Public Denunciation Ceremonies and Forced Renunciation of Faith

Vietnamese government authorities persist in forcing Montagnard villagers to publicly recant their religion, despite strict prohibitions on forced renunciations of faith set out in Decree 22.[45] Throughout 2010 and early 2011, hundreds of Montagnards in the Central Highlands were pressured or coerced to abandon Dega Protestantism in public criticism ceremonies by signing pledges or through intimidation in private meetings with police or local authorities.

The state media regularly carries accounts of public renunciation ceremonies. In one such public ceremony on September 24, 2010, in Ia Suom district, Gia Lai, 24 people “voluntarily” committed to abandon Dega Protestantism and FULRO and integrate with the community, according to an article in the People’s Army newspaper. Local officials coordinated closely with the provincial military headquarters, village chiefs, elders, and the “wayward” peoples’ families to turn them around, the article stated.[46]

October 2, 2010: Bao Gia Lai reports that Duc Co police and government officials have organized public criticism sessions for dozens of “reactionary Dega Protestants and FULRO” members since early 2010, with 34 people in Ia Kla commune signing pledges to abandon the movements. ©2010 Bao Gia Lai

Montagnard Catholics in the provinces of Kon Tum, Gia Lai, and Dak Lak also face harassment, forced renunciation of faith, and arrest, especially those allegedly associated with the “Ha Mon” Catholic sect. During the second half of 2010, officials in the Central Highlands became increasingly critical of the sect, whose popularity they allege is being exploited by FULRO exiles. State media reported in November that the “elusive” sect has penetrated not only into several districts in Gia Lai but to Dak Lak province further south.[47]

In November 2010, Kon Tum Bishop Michael Hoang Duc Oanh diocese released a public pastoral letter to his diocese to raise his concerns about local authorities preventing him from conducting mass services and harassing and threatening members of his parish.[48] Despite this, police prevented him from celebrating Christmas mass with members of his diocese in Kbang district, Gia Lai.[49]

Examples of civilians being pressured, coerced, or forced to publicly renounce their religion, or being harassed and denounced for alleged political activities at public denunciation ceremonies during 2010 include the following incidents, which were covered in the state media:[50]

• On June 6, 2010 , as part of an  a official public ceremony in Dak Mil district, Dak Nong province to launch a “mass movement to protect national security,” two men were brought forward to publicly confess to supporting Dega Protestantism and FULRO.[51]

• Starting in June 2010, officials in the Central Highlands organized a propaganda campaign against a Catholic sect known as “Ha Mon” (named after the commune where the group’s founder was born).[52] Since its founding in Kon Tum in 1999, the sect has reportedly spread to Gia Lai and Dak Lak, where it is estimated by state media contacts to have 2,500 followers in three provinces.[53] Government officials charge that exiled FULRO members are taking advantage of the sect’s growing popularity to undermine national unity and national security. Forced renunciation ceremonies and public criticism meetings have been conducted in Kon Tum, Gia Lai, and Dak Lak provinces for people to confess their wrongdoings and sign pledges to abandon the “false religion”.[54]

• On July 12, 2010, state media reported that 97 households, or 297 people, “voluntarily” abandoned Dega Protestantism in the villages of Tok and Roh, Chu Se district, Gia Lai.[55]

• During September 2010, police in collaboration with local officials organized several public criticism ceremonies in Duc Co district, Gia Lai. In one session on September 29, 50 people from four villages in Duc Co district, Gia Lai, were summoned to be formally criticized in front of crowds of commune residents for having “disrupted security and order” on August 25, 2010. After admitting their wrongdoings, they pledged to abandon FULRO and Dega Protestantism.[56]
• In October 2010, state media reported that 567 households related to Dega Protestantism had committed to “renouncing” the religion in Krong Pa district, Gia Lai, with the commune chief making daily visits to pressure 15 remaining households who pledged to abandon their religion.[57]

• In November 2010, state media reported on the ongoing “Struggle to Eliminate Dega Protestantism” in Ia Grai and Duc Co districts of Gia Lai, where the border army was breaking up “reactionary gangs” of Dega Protestants in the border areas and bringing them in for public criticism sessions.[58]

• On November 24, 2010, a public denunciation meeting was held in Hring village, Cu Mgar district, Dak Lak, in which followers of the Ha Mon Catholic sect “volunteered” to confess their wrongdoings and sign commitments pledging to abandon the “false” Ha Mon religion.[59]

Additional incidents of forced renunciations of faith and public denunciation ceremonies can be found in the Annex at the end of this report.