Vietnamese Church Leader Released After One Year in Prison

According to a press release from Vietnamese Ministries dated 7th March, a renowned Vietnamese church leader, Nguyen Van Phuong was released from prison on Thursday 3rd March, one day after the one-year anniversary of an incident which sparked the arrest of a number of church leaders.

Nguyen Van Phuong, 38, had served various pastoral roles since his mid-twenties. He belongs to the Vietnam Mennonite Church and was a leader for social ministries on the administrative committee at the time he was arrested.

On 2nd March 2004, the Mennonite Church discovered undercover police spies among the congregation. Later, Nguyen Van Phuong together with his two brothers Nguyen Hieu Nghia, Nguyen Thanh Nhan and another major church leader Pham Ngoc Thach were arrested on charges of resisting the police in carrying out their official duty.

On 8th June 2004, the General Secretary of the Church, Reverend Nguyen Hong Quang was also arrested by 30 security police. He was charged with "inciting others to resist persons doing their official duty" in connection with the 2nd March 2004 incident.

The release of Phuong has been widely celebrated by the Church and his family, and Phuong has appeared to be in fair health since his release. His wife, Phuong Trang, and one-year-old son were among family members and church friends who met him as he was released from the Bo La Prison, eighty kilometres north of Ho Chi Minh City. His son was only one month old at the time of his arrest.

Phuong's wife was not permitted to visit her husband until five months after his arrest. He appealed his sentence after the 12th November 2004 trial, but the appeal was rejected. He was then moved from the Chi Hoa Prison in Ho Chi Minh City to the Bo La Prison to complete his sentence.

Phuong’s brothers, Nguyen Huu Nghia and Nguyen Thanh Nhan, appeared to be more fortunate. They were released from Ho Chi Minh's Chi Hoa Prison after completing their nine month sentences in early December. However, they are currently still recovering from mistreatment in prison.

According to Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), the Church leader, Reverend Nguyen Hong Quang and evangelist Pham Ngoc Thach are waiting for an appeal which was originally set for 2nd February. However on 27th January, the court announced that it was postponed without any mention of a new date. The Church has called for a special prayer vigil for the appeal.

After the release of Phuong last week, Church leaders expressed their gratitude for the advocacy work on behalf of the imprisoned leaders, and asked for continued prayer and support for them and their families.