Vietnam’s communist regime has long persecuted the Montagnard mountain people

The German section of the International Society for Human Rights and the German Evangelical News Agency IDEA have named the evangelical pastor Yich from Vietnam as “Prisoner of the Month” for January 2023. They are calling for people to stand up for the 57-year-old detainee.

The pastor belongs to one of the indigenous people groups from Vietnam’s Central Highlands. Before his arrest, he had been working for religious freedom as well as indigenous rights for many years. On May 13, 2013, he was arrested on charges of undermining the “national policy of solidarity.” Six months later, a court sentenced him to twelve years in prison followed by a five-year suspended sentence. He was charged with his commitment to religious freedom, his demand for the protection of indigenous lands, and Internet contacts with allegedly reactionary forces. In addition, the court accused him of meeting with former political prisoners. He was reportedly tortured and denied medical assistance, despite suffering from high blood pressure and kidney stones, among other conditions. He first served time behind bars as a prisoner of conscience between 2006 and 2011.

Vietnam’s communist regime has long persecuted the Montagnard mountain people. They are accused of religiously motivated separatism, thus justifying violations of religious freedom. Officially, the constitution of the communist-ruled country guarantees freedom of faith and religion. However, the Christian faith is often seen as a Western religion and rejected.

IGFM (the German section of ISHR) and IDEA call for letters to Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuân Phúc demanding the release of the pastor. In this ISHR newsletter, we want to highlight the great work of IGFM and IDEA in this important field by making one of the prisoners of the month known internationally as well. Likewise, we encourage the entire international network of the ISHR to participate in the solidarity letter campaign.

Sample letter

President Nguyễn Xuân Phúc

Embassy of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam

Elsenstrasse 3

12435 Berlin-Treptow

(you might also want to write to the address of the Vietnamese embassy in your own country)

Excellency,

Vietnamese Christian Y Yich, an evangelical pastor, has been imprisoned for nearly a decade. On November 14, 2013, a court sentenced him to twelve years imprisonment followed by five years probation for advocating for civil rights, including the right to religious freedom. I am very concerned about his health condition, as various sources report that the prisoner was tortured and did not receive medical care for serious impairments to his health. I ask you to do everything in your power to arrange medical examinations, necessary treatment, and immediate release of Yich from detention.

Sincerely

NAME