Eight parishioners who were tried on Monday have been admired by Catholics as heroes for their characters at the trial. A bishop wrote a letter to congratulate them, Redemptorists and parishioners of Thai Ha.
In a letter sent to Fr. Vincent Pham Trung Thanh, the Superior of Redemptorist province in Vietnam, Bishop Joseph Vu Van Thien of Hai Phong congratulated Redemptorists, parishioners of Thai Ha and especially the eight Catholic defendants describing them as heroes who dared to fight for justice and the truth even at the cost of their freedom.
Immediately after the trial, state-owned media reported falsely that Catholic defendants “admitted their sins” and therefore “received light sentences according to tolerant policies of the party and the government.”
However, both Fr. Peter Nguyen Van Khai, spokesperson of Hanoi Redemptorists, who attended the trial, and Mr. Le Tran Luat, the lawyer of the defendants said that again “state-owned media keep lying their audiences with fabricated stories.”
Peacefully but stubbornly, the defendants denied all charged accused on them by the government. Following the footsteps of Vietnamese martyrs, they spoke out the truth on their protests for the requisition of the land seized legally by local officials. Fr. Peter Nguyen stated in a letter published today.
Normally, when a judge orders a verdict of suspended jail term sentence, a defendant would thank him and express his happiness for being allowed to walk free from the court. The judge in the Monday trial was astonished when all of Catholic defendants stated that the sentences laid on them were unjust and they would appeal against the decision insisting that they were completely innocent and ready to fight for justice until it would prevail.
In the letter bishop Joseph Vu also asked for more intense prayers for the Church in Vietnam in this difficult time.
In a letter sent to Fr. Vincent Pham Trung Thanh, the Superior of Redemptorist province in Vietnam, Bishop Joseph Vu Van Thien of Hai Phong congratulated Redemptorists, parishioners of Thai Ha and especially the eight Catholic defendants describing them as heroes who dared to fight for justice and the truth even at the cost of their freedom.
Immediately after the trial, state-owned media reported falsely that Catholic defendants “admitted their sins” and therefore “received light sentences according to tolerant policies of the party and the government.”
However, both Fr. Peter Nguyen Van Khai, spokesperson of Hanoi Redemptorists, who attended the trial, and Mr. Le Tran Luat, the lawyer of the defendants said that again “state-owned media keep lying their audiences with fabricated stories.”
Peacefully but stubbornly, the defendants denied all charged accused on them by the government. Following the footsteps of Vietnamese martyrs, they spoke out the truth on their protests for the requisition of the land seized legally by local officials. Fr. Peter Nguyen stated in a letter published today.
Normally, when a judge orders a verdict of suspended jail term sentence, a defendant would thank him and express his happiness for being allowed to walk free from the court. The judge in the Monday trial was astonished when all of Catholic defendants stated that the sentences laid on them were unjust and they would appeal against the decision insisting that they were completely innocent and ready to fight for justice until it would prevail.
In the letter bishop Joseph Vu also asked for more intense prayers for the Church in Vietnam in this difficult time.