The Norwegian Ambassador to Vietnam, H.E. Kjell Storløkken and the First Secretary of the Norwegian Embassy in charge of Political and Economic affairs, Mr. Fredrik Steen, paid a visit to Venerable Thich Quang Do (right), the 2006 Rafto Prize Laureate and Deputy leader of the outlawed Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV). The meeting took place on 2 July at the Thanh Minh Zen Monastery in Ho Chi Minh City, where Thich Quang Do is currently under house arrest (04-JUL-07).

Source and pictures: The press release from the International Buddhist Information Buerau, Paris of 3 July. Re-published by Gunta Venge, the Rafto Human Rights House

Human rights dialogue with Vietnam
The visit follows a recent debate in the Norwegian parliament in which political groups from right to left unanimously denounced the escalation of human rights abuses in Vietnam, and mandated the Norwegian government and its Embassy in Hanoi to closely monitor the situation of democracy activists and human rights defenders. The Norwegian Parliament particularly denounced the treatment of Venerable Thich Quang Do, laureate of the 2006 Rafto Prize and 2007 Nobel Peace prize nominee. Thich Quang Do was not allowed to travel to Norway to receive the prize in November 2006, and in March 2007, Rafto representative Therese Jebsen was arrested as she visited the Thanh Minh Zen Monastery and tried to hand the Rafto Award Diploma to Thich Quang Do.

Thich Quang Do.jpgHanoi claims it is committed to “Buddhist reunification” – is it so?
Speaking with UBCV International Spokesman Vo Van Ai by mobile telephone, Venerable
Thich Quang Do described the 90-minute meeting as very friendly, open and positive. Thich Quang Do told the Norwegian Ambassador that Hanoi was implementing a two-fold policy aimed at suppressing religions in general, and the UBCV in particular. On the one hand, the regime uses blatant repression, harassment, detention, house arrest and even murder to stifle and eliminate UBCV leaders and followers. On the other hand, it implements tactics ranging from coercion, intimidation to persuasion and enticement to force or lure UBCV monks to join State-sanctioned bodies, thus turning them into agents of the Communist Party and pawns in the State’s efforts to control the mass of Buddhist followers.

Because Vietnam is striving to integrate the international community and exhibit “Communism with a human face”, Hanoi cannot organize brutal crackdowns or hold publicized trials against Buddhists as in the past. Today, Thich Quang Do explained, repression is much more insidious and sophisticated. In this period marred by conflicts based on religious fundamentalism, Hanoi is trying to discredit the UBCV and frighten away international opinion by portraying the UBCV leaders as “political”, “extremist”, “seeking to overthrow the regime”. This is totally untrue, said Thich Quang Do, stressing that Hanoi’s real aim is to suppress and eliminate the independent UBCV because of its peaceful demands for religious freedom and human rights. Hanoi claims it is committed to “Buddhist reunification” – but if this were true, he said, the Communist leadership would let Buddhists meet freely to work out these issues amongst themselves without political interference.