The US House of Representatives called on Vietnam on Friday to free jailed cyber-dissident Pham Hong Son and other democracy and religious activists.
In a near-unanimous resolution, the House said that US authorities should inform Hanoi that if it wishes to join the WTO, it must adhere to the rule of law and respect freedom of the press.
The resolution also said that the detention of Pham and some 30 others named, and continuing human rights violations, are not in Vietnam's interest and remain an obstacle to better relations between Washington and Hanoi.
US President George W. Bush is scheduled to attend an APEC summit in Vietnam in November.
"America cannot turn our back on those who fight oppression by voicing their support of freedom and democracy like Dr Son," said Republican Representative Chris Smith, who went to Vietnam in December and met with Son's wife.
"Vietnam is at a critical crossroads and is seeking to expand its trade relations with the US and join the WTO. There will be no better time to convince Vietnam of the seriousness of our human rights concerns," said Smith, who wrote the resolution.
Meanwhile, Democratic lawmaker Loretta Sanchez, the representative from California, on Friday rejected a travel visa granted by the Vietnamese authorities with "restrictive conditions" on her visit to the country, her office said.
"She was given a visa for a specific period, which means she has to cut short her schedule, so she cannot travel to Saigon [Ho Chi Minh City] to meet with dissident groups and pro-democracy supporters," her spokeswoman Carrie Brooks said.
Sanchez is an outspoken critic of Hanoi's human-rights record, and her district includes the cities of Anaheim, Garden Grove, Santa Ana and some of Fullerton in Orange County, which includes "Little Saigon," the largest Vietnamese community outside of Vietnam.
The lawmaker had wanted to go to Vietnam on Wednesday and two days later join a delegation headed by House of Representatives Speaker Dennis Hastert,who will be on a visit to Hanoi.
Vietnamese-American rights groups have written to Hastert urging him to raise with the Communist government leaders issues such as curtailed Internet usage, detention of Buddhist monks and alleged harassment of workers who participated in strikes for better pay and labor rights.
"By emphasizing to the government of Vietnam the link between political freedom and economic development, the speaker will contribute to a more stable and developed Vietnam and healthier bilateral relationship," said Dan Hoang of the Vietnamese-American Public Affairs Committee, an advocacy group.
"It is in the interests of both the American and Vietnamese people that Vietnam be a free country," he said.
‘IN A DIFFERENT PLACE’: The envoy first visited Shanghai, where he attended a Chinese basketball playoff match, and is to meet top officials in Beijing tomorrow US Secretary of State Antony Blinken yesterday arrived in China on his second visit in a year as the US ramps up pressure on its rival over its support for Russia while also seeking to manage tensions with Beijing. The US diplomat tomorrow is to meet China’s top brass in Beijing, where he is also expected to plead for restraint as Taiwan inaugurates president-elect William Lai (賴清德), and to raise US concerns on Chinese trade practices. However, Blinken is also seeking to stabilize ties, with tensions between the world’s two largest economies easing since his previous visit in June last year. At the
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
Beijing is continuing to commit genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its western Xinjiang province, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a report published on Monday, ahead of his planned visit to China this week. The State Department’s annual human rights report, which documents abuses recorded all over the world during the previous calendar year, repeated language from previous years on the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang, but the publication raises the issue ahead of delicate talks, including on the war in Ukraine and global trade, between the top U.S. diplomat and Chinese