{"id":2564,"date":"2015-11-17T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2015-11-17T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/queme.org\/en\/letter-to-u-s-president-barack-obama90-international-personalities-and-csos-call-for-the-immediate-and-unconditional-release-of-vietnamese-prisoner-buddhist-monk-and-dissident-thich-quang-do\/"},"modified":"2018-11-13T07:23:08","modified_gmt":"2018-11-13T07:23:08","slug":"letter-to-president-barack-obama-90-international-personalities-and-csos-for-thich-quang-do","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/queme.org\/en\/letter-to-president-barack-obama-90-international-personalities-and-csos-for-thich-quang-do\/","title":{"rendered":"Letter to U.S. President Barack Obama:<\/em>
90 International personalities and CSOs call for the immediate and unconditional release of Vietnamese prisoner, Buddhist monk and dissident Thich Quang Do"},"content":{"rendered":"

PARIS-BERGEN, 17 November 2015 – As U.S. President Barack Obama arrives in Southeast Asia this week, ninety (90) international personalities and civil society organizations worldwide have signed a letter urging the President to press for the release of Vietnam’s most longstanding prisoner of conscience, Thich Quang Do<\/strong>, leader of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam and prominent human rights defender. (See Letter)<\/em><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Initiated by the Vietnam Committee on Human Rights (Paris) and the Rafto Foundation (Norway), together with Amnesty International, FIDH, Civil Rights Defenders, World Movement for Democracy, Lantos Foundation, PEN International, People in Need Foundation and Agir Ensemble pour les Droits de l\u2019Homme, the letter\u2019s 90 signatories include Nobel Peace Prize laureates Jody Williams, Shirin Ebadi, Mairead Maguire<\/strong> and Tawakkol Karman<\/strong>, religious figures such as Mons. Vaclav Maly, <\/strong>Bishop of Prague, Fr. Jos\u00e9 Ra\u00fal Vera L\u00f3pez<\/strong>, Bishop of Saltillo Mexico, Mgr Bulambo Lembelembe Josu\u00e9 <\/strong>of the DR of Congo, academics, writers, journalists, legislators, 23 members of the European Parliament, Lord Avebury, Baroness Berridge <\/strong>and Lord Alton<\/strong> of the UK House of Lords, numerous Rafto Prize laureates, human rights defenders and democracy activists from all over the globe.<\/p>\n

The letter is sent to President Obama as he makes a landmark visit to the Philippines and Malaysia to attend the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit and the U.S.-ASEAN and East Asia Summits, where he will meet with Vietnamese leaders. This is a symbolic year for the U.S. and Vietnam, as it marks 20 years of U.S.-Vietnam diplomatic relations and the 40th Anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War.<\/p>\n

Human rights are the signatories\u2019 major concern. In Vietnam today, religious leaders, civil society activists and bloggers face daily harassments and intimidation from the authorities simply for peacefully expressing their views, and have no legal framework to protect them, at the same time as the country seeks to strengthen economic and security ties with the U.S, they wrote.<\/p>\n

The signatories stress that U.S.-Vietnam relations are only sustainable if they are founded on the mutual respect of democratic freedoms and fundamental human rights including the freedoms of expression, association, religion or belief and movement. The release of Thich Quang Do, they said, would be a \u201ctruly historic gesture\u201d<\/em> that would \u201cgive Vietnam the opportunity to demonstrate its willingness for progress, and reaffirm the United States\u2019 determination to make human rights the cornerstone of this strengthened relationship\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n

Thich Quang Do is leader of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV), a renowned spiritual leader, scholar, dissident and 16-times Nobel Peace Prize nominee. Thich Quang Do (87) has spent more than three decades in detention for his peaceful advocacy of religious freedom, democracy and human rights. For protesting the creation of a State-sponsored Buddhist Church, in 1982, he was sent into internal exile in northern Vietnam for ten years along with his mother, who died of cold and hunger in the harsh environment. In 1995, he was sentenced to five years in prison for organising a rescue mission for flood victims in the Mekong Delta.<\/p>\n

Released in 1998 due to international pressure, Thich Quang Do was placed under house arrest at the Thanh Minh Zen Monastery in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). His communications are monitored and he is denied freedom of movement and citizenship rights. From house arrest, Thich Quang Do continues to press Vietnam to embrace democratic pluralism and respect all human rights for all.<\/p>\n

\n

For more information: <\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Vo Van Ai <\/strong>and Penelope Faulkner, <\/strong>Vietnam Committee on Human Rights, Paris (English, French, Vietnamese), Email: vietnam.committee@gmail.com<\/a> \u2013 Tel. (33.1) 45 98 30 85 \u2013 www.queme.net<\/a><\/p>\n

Therese Jebsen, <\/strong>Rafto Foundation for Human Rights, Norway (English, Norwegian), Email: therese.jebsen@rafto.no<\/a> \u2013 Tel. (47) 41 51 13 90 \u2013 www.rafto.no<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

New York, Washington, Londres, Paris, Stockholm, Bergen, Prague,
\nle 12 novembre 2015<\/div>\n

Dear President Obama,<\/p>\n

We, the undersigned, academics, legislators, artists, religious leaders, members of international institutions and civil society organisations worldwide, believe in the power of dialogue and engagement, and we welcome the United States\u2019 strengthened relationship with Vietnam. However, we are equally convinced that this relationship is only sustainable if it is founded on the mutual respect of democratic freedoms and internationally-recognised human rights.<\/p>\n

You will soon make a landmark trip to Southeast Asia to attend the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit and the U.S.-ASEAN and East Asia Summits, where you will meet with Vietnamese leaders. This year is highly symbolic for your two nations, marking the 20 years of US-Vietnam diplomatic relations and the 40th Anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War.<\/p>\n

As you know, the very word Vietnam evokes a multitude of contrasting and conflicting images in people\u2019s minds, and your visit will surely not escape this debate. For many, it is a historic step forward in strengthening economic and security ties, one that will help enhance the lives of millions of Vietnamese and advance peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region.<\/p>\n

For others, human rights are the major concern. Whilst Vietnam has opened its economy, it remains a one-Party state in which freedom of expression, association and religion are curbed. Religious leaders, civil society activists and bloggers face daily harassments and intimidation simply for peacefully expressing their views, and have no legal framework to protect them.<\/p>\n

We therefore call on you, Mr. President, to make a truly historic gesture on Vietnam. We urge you to press for the release of Vietnam\u2019s most longstanding prisoner of conscience, the Buddhist monk and prominent dissident Thich Quang Do. This gesture would be deeply meaningful for the Vietnamese people, for Buddhism has a 2,000-year history in Vietnam, and has deeply influenced the nation\u2019s culture and thinking. It would also give Vietnam the opportunity to demonstrate its willingness for progress, and reaffirm the United States\u2019 determination to make human rights the cornerstone of this strengthened relationship.<\/p>\n

Fifth Supreme Patriarch of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam (UBCV), a renowned spiritual leader, scholar, dissident and many-times Nobel Peace Prize nominee, Thich Quang Do, 87, has spent more than three decades in detention for his peaceful advocacy of religious freedom, democracy and human rights. For protesting the creation of a State-sponsored Buddhist Church, in 1982 he was sent into internal exile in northern Vietnam for ten years along with his mother, who died of cold and hunger in the harsh environment. In 1995, he was sentenced to five years in prison for organising a rescue mission for flood victims in the Mekong Delta, charged with \u201cundermining national solidarity\u201d<\/em>. During his years in exile and prison, Thich Quang Do translated an 8,000-page \u201cGreat Dictionary of Buddhist Terms\u201d into Vietnamese, a work of erudition that has won overwhelming acclaim.<\/p>\n

Released in 1998 due to international pressure, notably thanks to an appeal by the then US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, Thich Quang Do was placed under house arrest at the Thanh Minh Zen Monastery in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). \u201cI went from a small prison into a larger prison\u201d<\/em>, he said. Since then, he has remained under house arrest without any formal indictment or charge. His communications are monitored and he is denied freedom of movement and citizenship rights. Thich Quang Do is a recipient of the prestigious Rafto Prize for human rights defenders, and, along with others in the country\u2019s democracy movement, the World Movement for Democracy\u2019s \u201cDemocracy Courage Tribute\u201d.<\/p>\n

From house arrest, Thich Quang Do continues to press Vietnam to respect all human rights for all. In August 2015, he told visiting US Assistant Secretary of State Tom Malinowski that \u201chuman rights are the tools with which we can build a prosperous and caring society, based on mutual respect and the rule of law.\u201d<\/em> Thich Quang Do even evoked your possible visit to Vietnam, expressing hopes that the U.S. President would \u201cwin the hearts and minds of the Vietnamese people by speaking out for human rights.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Mr. President,<\/p>\n

In your memorable speech to the Australian Parliament in 2011 on the United States\u2019 policy of \u201credressment to Asia\u201d you said: \u201cHistory is on the side of the free — free societies, free governments, free economies, free people. And the future belongs to those who stand firm for those ideals, in this region and around the world\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n

Thich Quang Do has sacrificed his own safety and liberty to stand firm for these ideals. We earnestly urge you to stand by him now, and win back his freedom at last.<\/p>\n

Sincerely,<\/p>\n

Co-sponsors\u00a0:<\/u><\/em><\/p>\n

Vo Van Ai,<\/strong> President, Vietnam Committee on Human Rights, Qu\u00ea Me
\nGunnar S\u00f8rb\u00f8,<\/strong> Chairman, Rafto Foundation for Human Rights
\nSalil Shetty,<\/strong> General Secretary, Amnesty International
\nJennifer Clement,<\/strong> President, PEN International
\nKarim Lahidji,<\/strong> President, International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)
\nArt Kaufman,<\/strong> Senior Director, World Movement for Democracy
\nSimon Panek,<\/strong> Managing Director, People in Need Foundation
\nRobert H\u00e5rdh,<\/strong> Executive Director, Civil Rights Defenders
\nSteven Hawkins,<\/strong> Executive Director, Amnesty International USA
\nJohn Edmundson,<\/strong> President, Agir Ensemble pour les Droits de l\u2019Homme
\nDr. Katrina Lantos Swett,<\/strong> President, Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice<\/p>\n

Signataire\u00a0:<\/u><\/em><\/p>\n

Jody Williams, <\/strong>Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, USA<\/em>
\nShirin Ebadi, <\/strong>Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Rafto Prize Laureate, Iran<\/em>
\nMairead Maguire, <\/strong>Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Ireland<\/em>
\nTawakkol Karman, <\/strong>Nobel Peace Laureate, Yemen<\/em>
\nKerry Kennedy, <\/strong>President, Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, USA<\/em>
\nCarl Gershman, <\/strong>President, National Endowment for Democracy, USA<\/em>
\nHon. Kim Campbell, <\/strong>Former Prime Minister of Canada, Chair of Steering Committee, World Movement for Democracy<\/em>
\nRobert Hermann<\/strong>, Vice President for International Programs, Freedom House, USA<\/em>
\nDavid J. Kramer, <\/strong>Senior Director for Human Rights & Democracy, McCain Institute for International Leadership, USA<\/em>
\nJames S. Denton, <\/strong>Publisher\/Editor, World Affairs Journal, USA<\/em>
\nJoshua Muravchik, <\/strong>Distinguished Fellow, World Affairs Institute, USA<\/em>
\nKevin Bales, PhD, <\/strong>Visiting Prof. of Human Rights, University of Chicago, USA<\/em>
\nKnut Vollebaek, <\/strong>Former Foreign Minister of Norway<\/em>
\nEmma Bonino, <\/strong>Former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Italy<\/em>
\nHon. David Kilgour, <\/strong>Former Canadian Minister of State for Asia-Pacific<\/em>
\nLord Avebury, <\/strong>House of Lords, Vice-Chair, All-Party Parliamentary Group on Human Rights (UK)<\/em>
\nBaroness Berridge, <\/strong>House of Lords, Chair, All-Party <\/em>Parliamentary Group on International Religious Freedom or Belief (UK)<\/em>
\nLord Alton, <\/strong>House of Lords, Chair, All-Party Parliamentary Group on North Korea (UK)<\/em>
\nRebiya Kadeer, <\/strong>President, World Uyghur Congress, Rafto Prize Laureate, Tom Lantos Prize winner 2015<\/em>
\nFr. Jos\u00e9 Ra\u00fal Vera L\u00f3pez, <\/strong>Bishop of Saltillo M\u00e9xico, Rafto Prize Laureate 2010<\/em>
\nMons. <\/strong>Vaclav Maly, <\/strong>Catholic Bishop of Prague, President, the Justice and Peace Commission, Czech Bishops\u2019 Conference<\/em>
\nPeter Van Dalen, <\/strong>Member of the European Parliament, Co-Chair of EP Intergroup on Freedom of Religion or Belief<\/em>
\nLaura Agea<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, <\/em>Italy<\/em>
\nRamon Tremosa I Balcells, <\/strong>Member of the European Parliament, Catalonia<\/em>
\nBrando Benifei<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, Italy<\/em>
\nFabio Massimo Castaldo, <\/strong>Member of the European Parliament, Italy<\/em>
\nKostas Chrysogonos<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, Greece<\/em>
\nIgnazio Corrao<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, Italy<\/em>
\nMark Demesmaeker<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, Belgium<\/em>
\nStefan Eck<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, Germany<\/em>
\nEleonora Evi<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, Italy<\/em>
\nAna Maria Gomes<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, Portugal<\/em>
\nTania Gonz\u00e1les Pe\u00f1as<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, Spain<\/em>
\nNathalie Griesbeck, <\/strong>Member of the European Parliament, France<\/em>
\nJean Lambert, <\/strong>Member of the European Parliament, UK<\/em>
\nGiulia Moi<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, <\/em>Italy<\/em>
\nBronis Rop\u0117<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, Lithuania<\/em>
\nJean-Luc Schaffhauser<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, France<\/em>
\nBarbara Spinelli, <\/strong>Member of the European Parliament, Italy<\/em>
\nDario Tamburrano<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, Italy<\/em>
\nIvo Vajgl<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, Slovenia<\/em>
\nMarco Valli<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, Italy<\/em>
\nJulie Ward<\/strong>, Member of the European Parliament, United Kingdom<\/em>
\nJana \u017ditnanska, <\/strong>Member of the European Parliament, <\/em>S<\/em>lovakia<\/em>
\nNoel Mam\u00e8re, <\/strong>Member of the National Assembly, Mayor of B\u00e8gles, France<\/em>
\nWilliam Nygaard, <\/strong>President, Norwegian PEN<\/em>
\nBjorn Engesland, <\/strong>Secretary General Norwegian Helsinki Committee<\/em>
\nMaria Dahle, <\/strong>Executive Director, Human Rights House Foundation, Norway<\/em>
\nGunvor Kronman, <\/strong>CEO Finland<\/em>
\nProf. Dr. Josef Haslinger, <\/strong>President, German PEN Center<\/em>
\nProf. Sascha Feuchert, <\/strong>Vice-President German PEN Center, Writers in Prison Committee<\/em>
\nDhananjayan Sriskandarajah, <\/strong>Secretary General, CIVICUS<\/em>
\nMervyn Thomas, <\/strong>Chief Executive, Christian Solidarity Worldwide<\/em>
\nEdwin A. Cranston, <\/strong>Professor of Japanese Literature, Harvard University<\/em>
\nZohra Yusuf, <\/strong>FIDH Vice President, & Chairperson, Human Rights Commission of Pakistan<\/em>
\nMichael Y. M. Kau, <\/strong>Former Deputy Foreign Minister, Senior Fellow, Taiwan Foundation for Democracy<\/em>
\nFr. Ismael \u201cPadre Melo\u201d Moreno Coto, <\/strong>Rafto Prize Laureate 2015, Honduras<\/em>
\nMgr Bulambo Lembelembe Josu\u00e9, <\/strong>Coordinator Peace and Reconciliation Programme, Church of Christ in DR Congo, Rafto Prize laureate 2008<\/em>
\n Paul Divakar, <\/strong>Chairperson, Asia Dalit Rights Forum \u2013 Rafto Prize Laureate 2007<\/em>
\nMaryam Al-Khawaja, <\/strong>Co-Director Gulf Center for Human Rights, Rafto Prize Laureate 2013<\/em>
\nNedal Al Salman, <\/strong>Bahrain Centre for Human Rights, Rafto Prize Laureate 2013<\/em>
\nDr. Peter Molnar, <\/strong>Poet, Senior Research Fellow, Central European University, Budapest, Rafto Prize Laureate 1989<\/em>
\nDr. Ian Hancock,<\/strong> Director of Romani Studies, University of Texas, Rafto Prize Laureate 1996<\/em>
\nDr. Frank Mugisha, <\/strong>Executive Director, Sexual Minorities Uganda, Rafto Prize Laureate, 2011 and Robert F. Kennedy Prize Laureate<\/em>
\nPaulos Tesfagiorgis, <\/strong>Senior Advisor at International IDEA, Johannesburg, South Africa and Eritrea, Rafto Prize Laureate 2003<\/em>
\nMalahat Nasibova, <\/strong>Director, Democracy and NGO’s Development Resource Center, Azerbaijan and Norway, Rafto Prize Laureate 2009<\/em>
\nNnimmo Bassey, <\/strong>Director, Health of Mother Earth Foundation, Rafto Prize Laureate 2012<\/em>
\nDr. Pavel Chikov, <\/strong>Director, Agora, Kazan, Tartarstan, Russia, Rafto Prize Laureate 2014<\/em>
\nMuireann O\u2019Briain, <\/strong>Former Executive Director of ECPAT International, Rafto Prize laureate 1998<\/em>
\nProf. Kariane Westrheim, <\/strong>University of Bergen, Chair, EU Turkey Civic Commission<\/em>
\nMarco Pannella, <\/strong>Former MEP, leader and founder of the Nonviolent Radical Party, Italy<\/em>
\nJudge Essa Moosa, <\/strong>Judge, High Court of South Africa, International Peace and Reconciliation Initiative<\/em>
\nHannah Forster, <\/strong>African Centre for Democracy and Human Rights Studies (The Gambia)<\/em>
\nPoengky Indarty, <\/strong>Executive Director, Imparsial, Indonesia<\/em>
\nGustavo Amaya, <\/strong>President, Training Center and Promotion of Democracy, San Salvador<\/em>
\nVanida Thephsouhvanh, <\/strong>President, Lao Movement for Human Rights<\/em>
\nOlivier Dupuis, <\/strong>Journalist, former Member of the European Parliament, Belgium<\/em>
\nAlvin Jacobson, <\/strong>Amnesty International USA, Group 56 Case coordinator<\/em>
\nTaeho Lee<\/strong>, Secretary General, People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy, South Korea<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

PARIS-BERGEN, 17 November 2015 – As U.S. President Barack Obama arrives in Southeast Asia this week, ninety (90) international personalities and civil society organizations worldwide have signed a letter urging the President to press for the release of Vietnam’s most longstanding prisoner of conscience, Thich Quang Do, leader of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":375,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[64],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2564","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","","category-vchr"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/queme.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2564","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/queme.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/queme.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/queme.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/375"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/queme.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2564"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/queme.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2564\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/queme.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2564"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/queme.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2564"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/queme.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2564"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}