Mennonite Evangelists Receive Harsh Sentences

On November 12, after a four-hour trial, six Mennonite workers were convicted of "resisting officers of the law while doing their duty" and sentenced to prison.  Pastor Quang, the general secretary of the Mennonite Church in Vietnam and a human rights activist, received a three-year sentence.  The other five workers received sentences ranging from nine months to two years in prison.  Apart from seven family members, all observers, including a representative from the Canadian Consulate, were refused entry into the courthouse.

Rev. Nguyen Hong Quang

Since the initial arrest of these workers in March and June, The Voice of the Martyrs has been closely following their ordeal.  The situation began on March 2, when the workers confronted two undercover agents who had been watching the church headquarters, harassing church workers.  The agents fell while attempting to leave and, within thirty minutes, dozens of officers converged on the building, arresting the workers (for more details, click here). Three months later, Quang was also arrested.  It is suspected that "evidence" against Quang may have been coerced through torture from one or more of those previously arrested.

Human rights and religious liberty organizations from around the world have been monitoring this case, but the Vietnamese government has refused to yield to international pressure.

Pray for those serving these unjust sentences:  Rev. Nguyen Hong Quang, Pham Ngoc Thach, Nguyen Thanh Phuong, Nguyen Thanh Nhan, Le Thi Hong Lien and Nguyen Hieu Nghia.  Pray for their families and fellow Christians, as they suffer together with their loved ones.

If you would like to write to Pastor Quang or his family, you can send a letter to his home, addressed to his wife, at the following address:

Ba Le Thi Phu Dung
C5/1H Tran Nao, Khu Pho 1
Phuong Binn Khanh, Quan 2
TP Ho Chi Minh
VIETNAM

We would also encourage you to write to Vietnamese authorities on behalf of these prisoners.  You can download an advocacy pack from our website (click here).

For more information on persecution facing Christians in Vietnam , click here.