Melbourne, Oct. 10, 2008. The Australian Vietnamese Christian Association (AVCA) held a Candlelight Prayer Vigil on Friday Oct 10, 2008 to denounce the persecution of Catholics in Vietnam and appeal to the Australian government for a diplomatic intervention so that the Vietnam government immediately stops all kinds of repression and respect human rights of its own people.

The Prayer Vigil, taking place at Federation Square (at the corner of Swanston and Flinders Sts), started at 7:30 pm local time, and finish at 9:00 pm. Over 2000 people attended the event.

Bishop Hilton Deakin, Auxiliary Bishop for the Eastern Region of Melbourne; Mr Luke Donnellan, representative of the Premier of Victoria; Mr Hong Lim MP of the Lower House, member for Clayton; and other members of various Melbourne's organisations joined protestors.

Fr Anthony Nguyen, Chairman of the Australian Vietnamese Christian Association, told the protestors that “The Church in Vietnam has been suffered the harshest crackdown in decades with numerous faithful who peacefully express their views on religious freedom and human rights have been detained, or intimidated.”

To illustrate the urgency of the situation, he said: “Just yesterday, the public officer of Amnesty International has said ‘The Vietnamese government must end its intimidation and attacks against Catholics and ensure protection against violence by state-sponsored groups!’”

“Since December 2007, Catholics in Hanoi have been holding prayer vigils on Catholic Church premises, pleading for the return of the properties that had been confiscated unlawfully by the Communist regime in the 1950s,” he added.

“In response to their legitimate aspirations,” he continued, “the Vietnamese government openly persecuted them: churches ransacked, the former nunciature in Hanoi bulldozed, a peaceful religious procession ruined by tear gas, Catholic protestors beaten by police and pro-government mobs, Catholic leadership viciously defamed on state media and threatened with ‘extreme actions’”.

Recently, “authorities have also used criminal law to stifle free expression of opinion. Four protesters have been detained and charged, and numerous parishioners have been called in for questioning at police stations in recent days.”

“Not only the faithful,” he emphasised, “Catholic leaders have also been threatened. After a series of interviews with church groups, journalists and parishioners in the country, Amnesty International believes that senior church officials are at risk of arrest.”

“As a member of the UN Security Council, Vietnam should uphold human rights and international laws it has signed and pledged to obey,” he insisted.

“In this human rights crisis, AVCA turns to Australia,” he continued, “a country with a long tradition of protecting religious and human rights to respectfully ask Prime Minister Kevin Rudd to demand the Vietnam government to stop immediately all repression and respect human rights and justice.”

AVCA requests:

- That Church properties confiscated by the Government be returned to their rightful owners;
- The release of Catholics who have been arrested for holding peaceful prayer vigils in Hanoi;
- That police and other officials responsible for brutal attacks against Catholic parishioners be held accountable for their actions.

Contacts:

Fr. Anthony Nguyen.
Tel: (03) 9384 1947
Mob: 0412 560445
Email: quangsdb@yahoo.com

For more information please visit: www.vietcatholic.net