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“PUT VIETNAM BACK ON THE CPC LIST NOW” mentioning the U.S. Dept of State was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H9059-H9060 on July 30, 2009.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
PUT VIETNAM BACK ON THE CPC LIST NOW
(Mr. CAO asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)
Mr. CAO. Mr. Speaker, how much longer must we tolerate Vietnam's outrageous and continuous violations of its people's religious freedom and human rights? Just over a week ago, the Vietnamese government assaulted, arrested and imprisoned dozens of Catholics in the Diocese of Vinh for erecting a temporary place of worship on Tam Toa Parish Church that was destroyed during the Vietnam War. If this is not sufficiently egregious and reprehensible to draw our attention and condemnation, I do not know what is. However, the sad reality is that this is just one of the many audacious and concerning violations perpetrated by the Vietnamese government since it was removed from the list of Countries of Particular Concern in 2006.
Arrests of religious leaders and political activists, intimidation of worshippers, and collusion in labor trafficking have become a common practice by the Vietnamese government. We cannot continue to tolerate unjust, inhumane and illegal practices. Vietnam must be put back on the CPC list, and I urge the State Department to do so expediently.
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