Free Father Nguyen Van Ly!

Remember all journalists in prison!

The names of cyberdissidents as tracked by Reporters Without Borders:

• January 2007 - Tran Quoc Hien, opposition activist
• 23 April 2007 - Tran Khai Thanh Thuy , writer
• 6 March 2007 - Le Thi Cong Nhan, lawyer
• 6 March 2007 - Nguyen Van Dai, lawyer (pictured)
• 18 August 2006 - Truong Quoc Huy, cyber-dissident
• August 2006 - Huynh Nguyen Dao ("Huynh Viet Lang"), journalist
• August 2006 - Le Nguyen Sang ("Nguyen Hoang Long"), doctor
• July 2006 - Nguyen Bac Truyen, opposition activist

And, of course, on the list of traditional journalists is Father Nguyen Van Ly, imprisoned March 30, 2007, editor of Tu do Ngôn luan.

A letter from behind bars

An excerpt printed by Reporters Without Borders:

K1 Prison, Nam Ha, 5 May 2007

My Dear Friends,

May the resurrected Christ and the Virgin of Lavang always be with you! Please convey my respects and my best wishes to all those dear to me.

After the Têt Dinh Hoi, our sister X and her family visited me three times in Huê but they were not able to see me. I thank them very much.

I have been in this old camp since immediately after the court hearings of 30 March. I have now been hear more than a month and I have still not had any news of the family or parish. I do not know why. Therefore, tell sisters X and my nephews X... to come and see me and to bring me the following four items as soon as possible:

  Warm clothes (woolen cap, woolen scarf, winter sock...), most of these things are still at the presbytery. I also need a blanket that is not too thick and warm clothes.
  Necessary articles (glasses, dictionary with large letters, Vien Ngon Ngu hoc edition), which are at Bên Cui, as well as tonics.
  There are still supplies at Bên Cui, there is no need to buy them, also ordinary medicines (...)

If the family is busy and cannot come, X should send them to me in a package. We have the right to receive a 5-kg package each month. The first time, send me the glasses, two dictionaries and the essential things. The subsequent times, you should add newspapers about legislation (...) My lung ailment has stabilised.

I embrace you all,

Father Thaddée Nguyen Van LY
K1 Nam Ha, Ba Sao
Kim Bang, Ha Nam province

In Father Ly's own words

From his own testimony to Congress in 2001:

While trying to recruit support from your country, Ho Chi Minh himself opened the Declaration of Independence of Vietnam on September 2, 1945 to start the Democratic Republic of Vietnam with a clause from the Declaration of Independence of America in 1776: "All men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness."

Despite a short history of 250 years, the United States, with the 1776 Declaration of Independence, has become the pioneer providing the world with the proper and complete concepts of FREEDOM and INDEPENDENCE. Today, anyone who wishes to learn the meaning of freedom and independence can just come and observe your people and your country to fully understand it.

...Right from the start, when Ho Chi Minh set the three goals of independence, freedom, and happiness for the country but dictated socialism and communism as the way to achieve them, Vietnamese communists have contradicted themselves. The goals of independence, freedom, and happiness for the country, and for religions in particular, will not be achieved as long as the Vietnamese communists still adhere to the methodology of socialism and communism. By nature, these two doctrines include totalitarianism which can never tolerate true and full freedom. Today, many conscientious communists themselves have admitted to this fact.

At this very moment, anywhere in our beloved country, one can see the slogan "Nothing is more precious than independence and freedom." Ironically, maybe because they are so precious and rare, it can be said very precisely that nobody anywhere in our entire country is living with independence or freedom. My absence from this forum is another clear evidence of that lack of independence and freedom. For years, young people in our country have walked with the banners of "Nothing is more precious than independence and freedom" through countless gatherings and marches. The fact is they still thirst and long for that true freedom. ...

Read the whole thing!

Put this on your site!

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Sign a petition for human rights in Vietnam!

Head over and make your mark on an online petition condemning the Vietnamese government's abuses of human rights! Make sure that our Congress and executive branch keep the Vietnamese people first as the communist regime pushes for a greater role on the global economic stage.

Farmers' union crushed

Amnesty International has urged a letter-writing campaign to Vietnamese authorities over the government crackdown on the newly formed United Workers-Farmers Organization, which among other things called for justice in government land and property seizures. Members Tran Quoc Hien, Nguyen Tan Hoanh, Tran Thi Le Hang (pictured), Doan Huy Chuong and his father Doan Van Dien were arrested; Tran Quoc Hien was tried on May 15 and sentenced to three years in prison for "conducting propaganda" against the state and two years for "disrupting security" (translation: standing up for people's inherent property rights and daring to stand up against the communist regime). The status of the other four UWFO members is unknown.

Vietnamese leader's visit protested

And what a horrible story lede from the San Diego Union-Tribune about Friday's protest in Dana Point:

"Thirty years of bitterness over Vietnam's failed democracy spilled out onto the otherwise sleepy streets of this beach town yesterday."

So Vietnamese protest just because they've been bitter for three decades? What a blatantly unfair and prejudicial statement. The Vietnamese community protested Nguyen Minh Triet wherever he went because of what's happening today, not because of what happened 30 years ago. Particularly in this age of new media, the communist regime is scared to death of the reach of cyberdissidents and political movements, and thus is cracking down on journalists and pro-democracy activists as never before.

"'We enjoy the freedoms here, but we don't forget about the people' still in Vietnam, (Loc) Nguyen said. 'We owe the Vietnamese people. We have to speak for them.'"

Free Father Nguyen Van Ly!

Welcome to the blog dedicated to securing the release of Father Nguyen Van Ly! For those unfamiliar with this human-rights case, we invite you to stick around and learn more about the Roman Catholic priest and famous dissident who currently sits in jail for advocating democracy in his homeland of Vietnam. Because of Father Ly's dedication to the Bloc 8406 movement and human and religious rights in Vietnam, this site will not be limited to Father Ly's case. We hope to spread the word about all of Vietnam's political prisoners, and keep the world updated about their cases.

Because there is strength in vocal numbers, we encourage other blogs and organizations to get out the word about Father Ly and the human-rights abuses in Vietnam. Let us know if you link to this site, and we'll add you to the blogroll of supporters. Let your readers get involved in the struggle for democracy and human rights -- we'll be posting links to petitions and other ways in which readers can help heap pressure on the Vietnamese regime.

By uniting together across the globe in support of Vietnam's brave dissidents, we can change the world! Take that step and join us today!