U.S. Told to Pressure Vietnam on Rights

[Judi Lynn]

Sep 14, 6:49 PM EDT

U.S. Told to Pressure Vietnam on Rights

By WILLIAM C. MANN
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The United States should capitalize on President Bush's upcoming visit to Vietnam to increase pressure on the communist nation to improve its human rights record, rights activists said Thursday.

With Vietnam now headed by a reformist president and negotiating for membership in the World Trade Organization, the time was ripe to prod the southeast Asian nation to build on the positive steps it has taken, such as loosening media restrictions and granting more independence to the national assembly, the activists said, addressing a panel of federal lawmakers.

Bush should use the visit to the Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in November "to publicly support the Vietnamese people's aspiration for freedom and democracy," Chan Dang-Vu, North American representative of Viet Tan, the Vietnam Reform Party, told the Congressional Human Rights Caucus.

Chan said Congress should "encourage the president to discuss the obvious: Vietnam's full integration into the global community requires political liberalization in tandem with economic liberalization."

He said that because of the recent mistreatment of Vietnamese trying to exercise religious rights, the State Department should continue to designate it as a "country of particular concern" toward the practice of religion.
(snip/...)

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_VIETNAM_RIGHTS?SITE=ALDOT&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

[Missy M]

1. While Bush is at it he might consider taking those positive....

steps in this country too.

[sweetheart]

2. B-52's are needed!

Somebody alert Guam and Diego Garcia, get viet nam to accept the rights!!! bomb them until
they know about rights... give them the dynamite finger until they get it!!!

[Monkeyman]

3. Did that done that it did not work

Don't believe what you read Hastert came back about a month ago with trade deal

[Benhurst]

4. Funny, but I remember Duyba checking a government form saying

he didn't want to go to Vietnam.

O, that's right. That was back when bullets were flying.

Now Chicken George feels safe winging his way to Vietnam.

:rofl: