Vietnamese authorities arrest leader of the Mennonite church.
Ho Chi Minh City (AsiaNews/ANS) Rev. Nguyen Hong Quang, a minister of the Mennonite church, was arrested on June 8th. Thirty policemen surrounded the reverend's house and arrested him. They confiscated Quang's computer as well as personal papers and numerous documents, including his legal files on human rights cases he was defending. Rev. Quang has been accused of instigating people to obstruct officials from carrying out their duties. According to HRW, the charge refers to a protest demonstration organised by Quang and his followers on March. They were complaining against the arrest of 4 Mennonite pastors.
Dinah PoKempner, general counsel at Human Rights Watch (HRW), declared that "Quang was arrested in the midst of a massive crackdown against Montagnard Protestants in the Central Highland. His arrest is part of the Vietnamese government's mounting repression of activists who promote human rights or religious freedom".
The 45-year old minister is general secretary of the Vietnamese Mennonite Church, which has been officially banned by the government. Quang is a lawyer. He has reportedly defended farmers from the provinces and spoken out against the arrests of religious and political dissidents. Particularly, Quang wrote and publicized through the internet an important essay concerning one of Vietnam's most prominent political prisoners, Father Nguyen Van Ly. The Roman Catholic priest was sentenced to 15 years in prison in 2001 for "undermining the policy of national unity". In truth, he had just submitted a report on the difficult situation in Vietnam to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom.
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