Recognizing and honoring the tenth anniversary of Vietnam Human Rights Day.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding me this time, and I rise today to support H. Res. 613, recognizing and honoring the tenth anniversary of Vietnam Human Rights Day.

Vietnam Human Rights Day serves as an important commemoration of the extensive struggle the Vietnamese people have endured for many years in their ongoing fight for basic human rights and freedom.

Ten years ago, the United States ended its trade embargo with Vietnam and normalized relations with Hanoi. While the U.S. continues to open diplomatic relations with Vietnam, we must remember that many issues remain unresolved, including human rights violations, lack of religious freedom, and government corruption.

I traveled to Vietnam in 1998 to learn about these issues firsthand, as well as to raise these concerns with high-level officials. In addition, the large Vietnamese-American community in the 11th district, which I represent, continues to update me on continuing concerns.

As a member of the Vietnam Caucus, I am dedicated to promoting awareness and public policy debates among the U.S. Congress, the American public, and the international community about the greater need for fundamental human rights in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

House Resolution 613 recognizes the important contributions made by Nguyen Dan Que, the author of the Manifesto of the Non-Violent Movement for Human Rights, and uncounted numbers of innocent Vietnamese for their nonviolent struggles for freedom and human rights.

Dr. Que is one of the most vocal advocates for freedom, democracy, and human rights in Vietnam. Since 1975, Dr. Que has refused to leave Vietnam, and he has turned down an offer to resettle in the United States or to live in exile. He has consciously chosen to stay in Vietnam to speak out and defend human dignity and the rights of all Vietnamese people. He is a profile of courage.

The Vietnamese Communist government has arrested Dr. Que three times for his unrelenting pursuit of human

dignity and freedom. He has been imprisoned off and on for nearly 20 years, beginning in 1978 through the present. During Dr. Que's captivity, he was imprisoned without trial, tortured, beaten, and put into solitary confinement in chains, accused of trying to overthrow the government, charged with espionage, and is now being held in strict incommunicado.

Undaunted, during his time he remained the strongest voice inside Vietnam for equality and dignity. On May 11, 1990, Dr. Que founded the Nonviolent Movement For Human Rights, issuing a manifesto that appealed to individuals and groups inside Vietnam and throughout the world for support of his moderate, nonviolent struggle to establish human rights for all Vietnamese people.

The arrests of Dr. Que, along with many others, demonstrate the ongoing human rights abuses and lack of religious freedom in Vietnam. We must continue to bring attention to these issues, generate pressure on Vietnamese officials, and hold the Vietnamese Government accountable.

It is only through the hard work and effort of individuals such as Dr. Que and the support of the international community that we can bring an end to human rights abuses and religious persecution in Vietnam. My resolution urges all Americans to share in the commemoration of Vietnam Human Rights Day and to have a greater appreciation of the role it has played in helping to defend and further the liberties and freedom of all Vietnamese people.

I am hopeful H. Res. 613 will serve as a small stepping stone towards the ultimate liberation and freedom of the Vietnamese people. However, at the least, I believe it will bring much needed additional awareness to the atrocities committed by the Socialist Republic of Vietnam every day on its own citizens. I urge my colleagues to join me in the passage of this important resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me this time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 613, the resolution which recognizes the 10th anniversary of Vietnam Human Rights Day, which is today, May 11. I thank the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Tom Davis) for sponsoring this resolution and allowing me to be an original cosponsor; and I am proud to share with the gentleman membership in the Vietnam Caucus, along with the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lofgren) and the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith). The initiatives of the caucus, including this bill, are examples of what we can accomplish when we decide to work together in a bipartisan manner.

Mr. Speaker, I represent the largest Vietnamese community in the world outside of Vietnam in Orange County, California. It is fitting then to speak on the House floor about this anniversary of Vietnam Human Rights Day. More importantly, it is the 14-year anniversary of the Manifesto of the Nonviolent Movement For Human Rights. This was written by a courageous and bright man, Dr. Nguyen Dan Que. I have had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Que. In fact, I went to his home in 1998 when I was in Vietnam. As we were meeting, his home all locked up, the military police came to the home to try to get me out of there. Of course we had locked up the house, and we continued our conversation.

One of the things that Dr. Que said to me was that it was important for America and Americans to continue to push for human rights in Vietnam. What type of human rights are we talking about here? Well, the right to assemble as we do here today, that is not allowed in Vietnam. The right to choose your own God and the way you want to worship that God, that is not allowed. You have to only do it through the official church or churches that the state of Vietnam approves. The right to free press. Every piece of paper written to be distributed must be done by the state in Vietnam. In fact, when I was meeting with the cardinal of the Catholic Church of Vietnam, he said one of the things that he cannot do is to hand out a newsletter to people that come to church on Sunday. The right to collectively bargain one's labor for decent wages and a decent place to work.

All of these things are not allowed in Vietnam, and this is what Dr. Que speaks to. He speaks to the human rights issues within Vietnam. I guess the most important thing that Dr. Que said to me that day in 1998 was that the reason we need to keep pushing for human rights in Vietnam is that it inspires and it gives hope and it gives courage to those within Vietnam who are fighting for basic human rights. Religious leaders like the Venerable Tic Kwzug Doh; a geologist like Gizug; and General Do, whom I had an opportunity to meet with, who had been a former communist and understood what was going on in the country and decided he would speak out; and, yes, Dr. Que.

Mr. Speaker, these are just a few of the dissidents within Vietnam who speak every day; and yet each and every one has been imprisoned, either taken away without charges or with false charges, or imprisoned in house arrest.

I hope today we will vote this unanimously to send a strong message that human rights are important in every country, and in particular for those who have not seen them for a long time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H. Res. 613, recognizing Vietnam Human Rights Day. This resolution marks the tenth anniversary of the day the Manifesto of the Nonviolent Movement for Human Rights in Vietnam was announced. This landmark document was written in 1994 by the great human rights leader Dr. Nguyen Dan Que, who called for an end to human rights violations in Vietnam.

Dr. Que is one of the most prominent advocates for democracy, freedom and human rights in Vietnam. He has remained in Vietnam since 1975, after the fall of Saigon and the departure of the last American troops. Even in the face of significant peril, Dr. Que defied the communist regime by speaking out in defense of human dignity and the rights of all Vietnamese people. He has been imprisoned intermittently for the past 20 years, and remains under constant supervision and subject to frequent harassment by the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. He continues his struggle in order to focus the world's attention to the thousands of his countrymen and fellow dissidents who are also harassed, tortured or imprisoned for openly criticizing the government.

One such dissident is Father Thaddeus Nguyen Ly, a Roman Catholic priest who was invited to testify before the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom in 2001. Although he was denied permission to leave his country to testify in person, his statement cited several specific actions taken by the Government of Vietnam that violated religious freedom and which he described as ``extremely cruel.'' He called for a ``non violent and persistent campaign'' to achieve full religious freedom for all people in Vietnam.

The Vietnamese government imprisoned Father Ly on the basis of that testimony. He was branded a traitor for ``slandering'' the Communist party, and ``distorting'' the religious policy of the government. Father Ly was arrested and tried without the benefit of counsel. In a trial that lasted only a single day, he was convicted of all charges and sentenced to fifteen years in prison and an additional five years of administrative probation. Father Ly's nephews were also imprisoned, further demonstrating this case of egregious oppression of human rights and its devastating impact on Father Ly's family.

Mr. Speaker, it has been ten years since the United States ended its trade embargo with Vietnam and normalized relations with Hanoi under the policy known as ``constructive engagement,'' which has proven effective with our previously closed societies in which human rights violations were prevalent. While the U.S. continues to open diplomatic relations with Vietnam, we must continue to advance constructive engagement to ensure a more open, democratic and prosperous Vietnamese society. It is our responsibility to promote greater freedom of speech and religion and greater respect for basic human rights in Vietnam.

Mr. Speaker, human rights shall always remain a firm pillar of U.S. foreign policy. Accordingly, I thank the gentleman from Virginia for introducing this important resolution and I urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, during the month of May, we celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage to commemorate the contributions Asian Pacific Americans have made to the fabric of our communities and to this nation as a whole. I could easily spend this month, and longer, describing the tremendous accomplishments of Asian Pacific Americans.

However, today is the tenth anniversary of Vietnam Human Rights Day and we sadly must recognize that Vietnam has not come far enough in respecting the human rights of its citizens.

Just one month ago, on Easter Week, Human Rights Watch reported that peaceful protests by indigenous minority Christian Montagnards turned violent when police used tear gas, electric truncheons, and water cannons on protestors. Reports indicate that police arrested several individuals, many whose whereabouts are currently unknown. Worse yet are reports of torture, police beatings, and deaths associated with this crackdown on the Montagnards.

Today, my colleagues, Congressman Chris Smith, Tom Davis, Loretta Sanchez and I

are introducing a Congressional resolution recognizing the countless number of innocent Vietnamese ``who have been tortured, imprisoned, or held under house arrest by the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.''

Also today, Congressman Smith is leading an effort, with over 100 cosponsors, to pass House Concurrent Resolution 378 to call on Vietnam to immediately release Father Thaddeus Nguyen Van Ly and condemn the ``violations of freedom of speech, religion, movement, association, and the lack of due process afforded to individuals in Vietnam.''

Ten years ago, the Congress and the Senate passed a resolution designating today, May 11th, as Vietnam Human Rights Day, recognizing that ``the United States, as the leader of the free world, has a special responsibility to safeguard freedom and promote the protection of human rights throughout the world.''

Unfortunately, President Bush and his Administration have not heeded that responsibility to safeguard human rights. Although this Administration tells me they are ``deeply troubled by the restrictions that the government of Vietnam places on its citizens' freedom of expression, as well as other human rights,'' this Administration has been initiating a new friendly relationship with the communist regime in Vietnam without demanding protection of human rights as a condition of our friendship.

The Bush Administration's hypocrisy and apathetic attitude towards human rights is unacceptable. As long as the people of Vietnam are oppressed, abused, and imprisoned, our President should first demand protection of human rights before getting friendly with a communist regime that oppresses its people.

On this 10th Anniversary of Vietnam Human Rights Day, I urge our President to condemn the Socialist Republic of Vietnam for violating human rights and I call on the Vietnamese government to protect the human rights of its citizens.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to resolution (H. Res. 613)

recognizing and honoring the tenth anniversary of Vietnam Human Rights Day.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H. Res. 613, the resolution under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, 10 years ago, the Congress designated May 11, 1994, as Vietnam Human Rights Day through a joint resolution that became Public Law 103-258. The resolution was introduced in response to the issuance of the Manifesto of the Nonviolent Movement For Human Rights in Vietnam. That manifesto, written by the great human rights leader Dr. Nguyen Dan Que, intended to push pressure on the Socialist regime in Hanoi to respect the human rights of all Vietnamese citizens.

This is the tenth anniversary of the Vietnam Human Rights Day, which is the focus of House Resolution 622, before us today. The distinguished chairman of the Committee on Government Reform, the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Tom Davis), brought forth this important resolution, and I commend him for introducing this important measure.

Mr. Speaker, while progress has been made in the fight for a free and democratic Vietnam, the regime there continues to imprison, to attack, torture, kill, and otherwise persecute many of those who publicly express their views. This resolution aims to generate valuable awareness to Hanoi's uncivilized treatment of political dissidents, and I am pleased the House is considering it this afternoon.

Mr. Speaker, it is easy to take for granted our Nation's priceless freedoms of speech and expression and, conversely, to lose track of the reality that countless people around the world in fact pay a great price to express their view. On its tenth anniversary, the principles of Vietnam Human Rights Day continue to act as an important defense of the liberties and freedoms of the Vietnamese people.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Tom Davis), the distinguished chairman of the Committee on Government Reform.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.