Vietnam: Recognizing Progress with Precaution  

(Compass Direct) Following an August 15-18 visit to Vietnam by U.S. Ambassador for International Religious Freedom John Hanford, indications are that Vietnam will be taken off the U.S. list of the worlds worst religious liberty offenders.

With the planned September 2 release from prison of key Hmong Christian leader Ma Van Bay described as propaganda exercises by one human rights advocate various releases by the Vietnam News Agency signal that Vietnamese officials expected Ambassador Hanford to take good news of religious liberty progress back to Washington.

Vietnam’s presence on the list of Countries of Particular Concern has remained a barrier to its membership in the World Trade Organization. According to representatives of the majority of Protestants in Vietnam who remain unregistered and thus illegal while there have been some modest and spotty improvements, there is still no clear indication of a breakthrough or even that reform is uniform and systematic. They also note that not one of the many officials who have broken Vietnams laws in mistreating Christians has yet been charged.