The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)- a New York-based human rights organisation has made slanderous allegations against Vietnam over what it called “repression of dissidents in Vietnam”, saying that the Vietnamese Government does not want a just and transparent society to join the World Trade Organisation (WTO). Jumping on the same wagon, US congressman Chris Smith has demanded that Vietnam should  respect opinions from dissidents and should not consider human rights a game in its relations with the US. What is behind such brazen allegations? Radio the Voice of Vietnam (VOV) has this comment:

These slanderous allegations have blatantly distorted the human rights situation in Vietnam in an attempt to deter Vietnam’s international integration efforts and undermine cooperative relations between Vietnam and the US. Despite facing numerous difficulties  with a segment of the population still suffering lingering pains caused by the serious consequences of war, the Party, State and Government of Vietnam always strive to build an equal, democratic and civilised society. This is amply illustrated with the significant achievements of socio-economic development the country has recorded in recent times.

At the recent Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Senior Officials’ Meeting held in the central city of Da Nang, leading APEC financial leaders said that Vietnam and China are currently the two economies with the highest annual GDP growth rates in the region.

Socially, Vietnam has a good level of social equality among the economies in the Asia-Pacific region. At present, the Vietnamese Government is accelerating the process of building a just, open and transparent society in which all economic and financial activities are made public under Government regulations. Ministries and sectors at all levels must publicly announce master plans for socio- economic development of the whole country, regions, provinces and sectors so that every citizen, enterprise and investor can find it easier to approach, study and exploit.

The State Audits’ decision to announce the use of budget and investment capital from State-owned enterprises and State agencies for economic and social activities is testimony to the State’s transparency. Therefore, saying that Vietnam does not want to build an equal and transparent society is a deliberate attempt to turn a blind eye to the stark reality in Vietnam.

CPJ claimed that they have been acting to protect dissidents in Vietnam who are not allowed to publish private newspapers. This is just a pretext to conceal their biased and unjust views on Vietnam. There are no such so called dissidents except some opportunists and elements who are dissatisfied with the regime and want to run and use private newspapers as a tool to disseminate slanderous allegations against the people’s peaceful life and the country’s renovation process. In every country, the press functions as a source of information, truly reflecting all activities in social life but it is not allowed to carry distorted information for the purpose of inciting acts of violence, war and opposition against the regime.

So their pretext to publish private newspapers for that purpose is a violation of the law- unacceptable not only in Vietnam but also in any sovereign country. By deliberately acting contrary to press criteria, CPI will only end up in disgrace.

Even more unreasonable is that US Congressman Chris Smith who once put in motion the 2005 Vietnam Human Rights Bill has asked Vietnam to respect opinions from dissidents after going to great lengths to blame Vietnam for using human rights as a game in its relations with the US. This is an insult to the self-respect of the Vietnamese nation and the friendship between Vietnamese and American people. Obviously, Mr Smith is heavily obsessed with an attitude problem, if not to say he is still nurturing a dark scheme of undermining Vietnam’s renovation process and cooperative relations between the two countries. This is an outdated thinking that sounds like a discordant note when US President George W.Bush has affirmed that the US should acknowledge a developing renewed Vietnam and should continue promoting positive relations with this country. In fact, it is not Vietnam but some hostile forces which are taking human rights as a pretext to violate the independence and sovereignty of other countries.

Slanderous allegations about human rights in Vietnam show that some ill-intentioned organisations and elements have put a high priority on human rights and democracy as a useful tool for undermining Vietnam. The false assumption of human rights can cut no ice with the US public.

Fundamental human rights are always respected and exercised in Vietnam. The Vietnamese Party and State are making every effort to build an independent Vietnam toward the goal of rich people, a strong country and an equal, democratic and civilized society so as to better ensure human rights in the country. This fact has been acknowledged and highly praised by the international community. No one is entitled to  slander and blame Vietnam for violating human rights.