Vatican, Vietnam inch towards diplomatic ties
HANOI - A senior Vatican envoy said on
Friday that communist-ruled Vietnam and the Holy See had taken a
first step towards eventually sealing diplomatic relations.
``I am kind of optimistic. There was a first step towards the official
relationship and I'm sure that we will develop thanks to the
constructive meetings we've had these days,'' Monsignor Celestino
Migliore, the Pope's deputy foreign minister, told Reuters.
He declined to give details of discussions with government officials
and the Catholic Church during his five-day visit to Vietnam.
Relations between Hanoi and the Vatican have traditionally been
strained as the government sees the church as attempting to interfere
in its internal affairs.
Hanoi insists the Vatican have no direct influence over the
Vietnamese Catholic Church and does not automatically approve
Papal appointments.
Migliore expressed pleasure that he had been able to travel and visit
the southern dioceses of Phan Thiet and Ho Chi Minh City, as well
as attend a public mass in Hanoi.
``We were very happy to share with this very vibrant community (in
the south) and this morning we had also the occasion to meet with
the community in Hanoi, and so this allows us to leave with some
optimism,'' Migliore said.
Vietnam's Catholic community numbers around eight million and is
Southeast Asia's largest outside the Philippines.
Senior Vietnamese clergy have asked the Pope John Paul to visit in
August, but Vatican sources say that if a trip takes place in 1999, it
will most likely be towards the end of the year as part of a tentatively
planned larger trip to Asia.
But Migliore refused to say if the pontiff would be able to come this
year.
``We hope that the Pope can come to Vietnam and that the
Vietnamese can go to Rome for the great jubilee,'' Migliore said. He
did not elaborate.
Hanoi has set official diplomatic ties as a prerequisit for any papal
visit.
Fides, the news agency of the Vatican's missionary arm, quoted
Monsignor Bartolomeo Nguyen Song Lam, bishop of central Khanh
Hoa diocese, as saying Vietnamese authorities had been more
receptive to the Vatican than was usual.
``To our surprise, this time the Vietnamese side is showing a more
favourable attitude,'' Lam said.
He said Vietnam officials had welcomed Vatican proposals for the
appointment of bishops to vacant dioceses -- one of the main points
of contention between the two sides.
While the climate for worship in Vietnam has eased in recent years,
the state retains strict controls over religious groups and their
activities.
On Thursday, Hanoi said a new report by the U.N.'s Special
Rapporteur on Religious Intolerance -- which said Vietnam
continued to deny freedom of worship -- lacked objectivity and
goodwill.
Reuters - March 19, 1999.
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