An Open Letter To President George W. Bush
Dear Mr. President,
Like the vast majority of Vietnamese people inside Vietnam, we aspire to a democratic form of government which alone would insure a stable and steady progress towards a Vietnam fully reconciled with its own people. Convinced of this truth, we cannot but rejoice at the steady progress of democracy since 1989: first in the Baltic nations and Eastern Europe, then in the Soviet Union, followed by the liberation of Afghanistan (2001) and Iraq (2003), the Orange Revolution in Ukraine, and the Rose Revolution in Georgia (both in 2004) etc. Witnessing all that, we welcome the far-sighted policy of the United States as reiterated by you in your second inaugural speech on January 20th, 2005: “Who live in tyranny and hopelessness can know: The United States will not ignore your oppression, or excuse your oppressors. When you stand for your liberty, we will stand with you.”
Despite such progress Vietnam remains one of the few countries in the world that still adheres to the obsolescent Communist ideology, since discarded in the very cradle of Marxism-Leninism, the very center of world socialism. And because of this stubborn resistance to change put up by the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), the Vietnamese people have been robbed of practically all their fundamental human rights as defined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as adopted by the UN in 1948 and in the two International Covenants to which Vietnam has adhered since 1982 (one on Political and Civil Rights and the other on Social, Educational and Economic Rights). As a result, all the media are in government hands: the printed press, radio, television and even printing facilities. All religious activities are strictly under government control. The citizens have no right to voice any opinion contrary to official policy, even when such opinions are in the interest of the nation. All dissenting views, even when peacefully expressed, are suppressed and their authors threatened with jail terms and harassed. Human Rights Watch, Reporters Without Border, Amnesty International, and the US International Commission On Religious Freedom have repeatedly criticized the Vietnamese government for its abuses of human rights.
That all such abuses could take place was due to only one factor: the monopoly of all power by the Communist Party of Vietnam. The Party is enshrined in the Vietnamese constitution of 1992, Article 4 of which reads: “The Communist Party of Vietnam, the vanguard of the working class, the faithful deputy of the interest of the working class and of the whole people, follower of Marxism-Leninism and the thoughts of Ho Chi Minh, is the force leading the government and society.” No wonder the CPV arrogates to itself the right to plunder the national budget as sanctioned in Article 46 of the party rules: “The finances of the party comprise membership fees payable by the members, contributions from businesses, enterprise units of the party, the national budget, and other sources of income.”
That is why, since 1975, many voices have been raised inside the country, calling for human rights and a democratic way of life, despite the dire consequences to themselves and their families. The most Venerables Thich Huyen Quang and Thich Quang Do, Reverend Nguyen Van Ly, Pastor Nguyen Hong Quang, Messrs. Le Quang Liem, Nguyen Dan Que, Hoang Minh Chinh, Pham Que Duong, Tran Khue, Nguyen Thanh Giang, Ha Sy Phu and many others have been harassed, put on trial, deprived of gainful employment, imprisoned and exiled, and even when released submitted to house arrest. Yet the ranks of these democratic voices keep growing, joined by young cyberdissidents such as Messrs. Pham Hong Son, Nguyen Vu Binh, Nguyen Khac Toan, and Phuong Nam Do Nam Hai.
Dear Mr. President, when Prime Minister Phan Van Khai of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam sees you today, it would be consonant with your beliefs to remind him of Hanoi’s obligation to respect human rights; release all prisoners of conscience; return self-governance to religious congregations; restore freedom of the press; and above all, abolish Article 4 of the 1992 Constitution. This would in effect bring about a multiparty system, in which the people shall have the right to choose their national leaders by their free votes.
To support the struggle for democracy and human rights in Vietnam not only coincides with the general trend of global democratization, it is also in consonance with the U.S.’s long-term strategic interests. Only when Vietnam has a true government of the people, by the people, and for the people, will it be trusted as a stalwart and stable ally of America in its effort to bring peace and stability to Southeast Asia and the Asian Pacific region.
Washington D.C., June 21st, 2005