APEC News Alert
No. 5, November 20, 2006
The guests have yet to all go home, but the difference between this year’s host country and those of previous years is visible from Saigon to Hanoi. The biggest concern of the APEC host government this year is not how to thwart foreign terrorists from outside, but rather how to silence 80 million Vietnamese voices from within.
Months in advance, Public Security in all stripes (black, blue, yellow, undercover) were deployed at various times to clear public spaces by arresting aggrieved citizens and forcing them to return home; arresting street children and bringing them into detention centers; arresting homeless people and tossing them outside the city confines. During the week of APEC, this effort intensified into searching for and arresting anyone planning to speak out against the Communist regime, especially the religious groups who planned a protest on Sunday, November 19 at the No. 2 Government Office on Le Duan Street in Saigon.
A large force of Public Security of all colors, fields, and echelons were employed to watch over pro-democracy activists. The homes of democracy activist were guarded by at least 20 Public Security agents each. In some cases over 50 agents were stationed around the residences, sometimes with agents placed just a few steps away from the door. In the case of Dr. Pham Hong Son and Attorney Le Thi Cong Nhan, the Public Security used padlocks to lock these democracy activists inside their homes when other methods of oppression and intimidation, including beating Dr. Pham for hours, failed to deter them from speaking out. Signs in English warning “No Foreigners”, “No Pictures”, “Restricted Area – No Passing’’ went up near the home of dissidents.
These frantic and illegal acts sparked the attention of the international media. Many journalists interviewed democracy activists to learn about their aspirations. Despite all the oppressive methods to prevent them from speaking out, democracy activists courageously told of the human rights violations. Most significantly were their plans for a press conference in Saigon with foreign journalists.
At this point, one can conclude that the Public Security failed in the attempt to silence 80 million Vietnamese citizens during APEC Summit. Moreover, the events that took place last week also marked a step forward in the cooperation among the democratic forces at home and overseas.
On this foundation, the struggle for Freedom, Democracy, Pluralism and Human Rights of the Vietnamese people will advance in the coming days. In these trying hours, the threat of government oppression is very real and so the solidarity of the democratic forces, of the Vietnamese people living overseas, is an invaluable resource for the democracy activists in Vietnam.
Tran Ngoc Ha
Editor of Canh Tan E-Magazine
http://canhtan.blogspot.com/
Reporting from Vietnam
