A 58-year-old Catholic priest, Thadeus Nguyen Van Ly, had his sentenced reduced by five years on June 16 for what Vietnam's official news agency refers to as "good conduct." Van Ly was sentenced to fifteen years in prison in 2001, accused of attacking national unity. This was reduced to ten years in July 2003. It has now been reduced to five years in prison and five years of house arrest.
Sources for the Catholic news agency AsiaNews claim that Van Ly had written letters praising Vietnamese socialism and the policies of the Communist Party. These letters were shown by Vietnamese authorities to a Vatican delegation in April 2004. Those allowed to visit him report symptoms of mental imbalance and suspect that drugs have been used in his "re-education." One Vietnamese priest expects that he will be released soon, since the government now has nothing to fear. AsiaNews reports that this announcement came just prior to meetings between government leaders and representatives from the European Union.
Vietnam has been under pressure from the international community for its deplorable human rights record. Last week the Persecution and Prayer Alert reported on the arrest of Nguyen Hong Quang, a leading church leader and human rights activist. We encourage Christians to politely call on government authorities to act to secure the release of Quang, Van Ly and other prisoners of conscience in Vietnam. For contact information, click here.
For more information on persecution of the Church in Vietnam, click here.
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