Vietnam PM meets church leader
The Prime Minister of Vietnam, Phan Van Khai, has held almost
an hour of talks with the leader of a banned religious group,
the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam, or UBCV.
The Paris-based Buddhist Information Bureau says reports of the
meeting indicated the prime minister had expressed regret for
what he reportedly called past mistakes.
The monk, Thich Huyen Quang, has been under house arrest in
central Vietnam for 20 years, since the UBCV was banned.
But ordinary Vietnamese know little about him, or the significance
of his meeting with the Prime Minister.
Reports in the state media about the meeting revealed nothing
about the monk, the ban on his church, or his detention.
The Vietnamese Government
denies he is prevented from
undertaking his religious duties.
The appearance of a dialogue
between the banned church and
the government - and at the top
level - has been welcomed by
Western diplomats, although
with some reservations.
The meeting could be used by
the ruling Communist Party to respond to criticism of its human
rights record without any real change taking place.
State media reported that the meeting focused on Mr Khai's
comments on religious freedom, which he says exists in Vietnam,
and his recognition of religion's role in national development.
The Paris-based Buddhist Information Bureau says in a statement
that the patriarch asked why the church had been banned for so
long.
The meeting may be a sign that both sides are willing to talk.
But the ruling Communist Party central committee in January
passed a resolution further tightening its control of the six
approved religious movements.
Despite this, the appearance of the prime minister and the
patriarch on the TV news will be regarded as a positive step,
even if a small one.
By Clare Arthurs - BBC News - April 3, 2003.
|