FM Spokeswoman rejects USCIRF report on religion in VN

On May 17, 2002, Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Phan Thuy Thanh answered question from the Voice of Vietnam " Please provide Vietnam's response to "Report 2002" by the US Commission for International Religious Freedom.

Answer:

Public opinion can not accept the US Commission for International Religious Freedom continuing to pass judgment on religious situations in other countries, flagrantly interfering into their internal affairs.

This report is completely untrue and offensive because during the February 2002 visit to Vietnam, members of the US Commission for International Religious Freedom witnessed with their own eyes actual religious freedom in Vietnam and made positive remarks on the religious situation in Vietnam. However, this report deliberately turned a blind eye on that reality, presenting slanders against Vietnam. Moreover, the report urged the US Senate to approve the so-called "Vietnam Human Rights Act"