[YUUY[
The widespread protests in
February 2001 that involved nearly twenty thousand Montagnards (Vietnam highlanders)
holding peaceful demonstrations in the four provinces of the Vietnam Central
Highlands have been stemmed by Hanoi military forces. However, adverse effect
against the Vietnam Communist Party is still felt in the region.
On
the state-owned newspaper Nhan Dan (People), June 12 issue, Hanoi Deputy Prime
Minister Nguyen Tan Dung stated, "The Central Highlands provinces of Kon
Tum, Gia Lai, Dak Lak and Lam Dong, has an extremely important position in
terms of society, economy and national defense and security of the
country." He proposed many measures to consolidate control over the
region.
He
“pointed to the shortcomings and weaknesses in the leadership, guidance and
management of the Party and the State in all fields for the region. He also
mentioned major advocacies and solutions for the region, including its efforts
for rapid economic development; guarantee of national defense and security; construction
of a strong political system and enhancement of the efficiency of State
governance,” Nhan Dan reported.
More
than anything else, Dung’s statement reflects Vietnam Communist Party (VCP)
leaders’ great concerns over the stability of the VCP ruling power. It is also
reflects the party’s “stick and carrot” policy on the ethnic minorities of 53
tribes with 8 million people.
Nguyen
Tan Dung’s article in Nhan Dan contains promises too large to be realized. But
a part of it could be worth reading. He admits that economic development in the
Highlands has been too slow, political system is still weak with bureaucratic
administrative practice, failing to put subversive activities of the “Dega
Front” under control.
In
general, most of the ethnic groups in Vietnam haven’t been Communist fervent
supporters since Ho Chi Minh set up his Communist regime in Vietnam in 1945.
But they did
contribute their highest efforts to the resistance war against the French.
After 1954, they adamantly refused to fully carry out Hanoi Communist leaders’
collective economic policies such as farming in co-operatives.
Hanoi
had to establish two “autonomous regions” that included northern provinces
along the border with China where most of the tribes are living. For many
decades, Hanoi has applied a tolerant policy to the ethnic people and exerted a
time-consuming plan to get them under control.
Nowadays,
the northern tribes – the Hmong is one of the tribes – are still rather
stubborn, though they are not strong enough to revolt. Non-violent struggle is
their best option, for now.
The
Montagnards in the South share with the northern ethnic minority compatriots
several characters, ones of which are honesty and persistence. Traditionally,
they all get along better with Westerners than with ethnic Vietnamese.
The
pre-1975 South Vietnam government sometimes was facing protests from ethnic
groups. The late President Ngo Dinh
Diem was well aware of the problems that might have grown into more serious
dilemma especially after the FULRO (French: Front Unifie de Lutte des Races
Opprimees; English: United Struggle
Front for the Oppressed Races) failed attempt to up rise for the autonomous
Central Highlands in the later 1950s. He was doing his best to win the Montagnards’
hearts and minds. His successors followed suit.
Although
the movement for autonomy was going on quietly with the FULRO, the Saigon
government gained considerable support from the Montagnards. The FULRO uprising
in Ban Me Thuot in 1964 lasted only a few days and left nothing harmful to the
solidarity between the ethnic groups. After that, the FULRO maintained a force
of about 5,000 militants in the jungle areas bordering Cambodia. Since 1975,
the movement has claimed the title Dega Highlands Liberation Front that continues
its struggle until today.
Dega
Front was fighting guerrilla warfare against the Communist regime until about
1985. The protests in February 2001 are known as a movement activated by this
Dega-FULRO Front.
Deep
in their hearts, the ethnic tribes, particularly the Sedang in northern
districts of Kontum province, have nourished feelings of hatred towards the
Communists since the late 1950s when they found out that the VC only lied to
them. During the war, they fought in the South Vietnamese units and later some
were fighting as CIDG (Civilian Irregular Defense Groups) beside the American
Special Forces.
It
can be said that after 20 years since 1955 under the South Vietnam government,
the life of the ethnic citizen had improved significantly. The war brought them
human losses and property destruction but also introduced civilized
conveniences to them along with the notion of democracy and freedom, thanks to
help and aids from Saigon, America and the allied countries. Though limited
because of war, living conditions in the highlands provinces had been much
better than under the Communist regime after 1975.
After
1975, the Communist regime keeps treating the Montagnards as second-class
citizens, disregarding the minority people’s willing. The Communist authorities
moved most of remote Montagnards hamlets to resettlement sites near main roads.
They did exactly what the former Saigon government had done, but those post-75
settlers got no money compensation from the Communist government. Then poor
North Vietnamese rushed in and seized fat land to grow coffee and other plants,
with supports from local authorities most of who are also from the North.
Besides,
religious freedom has been another motivation of the protests. Christian
pastors in both highlands regions in North and South Vietnam are drawing a
large number of proselytes and this worries the Communist leaders. So Hanoi
ordered brutal crackdowns. Many small chapels have been dismantled or simply
demolished. Local authorities are forbidding ethnic Christians from teaching
religious faith and conducting services, even praying together with neighbors
are banned.
That
led the Montagnards in the Central Highlands from Kontum to Darlac to angry
protests in 2001. Only after that, did Hanoi turn attention to the highlands.
There have been more food and clothes donation, more Ho Chi Minh portraits and
lots of propaganda materials distributed. Radio and TV stations increase
broadcasting ethnic language programs... while more secret police are sent to Montagnards
hamlets to run the “three-together” program (eating, living, working together
with every family) to run propaganda plots along with intelligence collection.
Hanoi
might have believed that it could play a trick to fool the foreigners. By
Hanoi’s invitation, the American Council for International Religious Freedom sent a
delegation to Vietnam in February 2002. The Council delegation was visiting
many places, seeing many people in Vietnam. But Hanoi didn’t allow the
delegation to meet with the prisoners of conscience such as the Most Ven. Thich
Huyen Quang and the Most Ven. Thich Quang Do or Father Nguyen Van Ly, or Mr. Le
Quang Liem (Hoa Hao notable), let alone other political prisoners.
Two
months later, Hanoi received a hard blow on its propaganda front. On April 23,
2002, Human Rights Watch released a 200-page report “Repression of Montagnards”
with details and evidence on the “Conflicts over Land and Religion in Vietnam’s Central Highlands” (See http://hrw.org). Hanoi instantly reacted
with bitter remarks denying all allegations, with the same cliché-ridden text
as usual, asserting that there is religious freedom in Vietnam.
However
at the same time, crackdowns on religions are still on the increase. And
thousands of Hmong Christians from the North are rushing to the Central
Highlands after they were persecuted and their churches were destroyed, their
services were forbidden in their northern home provinces.
In
May 2002, Hanoi sent a delegation to the United States to discuss the issues of
religious freedom with the related parties in America. Mr. Le Quang Vinh, chief
of the Hanoi government’s Religious Affairs Section, headed the delegation.
Other members were assistants from his section, and three representatives of
the religions.
Vinh
appeared on Hanoi TV satellite broadcast on June 12 in an interview after
returning from the trip to America. He said his trip to America along with a
delegation including a Catholic priest, a Protestant minister and a Buddhist
monk, was to reach mutual understanding with the American religious
organizations and to urge the American Congress not to pass the human rights
bill HR 2833, which is currently held back by Senator John Kerry, D-MA.
The
bill had been passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on September 6, 2001
by a 410-1 margin, which asserts that there is no religious freedom in Vietnam
and determines actions to be carried out in case Hanoi commits serious
violations against human rights and religious freedom. Despite the great majority
of the House voting for the bill, Senator Kerry held it back from the Senate
floor.
Hanoi
has believed that its supporters such as John Kerry would be successful in
strangling the bill in Kerry’s drawers. Probably this belief has encouraged
Hanoi to go on acting high-handedly towards the religions and the Montagnards
despite the fact that more reports from the press and from champions of human
rights as well as religious freedom advocates have severely criticized Hanoi
for its brazen violation of human rights and religious freedom.
The
discussion between Vinh’s delegation and the American government and religious
leaders has not been widely reported. The Vietnamese people only know the news
story from the televised interview by Hanoi TV with Le Quang Vinh.
Firstly,
the delegation members representing the three religions are from the state-run
churches, so nothing is worth mentioning their opinions.
Next,
they all assert that people are free to go to church or pagoda. Yes, foreign
visitors might see that people in large cities are free to go to church, pagoda
and temple. But that is not what Vietnamese peasants in countryside village’s
local authorities allow. In the rural churches and pagodas, all sermons and
lectures by priests or monks must be censured by Public Security officials. All
services or rites must be permitted days ahead. No faith teachings are taught
without approval by local government.
Visitors
could see many newly built and renovated churches, pagodas, and temples. But
many foreigners don’t know that all of these constructions are paid for by
money from overseas Vietnamese, either as direct contribution or by their
relatives in Vietnam. The sight of newly built churches and pagoda may be
mistaken for religious tolerance.
One
of Le Quang Vinh’s arguments is deemed the most nonsense. In a comparison, he
said that in 80 years under French colonialist regime, there were 4 bishops; in
30 years in wars since 1945, Vatican ordained 33 bishops; but 25 years from
1975 to 2000 when the whole country is under the Communist regime, Vatican
ordained 42 bishops.
He
must know that Vietnam had a population of nearly 30 million in 1954, 40
million in 1975, half of them in North Vietnam where percentage of Catholics
was smaller than in the South. But in 2000, the population is 78 million.
Catholics take approximately 9 percent. So had Vietnam been under a
non-Communist regime, the number would have been over 50 bishops instead of
just 42. He left out replacements for deceased and retired bishops.
That’s
the way Hanoi is acting against pressure for human rights, democracy and
freedoms, particularly religious freedom.
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