ownership.
Police raided the monastery of Thien An on June 26, drawing a formal protest from Abbot Nguyen Van Duc. The abbot said that the government's bid for control of the 100-acre property, based on a unilateral decree dating back to 1998, is illegal.
Last year local officials prevented monks from building a roof on an outdoor shrine, saying that construction on the site would be illegal. Since that time the monks have been subjected to periodic police raids and harrassment.
Police raided the monastery of Thien An on June 26, drawing a formal protest from Abbot Nguyen Van Duc. The abbot said that the government's bid for control of the 100-acre property, based on a unilateral decree dating back to 1998, is illegal.
Last year local officials prevented monks from building a roof on an outdoor shrine, saying that construction on the site would be illegal. Since that time the monks have been subjected to periodic police raids and harrassment.