Speech at the Asia Democracy Conference

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

First of all, on behalf of all those who struggle for a truly free and democratic Vietnam, I would like to thank the organizing committee for allowing me, along with esteemed representatives of pro-democracy groups and organizations from Tibet, Burma, Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, and North Korea to attend and offer our thoughts on this Asia Democracy Day in Tokyo, November 26, 2011.

I would also like to thank the dignitaries, representatives from different civic organizations, and trade unions, along with a lot of friends in Japan at this Democracy Day. All of you have consistently contributed to the democratization of Asia for the past several decades. It is you who have demonstrated the role and responsibilities of a leading democracy in Asia, and this Democracy Day will be the starting point for creating a new wave of democracy in Asia like the Arab Springs that took place in North Africa earlier this year.

Please join me in giving a big round of applause to the Organizing Committee as a show of our appreciation and as a representation of our collective action towards realizing an “Asia Spring” of democracy.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

We are living in the Asia Pacific region, an area that has become the vehicle of global politics in the 21st century. This area accounts for more than 60% of the world’s population, dominates more than half the global economy and has four major powers – Japan, China, India and Indonesia. However, this same region is where human rights are most heavily infringed upon with nearly 2 billion people living under dictatorial rule and oppression by undemocratic regimes in North Korea, Vietnam, Burma, Laos, Cambodia and China, including Tibet and Xinjiang.

Mr. Ly Thai Hung, General Secretary of Viet Tan

While we welcome the era of the Internet, our people, those who live in the above-mentioned countries, are constantly blocked from access to information and are prohibited from transferring in the digital world independent ideas or articles about freedom and democracy. Furthermore, the people living in dictatorial regimes such as Vietnam, China and North Korea are forbidden from establishing or participating in political parties, trade unions and even social organizations that are not created by the state. The people in these authoritarian countries have been divided and governed by a single power; often the communist party.

In Vietnam, those who use the Internet to express viewpoints not in line with the policies of the Vietnamese Communist Party or to promote fundamental human rights such as freedom of speech, freedom of assembly and freedom to demonstrate, are faced with police harassment, assault, and arrest, as well as charges of “propaganda against the state,” with imprisonment up to 20 years, under Article 88 of the Penal Code of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

In addition, those who participate in political organizations not created by the Communist Party such as Viet Tan, the People’s Democratic Party or independent worker unions, are immediately arrested by police and charged with “attempting to overthrow the regime,” with punishment ranging from life in prison to even death, under Article 79 of the Penal Code of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Currently, there are at least 500 prisoners of conscience being detained by the Vietnamese Communist government or serving house arrest after being released from prison. There are also those who have been sentenced to prison for 3 years or more just because they have supported and participated in different activities advocating for basic freedoms that are enshrined in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which the Communist government of Vietnam has committed to uphold.

The people being persecuted by the Communist government of Vietnam are of diverse backgrounds. They are students who use the Internet to rally other students and youth to assert Vietnam’s territorial sovereignty against China’s invasive actions on Vietnam’s land and sea as well as China’s killing of Vietnamese fishermen in the East Sea. They are farmers who dare assemble in protest against the Hanoi government for forcing them to sell their lands and houses to state-owned companies at unjustly low prices, only to find out the government has resold their property to foreign companies for profit at prices several times higher. They are freelance journalists, poets and artists who create web pages and blogs promoting freedom and democracy and fighting against corruption. They are priests, monks and pastors fighting for religious freedom. They are intellectuals, university professors, and former Communist Party members speaking out against the extraction of hazardous bauxite, combating social injustices, or participating in political parties struggling for political pluralism in Vietnam.

The criminal status of people who struggle for democracy in Vietnam today is no different than the extreme abusive condition of political prisoners in Burma, Tibet, Xinjiang, etc. They are true soldiers of democracy and pioneers in confronting violent dictatorship in order to bring an “Asia Spring” to all of us soon.

Freedom, Democracy and Human Rights are three very important pillars for building an equitable society with sustainable development. The Communist government of Vietnam has completely gone against the basic foundation of a free and democratic society. They claim that democracy and pluralism will generate chaos in society and that political freedom will challenge the dominant power of the Communist Party of Vietnam.

Since 1986, in order to rescue the bankrupt economy caused by the deadly social reform policies of communism, the Communist leadership of Vietnam adopted a market economy under socialism, inviting foreign companies to invest in Vietnam, yet maintaining tight political control. The Hanoi government’s primary goal for the change was only to open up the economy and mobilize investment and trade with many countries in order to have the means to maintain the monopoly power of the Communist Party.

Through this half-measured reform, the face of Vietnam’s society today has improved with increases of consumer goods, products, tall buildings and expensive cars in urban areas. But these developments mostly serve the party, state officials and rich individuals connected to the government through investment projects or Official Development Assistance (ODA)/humanitarian funding from Japan and other Western countries. The vast majority of the people, especially in the rural and mountainous areas, are living in poverty while education, healthcare, culture and environment conditions are deteriorating.

Therefore, while Vietnam is no longer seen as an under-developed country, it is still a slow developing country in all areas because of the Vietnamese Communist Party (VCP)’s policies that are inhibiting the people’s knowledge and potential to grow. Due to this core problem of an authoritarian political system, our people have been struggling continuously for decades to reestablish democracy in Vietnam. We are fighting to demand the Communist government of Vietnam to immediately implement the following three conditions, prior to the formation of a democratic and pluralistic political system in Vietnam.

The first is to free all political prisoners in custody, and to repeal two legal statutes, Article 79 (attempting to overthrow the regime) and Article 88 (propaganda against the state) of the Penal Code. These laws are a blatant violation of the human rights that have been defined in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Second is to abolish internet censorship and firewalls, so that all citizens have the right and ability to create, communicate, exchange, as well as express opinions on social and national issues. Preventing individuals from freely accessing social networks in the world today is not only a loss to Vietnam, but it also prevents the development of connections among people in this era of globalization.

Third is to allow people the right to participate in social institutions anywhere from economic, political, and social to religious, cultural and recreational. These organizations should be created by the people based on their will and needs. These are necessary steps that contribute to the building of a civil society – the foundation of any lasting democracy.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

In order to mobilize and organize the people at home and abroad for our collective struggle, we established Viet Tan (or Vietnam Reform Party) on September 10, 1982. Viet Tan has developed its network of members around the world and is currently a significant opposition movement to the VCP.

Viet Tan considers the latent power of the Vietnamese people as the quintessential nonviolent weapon against the Hanoi dictatorship, and its aim is to mobilize these popular forces along with the support of the international community to pressure the Communist regime for political reform, respecting human rights and stopping political persecutions.

In addition, Viet Tan utilizes the valuable experiences of the Color Revolutions in Eastern Europe and the recent Jasmine Revolution in Northern Africa, adhering to the methods and principles of non-violent struggle in its democratization endeavors.

To dismantle the communist dictatorship in Vietnam, Viet Tan believes that the people of Vietnam must actively participate in the collective efforts within their means to create constant pressure on the Hanoi regime. Specifically:

1) Carry out different forms of non-cooperation to reduce and finally cut off the resources of power that are sustaining the Communist regime in Vietnam.

2) Through various strategic actions, erode the pillars of power that are holding up the regime in order to touch each conscious person and to isolate the thugs in the police, military, media, legal institutions.

3) Support and cooperate with all individuals, forces and factions inside and outside Vietnam who share the common struggle to build a strong political opposition.

The above efforts represent three directions of pressure, and with grassroots participation, will certainly push the Communist regime in Vietnam to the point of paralysis and disintegration, as we have seen in Czechoslovakia, Poland or in Tunisia and Egypt in recent times.

The prosperity and wealth of a country comes not only from economic or military power, but must also come from the people’s level of intellect, respect for values of freedom, human rights and protecting the environment for future generations. The happiness of the people is not only measured by Gross Domestic Product but also by a life blessed with justice, fairness, human dignity, and freedom from fear and intimidation to be able to pursue and fulfill one’s spiritual desire and well-being.

On this Democracy Day 2011, and on behalf of Viet Tan, I would like to respectfully call upon the government and people of Japan and that of the world:

1) To place the conditions of respecting human rights and releasing political prisoners as part of the ODA programs and economic cooperation with communist China and Vietnam.

2) Proactively voice your concerns and express moral support for the victims of oppression and their families. Pressure the authoritarian governments in Asia to immediately stop all political oppression and human rights violations.

3) Support organizations and movements that advocate for democracy and human rights in Asian authoritarian states in order to create a strong democratic wave starting from today.

90 million people in Vietnam are hungering for and deserving to breathe the free air; they are standing up to change their own destiny. The civilized world of the 21st century can no longer ignore the efforts of people ruled by violence who seek to achieve a life that respects human dignity. Please support them both in spirit and in practice: end the means that fuel these dictatorships.

The fact that you have organized today’s Asia Democracy Day has shown your resolute determination to support the campaigns for democracy in Asia.

We pledge to be proactively engaged with you and the people of Burma, Tibet, Xinjiang and North Korea in unity in order to bring about an “Asia Spring” in the time ahead. Only in freedom and democracy can Asia in general, and Vietnam in particular, contribute to peace and prosperity worldwide.

Thank you.

Ly Thai Hung

We gathered today in Tokyo to advocate democracy in all autocratic states in the Asia region. Participants included people from every walk of life.

Freedom, democracy and the right of self-determination are universal values that must be realized throughout Asia without further delay.

We condemn every administrative power that resort to violence to suppress its people who make their calls for these pinciples be heard through speech or demonstrative actions.

Dictators that continue to rule with an iron fist must be indicted to the international Court of Justice for their crimes against humanity. They must be subject to every possible sanction from the international community.

We call on the Japanese government to support democratic movements in such regimes by strongly urging these regimes to respect human rights.

We pledge to join hands with democarcy activists in Asia to realize a free, democratic and peaceful Asian region where traditions and cultures of every ethnic tribe are duly honored.

November 26 2011
Advocating Democracy in Asia – Mass Meeting in Tokyo