The Vietnamese State respects and protects its citizens's rights to freedom of religions, beliefs and freedom of non-religions or beliefs
ANSWER TO CORRESPONDENTS BY MR. LE DZUNG, THE SPOKESMAN
OF THE VIETNAMESE MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS ON 12th MAY 2005
Question from AFP, DPA correspondents: Please advise Vietnam's reaction to Human Rights Watch's latest report?
Answer:
The information reported by "Human Rights Watch" is totally fabricated. We absolutely reject it.
In Vietnam, there exists no religious repression or forced renunciation of religious beliefs. No individual is detained for religious reason.
The Vietnamese State respects and protects its citizens's rights to freedom of religions, beliefs and freedom of non-religions or beliefs. The enactment and implementation of the new legal documents on religions aim to assist religious clergies and followers including ethnic minority people in the Central Highlands to practice their religious faith in line with the laws.
Regarding the return of the Central Highland ethnic people from Cambodia, the Vietnamese government pursues a consistent policy of no discrimination or punishment against the returnees for their illegal border crossing. The returnee will receive assistance from local authorities to soon stabilize their lives and reintegrate into the community.
Over the past years, the local authorities in Gia Lai province have received 35 minority people of the Central Highlands who had illegally crossed the border and voluntarily returned to Vietnam. This has been done in the framework of the join agreement signed on 25 January 2005 by Vietnam, Cambodia and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The local authorities have helped and created favorable conditions for the returnees to soon stabilize their lives and get along with the community.
Vietnam has been continued to cooperate with Cambodia and UNHCR in implementing the agreements reached in the Memorendum of Understanding on the settlement of issues related to ethnic people in the Central Highlands./.
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