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| A checkpoint on the road to Dong Chiem |
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| New Cross erected |
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| Parishioners with mourning turbans on their heads |
Ten bishops of all dioceses in the North of Vietnam met at Hanoi Archbishopric Office on Jan. 8, two days after the police attack at Dong Chiem. In the statement afterwards, the Catholic leaders stated that they were dismayed seeing the destruction of sacred symbols of faith and brutally physical attacks against faithful of religions are “two major ingredients forming the common policy of the government in handling disputes with religions that have been employed at Tam Toa and Bau Sen (in the diocese of Vinh), and at Loan Ly (in the archdiocese of Hue).”
After the Vatican visit of Vietnam Chairman Nguyen Minh Triet, there has been a glimmer hope that tough issues between the Church in Vietnam and the government would be resolved soon and peacefully through dialogue. That hope seems to be short-lived when the government opted for violence as a method of choice at Dong Chiem.
Warning the government on the danger of applying extreme measures capable of causing suspicion, distrust and outburst of emotion among Vietnamese people, the bishops repeated the call of the Episcopal Conference of Vietnam for the government to change the land and property laws.
Vietnam government denies any right of ownership, insisting that in the communist country "the land belongs to the people and the state manages it for the people." But bishops have repeatedly demanded that the government must take the right to own private property into consideration as stated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others.” and “No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.”
In conclusion, bishops expressed that “the Church in Vietnam wants to contribute to the building of a great family in which all members can coexist peacefully with mutual respect. It must be the common goal of any political systems, we think.”
After the meeting, Archbishop Joseph Ngo Quang Kiet and others visited parishioners who were brutally beaten by police.
In a gesture of defiance, Catholics in Dong Chiem have erected another large cross made from bamboo right at the place of the demolished crucifix. Police immediately arrested five of them but made no further effort to remove the cross. The whereabouts of the captives remains unknown.
Priests throughout the archdiocese have come to Dong Chiem to offer their sympathy and console parishioners with con-celebrated Masses. All churchgoers wear mourning turbans on their heads to express their sorrow and grief.
Police in the area have been put in high alert. They have blocked access to the area with numerous makeshift checkpoints built in hurry to turn back all foreigners and those suspected of being Catholic.
The Church tries its best to calm down its faithful. However, the situation in Dong Chiem might “spin out of control” as the government has kicked off a state media campaign to spread negative images of Catholics while distorting the truth, defaming religion and promoting hatred between Catholics and non-Catholics.
The New Hanoi newspaper has fiercely attacked Fr. Joseph Nguyen Van Huu, pastor of Dong Chiem. It seems to want to make war with Catholics threatening them with the fury of government thugs while calling the government for extreme actions.
In recent disputes with religions, “hired thugs” and “disaffected youth” have been sent out like loose cannons to attack Catholic priests, Buddhist monks and faithful of religions.