News

AP : Report : Vietnamese monks from banned church holed up in a minivan

    HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Eleven followers of a banned church, including eight monks, were holed up in a minivan and refusing to eat Wednesday after their vehicle was surrounded by Vietnamese authorities, a Buddhist support organization said. The monks, from the banned Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam, were …

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Reuters : Vietnam Buddhist monks stopped by security – report

HANOI, Oct 8 (Reuters) – Two leaders of a banned Vietnam Buddhist group were prevented from leaving their monastery on Wednesday by security forces who surrounded their vehicle, sparking a standoff, a Buddhist group said. The International Buddhist Information Bureau said in a statement that Thich Huyen Quang, patriarch of …

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AFP : Police in Vietnam obstruct assembly of banned Buddhist church : UBCV

HANOI, Sept 19, 2003 (AFP) – Security forces have intimidated members of the banned Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV) against attending an assembly overseen by the church’s highest leaders, the church said Friday. Only 10 monks attended the meeting at Nguyen Thieu monastery in central Binh Dinh province, including …

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dpa : Vietnam-Dissident – Rights group slams Vietnam’s announcement about dissident monk feared kidnapped

    HANOI, Sept 16, 2003 (dpa) – A human rights group Tuesday disputed Vietnam’s assertion that a prominent dissident Buddhist monk was arrested last year in Vietnam, rather than being abducted from Cambodia as the group claims. Thich Tri Luc, also known as Pham Van Tuong, was abducted from …

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dpa : Vietnam defends Internet restrictions, denies thwarting free speech

HANOI, June 19, 2003 (dpa) – One day after a court sentenced a leading Internet dissident to 13 years in prison, Vietnam defended its tight control over cyberspace and said the communist government does not suppress freedom of speech. “We don’t agree with critics saying that Vietnam restricts Internet usage,” …

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dpa : Press freedom group slams dissident’s harsh prison sentence

HANOI, June 19, 2003 (dpa) – Human rights groups, Vietnamese democracy activists and Hanoi-based diplomats on Thursday condemned Vietnam’s sentencing of a critic of the communist regime to 13 years in prison. Pham Hong Son, 35, was arrested in March 2002, and was convicted in Hanoi People’s Court Wednesday of …

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dpa : Vietnam says jailed dissident monk may be released before September

HANOI, June 5 (dpa) – A prominent dissident Buddhist monk currently under house arrest may be released before the end of his sentence in September, Vietnam’s spokeswoman said Thursday. Thich Quang Do, the deputy head of the banned Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (U.B.C.V.) was sentenced in 1995 to five …

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Overseas Congregations of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam in the United States, Europe and Australia call for the release of Venerable Thich Quang Do and the right to existence of the banned UBCV

Overseas congregations of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV) in Europe, Canada, the United States, Australia and New Zealand have launched a pressing appeal to the Vietnamese authorities to release detained UBCV leaders Thich Huyen Quang and Thich Quang Do, re-establish the legitimacy of the banned UBCV, and adopt …

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dpa : European Parliament ‘alarmed’ at Vietnam dissident crackdown

HANOI, May 16, 2003 (dpa) – The European Parliament has passed a resolution expressing alarm at Vietnam’s arrest of dissidents and a crackdown on non-approved religions, a day after a United States commission condemned Hanoi for its record on religious rights. The resolution, passed Thursday, calls on Hanoi to release …

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Freedom from Fear : Patriarch Thich Huyen Quang issues Vesak Message to Buddhists in Vietnam – UBCV leaders Thich Huyen Quang and Thich Quang Do hold new talks in Ho Chi Minh City

In his traditional Message to Vietnamese Buddhists on the 2547th Anniversary of the Vesak (Birth of Buddha) on 15th May 2003, the Most Venerable Thich Huyen Quang, Patriarch of the banned Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV) has launched a pressing appeal to monks, nuns and lay-followers to free themselves …

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