Washington D.C., Sep 18, 2012 / 23:09 pm
A bill to encourage freedom and respect for human rights, including religious liberty, in communist-run Vietnam was approved by the U.S. House of Representatives on Sept. 11.
"It is imperative that the United States Government send an unequivocal message to the Vietnamese regime that it must end its human rights abuses against its own citizens," said Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.), who authored the bill.
Smith, who chairs a House subcommittee on human rights, explained that the bill would place limitations on U.S. aid to Vietnam until the government improves its human rights record, while at the same time allowing humanitarian assistance to continue as needed.
In a discussion on the House floor, Smith pointed to a hearing held earlier this year, at which witnesses testified about the nation's continuing and sometimes increasing persecution of religious and political dissenters, as well as the Vietnamese government's failure to investigate and persecute human trafficking violations.