The Vietnamese historical Researcher Association in Europe
website: http://www.truclamyentu.info; http://www.quansuvn.info
Email: truclamyentu@truclamyentu.info; quansuvn@quansuvn.info

(Transleted by Tu Tai Tran, interpreter)

Open Letter to :

- The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention
c/o Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
8-14, avenue de la Paix
1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland. E-mail: wgad@ohchr.org

- Mrs Micheline Calmy-Rey, President of the Swiss Confederation, also head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs .

The Federal Department for Foreign Affairs (FDFA)
Bundeshaus West
CH-3003 Bern, Switzerland. E-mail: helpline@eda.admin.ch

- Mr. Lewis Gordon, Director, The Environmental Defender Law Center - EDLC
407 W. Koch St.
Bozeman, MT 59715 , USA. E-mail : info@edlc.org

Dear Sir/Lady,

We the undersigned, although live in various countries including Switzerland but are always concerned to the more and more seriously deteriorated of human rights in Vietnam, did send an open letter on November 11. 2011 to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Environmental Defender Law Center.

Today, with many updated informations, please allow us to send this second open letter to the above destinations and and to a new ones, Mrs President of the Swiss Confederation.

We knew, Ambassador Marie-Gabrielle Ineichen-Fleisch, Swiss State Secretary for Economy, Head of the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), paidan official visit to Vietnam, from 15th to 18th November 2011. Mrs. Ambassador was accompanied by a high-ranking business delegation representing both Swiss business associations and leading enterprises, especially the life sciences industry.

The trade volume between Switzerland and Vietnam has increased significantly over the past years, reaching a turnover of about USD 3 billion in 2010. By 2010, Swiss investments amounted to USD 1,7 billion. This makes Switzerland the 4th largest European investor and the 19th largest foreign investor worldwide in Vietnam. She committed to continue providing official development assistance (ODA) till 2016 and said that Vietnam is among Switzerland’s seven ODA prioritized recipients.

We respectfully thank the concerns to the human rights in Vietnam of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (via The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention) and the Environmental Defender Law Center.

Concurrently, we do thank the government and people of Switzerland, who concerned and economically assisted Vietnam through their official development assistance (ODA) and investments to Vietnam. However, we are afraid that, the assistance or funds from the Switzerland were not used properly to develop economically, to enhance the living standards of Vietnamese.

In contrary, the government of Vietnam will use these funds to consolidate and develop their police, an apparatus to repress its people; therefore, via this open letter, we like to address to you two heated issues:

1/ Detention until death of some political prisoners.  2/ Perennial detentions, arrests, arbitrary abducts, tortures, maltreatments of the political prisoners, prisoners of conscience, religious prisoners (because their denominations not recognized by government), people victims of injustice.

Part 1 : Two typical cases of detention until death.

a/ Mr Trương văn Sương, political prisoner. He is 68 years old, ex-lieutenant of the late South Vietnam army. He was jailed from 1975-81 at Quảng Bình province, afterward, he was condemned to life sentence for “reactionary charges ”; totally, he spent 33 years in jail. On July 14, 2010, he was released temporarily for treatments; but on August 19, 2011, he was jailed again at Nam Hà prison although he was still sick. And he dubiously passed away on September 21, 2011 at this prison.

b/ Mr Nguyễn văn Trại, political prisoner. He was jailed in 1996, afterward was condemned  to 15 years for  the charges participating political organizations for freedom and democracy for Vietnam. When he was seriously sick, he had five months before his release day. He asked the wardens of Z30A prison, Xuân Lộc, Đồng Nai to be reunited with his family before death but was rejected. Afterward, he was hospitalized but the clinic denied because his illness was incurable. The police put him in this jail again and he died in potentially disastrous  and sorrow on July 11 2001. His family asked the wardens to bury him in his natal place but was denied.

Part 2 : Perennial detentions, arbitrary seizures and kidnappings, tortures, maltreatments of political prisoners, prisoners of conscience, religious prisoners (because their denominations not recognized by government) and persons victims of injustice.

Following is the list of 14 typical cases :

1/ Mr Nguyễn Hữu Cầu : ex-captain of the late South Vietnam Army, jailed of 36 years, dim sight, seriously deteriorated health.

2/ Blogger "Điếu Cày" Nguyễn Văn Hải: instead of formally released on October 19, 2011, but now no one knows his whereabouts - died or alive ?









3/ Father Tadeo Nguyễn Văn Lý : in 2007, was sentenced 8 years in jail and 5 years of probation; released a short time for treatment but imprisoned again although serious sick at Thái Hà detention camp on July 25, 2011.











4/ Mr Nguyễn Văn Lía : believer of Hòa Hảo Buddhism, illegally detained from April 24, 2011; now no one knows his whereabouts, dead or alive?

5/ Mr Lê Công Định : lawyer of international trade laws, sentenced 5 years in jail and 3 years of probation.

Updated  information: recently, his family was notified by police that he shall be released shortly and and get political asylum in the U.S.

6/ Blogger Trần Huỳnh Duy Thức : sentenced of 16 years in jail.

Updated information: on Nov 29 2011,  his father sent a letter to President Obama asking him attach a lot more special importance to human rights issue with expectation it will be universally recognized on earth.

7/ Mr Phạm Minh Hoàng : sentenced of 3 years in jail.

Updated information: sentence reduced to 17 months and he shall be released on January 2012.

8/ Mr Vi Đức Hồi : sentenced of 8 years in jail and 5 years of probation.












9/ Mr Nguyễn Tiến Trung : sentenced of 7 years in jail and 5 years of  probation.











10/ Mr Trần Anh Kim : sentenced of 5 years and 6 months in jail.












11/ Mrs Mai Thị Dung : believer of Hòa Hảo Buddhism, sentenced of 11 years in jail, seriously deteriorated health, have mother of over 81 years old.











12/ Miss Đỗ Thị Minh Hạnh : 7 years in jail because of her struggle for workers' benefits.












13/ Miss Phạm Thanh Nghiêm : 4 years in jail because of sit-in at her home to protest  the policies of the government of Vietnam.













14/ Blogger Tạ Phong Tần : with 14 Catholic youths were secretly kidnapped since September 2011 by Vietnamese Police. No one knows their whereabouts.











15/ Blogger Bùi Thị Thanh Hằng : were secretly kidnapped since November 27, 2011 by Vietnamese Police. And his son Mr Bùi Trung Nhân illegally arrested on December 12, 2011 on the road to find his mother kidnapped by Vietnamese Police.

Based on these arbitrary seizures and imprisonments, the government of the Socialistic Republic of Vietnam obviously violated the Right to Liberty and Security of Persons under Articles 9 and 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights of which Vietnam is a member.

Besides, we must deal with hundreds, perhaps thousands of other political prisoners, prisoners of conscience and victims of injustice were and shall be actively interfered by international communities in order to urge the government of Vietnam to release them right away and unconditionally so they soon reunite with their families before Christmas 2011.

We do wish you using your power to alert to 196 other members of the United Nations about the perennial imprisonments, arbitrary seizures, secret kidnaps, maltreatments, tortures of the dissidents by the government of the Socialistic Republic of Vietnam; these dissidents are patriotic and devoted for the freedom of religion, human rights, democracy and protecting innocent civilians and our country before the danger of a invasion by Communist China.

We also would like to propose the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention and The Environmental Defender Law Center sending a fact-finding group to Vietnam to investigate these serious violations of human rights carried out by the government of Communist Vietnam; and concurrently to meet these political prisoners, prisoners of conscience and victims of injustice.

We do propose the government of Switzerland, as an important investor-nation and ODA donor, shall bring pressure to the government of Vietnam to release these political prisoners, religious prisoners, prisoners of conscience, persons victims of injustice (on the above list).

We wish the Vietnamese in country and oversea and international communities who always concern to human rights, freedom, democracy, egality and truth signing  this open letter to canvass for the appeal and intervention of the UN Group on Arbitrary Detention and The Environmental Defender Law Center.

Europe December 02, 2011

Co-signed :

1/ Vietnamese Historial Researcher Association in EUROPE .
2/ Trúc Lâm Nguyễn Việt Phúc Lộc, SWITZERLAND.
3/ Lê Thị Lễ, MD, USA.
4/ Prof. Nguyễn Thị Hiền, SWITZERLAND.
5/ Prof. Phan Thị Độ, AUSTRALIA.
6/ Long Nguyen, The Red Beret Family, CANADA.
7/ Phạm Trần Anh, Chairman, The Vietnamese Political Prisoner&Religion Frendship Association, USA.
8/ Đỗ Long, The National Vietnam Association, Philadelphia PA, USA
9/ Vương Thiên Vũ, The Vietnamese Refugee , AUSTRALIA .
10/ Giang Hong, GERMANY.
10/ Lý Trung Tín, Director of Dan Van Magazine, http://tapchidanvan.wordpress.com/GERMANY.
11/ Lư thị Thu Trang, Member of the Office of Bloc 8406 in VIETNAM.
12/ Lư thị Thu Duyên, Member of the Office of Bloc 8406 in Boston/Massachusetts, USA.
13/ Lê ngọc Thanh, USA.
14/ Nguyễn Huỳnh Mai, ex-officer of the late South Vietnam, ex-political prisoner, VIETNAM.
15/ Mr and Mrs Nguyễn bình Huyên, FRANCE.
16/ Pharmacist Phạm Đăng, Union des Electeurs d'Origine Asiatiques, FRANCE.
17/ Tom Han, USA.
18/ Điệp mỹ Linh, USA.
19/ Ai Dang Vu. MD, FRANCE.
20/ Thiên Kim, FRANCE.
21/ Trượng Nguyễn, USA.
22/ Sirbing, USA.
23/ Thomas pham,USA.
24/ Master Nguyễn Thanh Liêm, Member of The Third Great Universal Religious Amnesty, Holy See Of Tay Ninh, Member of The Advisory Board of Bloc 8406 Overseas, USA.
25/ Chinh Nguyên, USA.
26/ Đông Anh, USA.
27/ Tâm Thơ, USA.
28/ Trần Quốc Kháng, USA.
29/ Giang Thiên Tường, USA.
30/ Mạc Phương Đình, USA.
31/ Dương Huê Anh, USA.
32/ Nhật Hồng Nguyễn Thanh Vân, USA.
33/ Huệ Thu, USA.
34/ Cẩm Hà, USA.
35/ Sử Thiên Nam, USA.
36/ Lu Hà, GERMANY.
37/ Khanh VU DUC, LL.L., LL.B., MPA, Barrister, Solicitor & Notary Public VDK LAW OFFICE, CANADA.
38/ Ho Van Dinh, USA.
39/ Colonel TRAN Thomas, USA.
40/ Nguyen Ngoc Thieu, USA
41/ Phát Tâm, Tổng Đoàn Trưởng, Đoàn Thanh Niên Dân Chủ Việt Nam, (VIỆT NAM)
42/ Master Lê Quang Liêm, Hòa Hảo Buddhism Church, VIETNAM.
43/ Nguyễn  Quang, Philadelphia, USA.
44/ Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Hạnh, Myerstown, USA.
45/ Nguyễn Hùng Việt, Harrisburg, USA.
46/ Nguyen Vu, USA.
47/ Rev. Phan Van Loi: Member of the Board of Interim Representatives of Bloc 8406, a Movement for Freedom, Democracy & Human Rights for Vietnam, VIETNAM.

Please send your support to email : truclamyentu@truclamyentu.info. Thanks