Catholics in Bach Ninh find too many errors in new law on religions
The diocese sent a letter to the Permanent Council of the Bishops' Conference, with comments on the new draft law proposed by the government. The recognition of religious organisations is still difficult, civil rights of religious leaders are poorly respected, and the bureaucratic language is vague.
Hanoi (AsiaNews /ÉdA) – The new version of the proposed Law on Beliefs and Religions "is a step forward compared to the first version of April 2015,” but it still gives too many powers to the authorities and fails to respect the rights of citizens, this according to a letter signed by members of the Diocese of Bac Ninh (a Hanoi suburb) to the Permanent Council of the Vietnamese bishops' conference.
The letter takes into account the new bill presented by the government on 17 August but not yet made public, except to the leaders of the various religions.
Since the draft was first presented in April 2015, it has raised objections from the leaders of Vietnam’s main religions, including the Caodaists and Catholics, including a sharp critique from Mgr Michael Hoang Duc Qanh, bishop of Kontum,.
The message from the Diocese of Bac Ninh was sent "on behalf of our bishop, priests, religious men and women and all the people of God, and contains some observations and contributions." The letter focuses on five main points to criticise the bill.
First, the letter says that "the new law must ensure a democratic character, in accordance with Article 3 of the Constitution". Instead, "it seems that chapters 3 through 8 of the bill require that all religious activities be 'registered' with the relevant agencies and must wait for written replies. This practice, however, has already been a source of serious impediments over the years to religious activities".
In addition, the letter notes, the current version of the bill is inconsistent with the right to freedom of worship and religion. "The condition for recognition of a religious organisation is owning real estate (Article 21). Yet, Article 30 says that a religious organisation can be recognised as a legal entity only when an agency of the State declares its foundation." For this reason, "organisations that are not yet recognised cannot acquire properties that would allow them to be recognised."
The diocesan missive goes on to slam the fact that the text of the bill "contains many sections that restrict the civil rights of religious leaders" who instead "are citizens and have the same rights and duties as everyone else."
In addition, "several sections in the text are too general and vague, terms like ‘joint community property' and 'illegal spread of religion'. How should we interpret these expressions?"
Finally, for Catholics in Bach Ninh Catholics, "the current draft is archaic. It does not meet the needs of an integration process, particularly in the articles concerning religions in relation to a foreign country."
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