MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on Vitenam, in particular freedom of expression
16.4.2013 - (2013/2599(RSP))
pursuant to Rule 122 of the Rules of Procedure
Charles Tannock, Adam Bielan on behalf of the ECR Group
See also joint motion for a resolution RC-B7-0166/2013
B7‑0172/2013
European Parliament resolution on Vitenam, in particular freedom of expression
The European Parliament,
– having regard to the EU Annual Report on Human Rights 2012,
– having regard to the ongoing EU-Vietnam Trade Negotiations;
– having regard to the speech delivered by Commissioner Karel De Gucht on March 7, 2013;
– having regard to the annual capital-based Human rights dialogue, the latest one held on 25 October 2012 and the EU guidelines on Human Rights;
– having regard to the World Report 2013 on Vietnam;
– having regard to its previous resolutions on Vietnam, in particular the one of 20 January 2011 on the situation of Christians and the resolution of 26 November 2009 on the situation in Laos and Vietnam;
– having regard to the EU-Vietnam Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) signed on 27 June 2012;
– having regard to the 17th US-Vietnam Human Rights dialogue, Hanoi 12 April 2013;
– having regard to Rule 122(5) of its Rules of Procedure,
A. whereas the international community has pointed to the large and growing number of criminal convictions of peaceful protesters in Vietnam which is bidding for a seat on the UN Human Rights Council,
B. whereas in 2012, at least 40 people are known to have been convicted and sentenced to prison in trials that did not meet international standards of legal due process and at least 40 people were convicted in political trials in the first six weeks of 2013,
C. whereas Vietnam's government has opened in January the possibility to its citizens for public comment on the country Constitution and the request has resulted in massive public criticism from civil society and intellectuals,
D. whereas a group of 72 intellectuals and former officials issued an alternative constitution online and the government initiated an official campaign to suppress the critical comments about the process of amending the text,
E. whereas the government campaign appears to have been a factor in the recent arrests of human rights defenders, e.g. on December 27, 2012, of human rights-defending lawyer Le Quoc Quan, or official harassment and intimidation against critics such as the journalist Nguyen Dac Kien, and Buddhist activist Le Cong Cau which took place during February and March 2013,
F. whereas in Spetember 2012 Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung ordered the Ministry of Public Security to target blogs and websites not approved by the authorities, and to punish those who create them,
G. whereas in January 2013, 14 pro-democracy activists, including several Catholic and Protestant bloggers were sentenced to a total of over 100 years in prison on charges of “activities aimed at overthrowing the people’s administration” under Article 79 of the Criminal Code; on 4 February 2013, a group of 22 peaceful environmentalists were also condemned under Article 79 of the Criminal Code and on April 8 and April 9, bloggers Bui Thi Minh Hang and Nguyen Chi Duc were attacked while police failed to intervene,
H. whereas hundreds of people are currently imprisoned in Vietnam for their religious or political beliefs,
I. whereas in April, the government revealed a draft Decree on Management, Provision, and Use of Internet Services and Information on the Network - the decree which outlaws posting internet content that opposes the Vietnam government, national security, public order, customs and traditions, national unity, offends the reputation of an individual or group, or transgresses a number of other ill-defined areas of concern would also require domestic and foreign companies to filter whatever content the government finds objectionable,
J. whereas freedom of religion and belief is systematically repressed and the Catholic Church and "non-recognized" religions such as the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam, the Protestant churches, Cao Dai, Hoa Hao, continue to suffer from severe religious persecution;
K. whereas all religious groups must be authorised and registered by the government and overseen by government-appointed management committees, and whereas many religious organisations face a ban and persecution of their members if they wish to remain independent of the government,
L. whereas local authorities seek to prevent Catholic priests from performing masses even at the private homes of Catholic followers; whereas at least 18 members of a Buddhism-based religious group face charges under penal code article 79 for “activities aiming to overthrow the people’s administration" and many Protestant activists were sentenced to many years of imprisonment for “undermining national unity” in violation of article 87 of the penal code,
M. whereas rights activists continue to suffer from intrusive police surveillance, interrogation, monetary fines, and restrictions on domestic and international travel and several prisoners of conscience, all sentenced for ‘propaganda against the government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam’, have been detained without proper medical care although their medical condition is poor,
N. whereas in the absence of independent human rights organisations, Church leaders often take on the role of human rights defenders and fight for greater tolerance and more democratic principles,
O. whereas Vietnamese courts and the judiciary lack independence since they are firmly controlled by the government and Vietnamese law continues to authorize arbitrary “administrative detention” without trial. Under Ordinance 44 (2002) and Decree 76 (2003) persons deemed as threats to national security or public order can be placed under house arrest, involuntarily committed to mental health institutions, or detained at “re-education” centres,
P. whereas Vietnam, which after 27 years of Doi Moi has undertaken fundamental economic reforms and is aspiring to a seat on the UN Human Rights Council for the 2014 - 2016 term, should set an example by improving its human rights practices; whereas the government could start by releasing the hundreds of peaceful government critics, independent church activists, bloggers and democracy advocates imprisoned on groundless national security charges in violation of international norms for expressing peaceful dissent,
Q. whereas land confiscation continues to be a flashpoint issue on Vietnam's record, with local farmers and villagers facing unjust confiscation of their lands by government officials and private sector projects; whereas those who resist face abuses from local authorities,
1. Urges the government to cease all forms of repression against those who exercise their rights to peaceable freedom of expression, freedom of belief and religion and freedom of assembly, in accordance with international human rights standards and the Vietnamese Constitution;
2. Urges the Vietnamese government to end its escalating assault on freedom of expression on the Internet and its criminalization of bloggers and netizens;
3. Calls on the Vietnamese government to drop plans for implementing the current Decree on the Management, Provision, and Use of Internet Services and Information on the Network and removing filtering, surveillance, and other restrictions on internet usage;
4. Calls on the Vietnamese government to remove all legal hindrances to independent religious organizations to freely conduct peaceful religious activities and comply with its international obligations, which entails recognition of all religious communities and the free practice of religion and the restitution of assets arbitrarily seized by the State from the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam, the Catholic Church and any other religions communities;
5. Welcomes the fact that the government of Vietnam has issued a call for public input on its first constitutional reform since 1992 and that the deadline has now been extended until September 2013; is concerned though that this might not be enough to mark the start of any significant reform in Vietnamese politics and regrets that this public consultation has led to sanctions and pressures against those who legitimately expressed their opinions, such as the journalist Nguyen Duc Kien;
6. Welcomes the start of this public debate over the country Constitution and expresses its hope this can lead to important reforms on labour, education and human rights in a longer term; urges the Vietnamese authorities to initiate reforms on other significant issues such as rule of democracy or military policy;
7. Encourages Vietnam to move towards ratification of the Rome Statute of the International
Criminal Court (ICC) and Convention against Torture (CAT) and amend in its judicial system legal provisions that criminalize peaceful dissent, freedom of expression and religion, labour organising;
8. Condemns the use of vaguely-worded legal provisions such as articles 79, 80, 87, 88 and 91
and 258 of the Criminal Code to suppress the legitimate exercise of the rights enshrined in
the country Constitution such as freedom of expression, religion and assembly;
9. Calls on the Vietnamese government to repeal all legal provisions which intend to restrict
the right of freedom of the media and the freedom of expression;
10. Urges the government to drop all provisions that make possible land confiscation without
due process, just compensation, and independent and impartial means of legal review;
11. Calls on the government to put in place an independent national human rights commission, to receive and investigate allegations of torture or other abuses of power by public officials, including members of the security services;
12. Urges the authorities to release immediately and unconditionally all human rights defenders, political prisoners, those who peacefully and legitimately exercise their rights to freedom of expression (bloggers and netizens), and also prisoners of conscience, as their detention is a violation of human rights; also requests the authorities to guarantee their physical and psychological wellbeing in all circumstances and to offer those who need it access to good independent professional medical care;
13. Underlines the human rights dialogue between the EU and Vietnam and takes the view it should lead to tangible enhancement of the situation in Vietnam;
14. Calls on the Council and the Commission to carry out a detailed assessment of the implementation policies in the field of democracy and human rights conducted and Vietnam since the signing of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement and to report back to the Parliament;
15. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the government and parliament of Vietnam, the ASEAN Secretariat, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Secretary-General of the United Nations.