Jun 18, 2009

FORIMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 18, 2009

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today condemned Saturday"s arrest of Le Cong Dinh, a prominent lawyer who defended clients in high profile human rights cases, including prominent religious freedom defenders Nguyen Van Dai and Le Thi Cong Nhan.

"The arrest of Le Cong Dinh demonstrates a disturbing but familiar pattern,” said Michael Cromartie, USCIRF vice chair, who recently led a USCIRF delegation to Vietnam. "Peaceful advocates for religious freedom and related human rights are intimidated, harassed, and jailed. Le Cong Dinh"s arrest demonstrates that no human rights, including the freedom of religion, are secure in Vietnam.”

A USCIRF delegation visited Vietnam in May, meeting with government officials, prominent religious leaders, religious freedom advocates, and prisoners, including Fr. Nguyen Van Ly and Nguyen Van Dai. The latter was defended by Le Cong Dinh. The USCIRF delegation was able to confirm the conclusions found in its May 1, 2009 Annual Report, including continued imprisonment of individuals for peaceful religious activity or religious freedom advocacy, systematic intimidation and discrimination targeting new converts and independent religious activity, and harassment of lawyers and individuals seeking to expand religious freedom.

Le Cong Dinh was arrested under Article 88 of the Vietnamese criminal code for "conducting propaganda” against the state. He is one of a growing number of peaceful human rights defenders who are challenging Vietnam"s vague national security laws and other laws inconsistent with the Vietnamese Constitution and international covenants and human right treaties to which Vietnam is a signatory.

In its Annual Report, USCIRF recommended that Vietnam be re-designated as a "Country of Particular Concern” (CPC) for severe and egregious restrictions on the freedom of religion. Recently, the House of Representatives passed HR 2410, the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, which includes language urging the State Department to designate Vietnam as a CPC. However, the U.S. ambassador to Vietnam recently reiterated the State Department"s longstanding position that Vietnam does not meet the criteria to be designated a CPC.

USCIRF"s annual report detailed the imprisonment of Le Cong Dinh, Nguyen Van Dai, Le Thi Cong Nhan, Fr. Nguyen Van Ly, the Most Venerable Thich Quang Do, and dozens of other Hoa Hao, Cao Dai, Catholic, and Montagnard Protestants currently jailed in Vietnam. It urged the State Department and the international community to press for their immediate and unconditional release.

"The Commission has consistently found that systematic and egregious abuses of religious freedom continue in Vietnam,” said Felice Gaer, USCIRF chair. "The CPC designation is an important and flexible diplomatic tool, used previously to bring about some tangible results in Vietnam without hindering other bilateral interests. We urge the Obama Administration to establish clear policies and use all available diplomatic tools to support the hopes and aspirations of the Vietnamese people for both greater freedom and prosperity.”

USCIRF is an independent, bipartisan U.S. federal government commission. USCIRF Commissioners are appointed by the President and the leadership of both political parties in the Senate and the House of Representatives. USCIRF"s principal responsibilities are to review the facts and circumstances of violations of religious freedom internationally and to make policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State and Congress.

To interview a USCIRF Commissioner, contact Tom Carter, Communications Director at [email protected] or (202) 523-3257.

Jun 18, 2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 18, 2009


WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has extended the application deadline to Monday, July 13, 2009 for the Joseph R. Crapa Fellowship Program. The original deadline was June 15, 2009. Please note that there is additional information below about the terms of the Crapa Fellowship Program.

The funded fellowships are available to select individuals with exceptional records of accomplishment and/or outstanding records of academic achievement in relevant fields to the work of USCIRF, including but not limited to, religious freedom and related human rights, foreign policy, international law, and security. Applicants from the U.S. congressional community, government agencies (including the military and intelligence agencies), academia, the NGO community, think tanks, and other relevant backgrounds are welcome.

Citizens of any country may apply. Non-U.S. citizens without permanent resident status must obtain a J-1 exchange visitor visa to participate in the Fellowship Program. The J-1 status requires recipients to reside in their home country for two years following the fellowship before applying for the H or L visa, or for permanent residency in the United States.

Each fellow selected will receive a monthly stipend, which takes into account the fellow"s current academic or professional vocation and level of experience. The fellow also would receive certain benefits offered to federal employees, such as basic health insurance. Other covered costs would include reasonable domestic and/or international travel associated with the project.

The term of each fellowship will be determined by the nature of the fellow"s project, but will not exceed 12 months. It is expected that fellows will spend a substantial portion of their fellowship in residence at the USCIRF offices in Washington, DC, though alternate arrangements may be made as necessary.

Applicants for a Crapa Fellowship should submit a proposal detailing the parameters of the project they intend to pursue during their time as a Crapa Fellow. This proposal should include a succinct statement of the area of intended study, the relevance of the study to the field of religious freedom, the format and timing of the product they propose to produce, and a brief overview of relevant existing work in the area of proposed study. In addition, applicants should send a cover letter, resume, writing sample, and the names of three professional references USCIRF can contact directly. Applications should be submitted electronically to: [email protected].

The following list provides examples of the areas USCIRF is interested in further study on, but is not intended to be exhaustive:

  • The role of religion and religious freedom in counterinsurgencies and in combating religious extremism
  • The developing parameters of religious freedom under international law, including an analysis of significant trends and strategies to impact the development in positive directions
  • The impact of religious freedom in advancing the rights of women
  • Government-sponsored intolerant materials and its impact on religious freedom
  • Utilizing U.S. assistance effectively to promote and advance religious freedom
  • Employing public diplomacy tools to advance religious freedom
  • Developing a curriculum on religion and religious freedom for the Foreign Service Institute

USCIRF is an independent, bipartisan U.S. federal government commission. USCIRF Commissioners are appointed by the President and the leadership of both political parties in the Senate and the House of Representatives. USCIRF"s principal responsibilities are to review the facts and circumstances of violations of religious freedom internationally and to make policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State and Congress.

To interview a USCIRF Commissioner, contact Tom Carter, Communications Director at [email protected] or (202) 523-3257.

Jun 17, 2009


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