International PEN welcomes the release of editor and Catholic priest Father Nguyen Van Ly on March 15, 2010, on medical grounds. However, it remains concerned that his release is conditional, and that he is expected to return to prison in March 2011 to complete his full eight-year prison term. PEN considers the sentence of Father Nguyen Van Ly to be in violation of Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Vietnam is a signatory, and continues to call for all charges against him to be dropped. It also seeks guarantees that he has access to all necessary medical care as a matter of urgency.

Background Information

According to PEN’s information, on March 15, 2010, the Supreme Judge of the People’s Court of Ha Nam province decided to temporarily defer Nguyen Van Ly’s imprisonment for one year and ordered that he should be placed under the administration of the People’s Committee of Vinh Ninh Ward, Hue City, Thua Thien, Hue province. Nguyen Van Ly’s health has seriously deteriorated in recent months, and he is said to be in urgent need of medical treatment, which is unavailable in prison.

Father Nguyen Van Ly, a Catholic priest and co-editor of the underground online magazine Tu do Ngôn luan (Free Speech), was arrested on February 19, 2007, and sentenced to eight years in prison on March 30, 2007, for “conducting propaganda against the State.” Nguyen Van Ly is a leading member of the pro-democracy movement Bloc 8406. He was previously detained from 1977-1978, and again from 1983-1992 for his activism in support of freedom of expression and religion. He was sentenced again in October 2001 to 15 years in prison for his online publication of an essay on human rights violations in Vietnam, and was a main case of International PEN. He was released under amnesty in February 2005. He is an Honorary Member of Sydney PEN.

Write A Letter

  • Welcoming the release of Father Nguyen Van Ly on health grounds, and calling for his unconditional release in accordance with Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Vietnam is a signatory;
  • Seeking assurances that Father Ly is given the medical treatment he requires as a matter of urgency.

Send Your Letter To

His Excellency Nguyên Minh Triêt
President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam
C/O Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Hanoi
Socialist Republic of Vietnam

Nguyên Tân Dung
Prime Minister
1 Hoang Hoa Tham Street
Hanoi
Socialist Republic of Vietnam
 
Lê Doan Hop
Minister of Culture and Information
1 Hoang Hoa Tham Street
Hanoi
Socialist Republic of Vietnam

Please note that there are no fax numbers available for the Vietnamese authorities, so you may wish to ask the diplomatic representative for Vietnam in your country to forward your appeals. It would also be advantageous to ask your country’s diplomatic representatives in Vietnam to intervene in the case.

Please check with PEN if sending appeals after April 17, 2010: ftw [at] pen.org