Anthony Byrne (Holt, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am honoured today to speak on this private member's motion by the member for Fowler. He is a well-known campaigner for human rights in Vietnam. I read several of his speeches in preparation for this contribution today. I congratulate him on this motion. I also rise to express, in this place, and obviously from my perspective, the concerns of my local Vietnamese community in Holt about human rights abuses in Vietnam.

It is said, when you look at the official briefing papers, that Australia has enjoyed a strong bilateral relationship with Vietnam since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1973. It is said that Australia is a leading study destination for Vietnamese students, with more than 23,000 student enrolments in Australian educational institutions and an estimated 10,000 students undertaking Australian education and training courses in Vietnam. This has apparently been aided by RMIT University beginning operations in 2001 in Vietnam as the first wholly owned foreign university in Vietnam. That is what is said.

In Australia, I am proud to say that we have a wonderful Vietnamese community of over 150,000 people. The DFAT briefing paper says the number is 210,000. Regardless of the number, it is a wonderful community that makes a significant contribution to our country. I believe it is the fourth largest in the world outside of Vietnam. Since 1975, Vietnamese migrants have made a profound contribution to Australia through their culture, their history and what they bring to this country. They are a proud people who are deeply concerned about their country. Whilst, again, it is said that Australia builds closer ties with Vietnam, many Vietnamese people in Australia are deeply concerned about the previous, past and ongoing human rights abuses in Vietnam.

The Vietnamese community that now calls Australia home enjoys the virtues of living in a democracy and universal human rights principles. They have freedom of expression. However, they desire that their relatives in their homeland enjoyed similar freedoms. Under the regime of the current Socialist Republic of Vietnam, such freedoms for many just do not exist. Instead, as we have heard from contributions from the member for Fowler and the other honourable member, the Vietnamese government continues to systematically suppress freedom of expression, association, and peaceful assembly.

I have heard about the ninth Australia-Vietnam Human Rights Dialogue, which my colleague the member for Fowler participates in. Whilst that presents an opportunity, it does not stop us in this place speaking with one loud, powerful voice on behalf of the Vietnamese community in our electorates across the country. I, my Victorian state colleague, Luke Donnellan, the member for Narre Warren North—who has actually been to Vietnam-and obviously the member for Fowler and others consistently report, and will continue to report, to this parliament human rights abuses that continue in Vietnam. The Vietnamese government must be held accountable.

I would like to thank Mr Tien Dung Kieu, the President of Vietnamese TV on Channel 31, for coming personally into my office to talk about the human rights abuses that have occurred and are occurring in Vietnam. He specifically brought to my attention the two young Vietnamese activists who were recently arrested and sentenced for criticising the government. Imagine if we did that in this country—we would arrest just about everybody. In Vietnam, basically, if you criticise your government you are put in prison. That is unacceptable. It does not matter if it is a socialist republic; it is unacceptable.

As we have heard, last month student Nguyen Phuong Uyen and computer technician Dinh Nguyen Kha were convicted on subversion charges. It is interesting for young university students to be charged with subversion. According to the state media, that wonderfully free and august independent organisation, Nguyen Phuong Uyen and Dinh Nguyen Kha were arrested for handing out leaflets that:

… distort the Party and the State’s policies related to religion and land, and exhibit a twisted viewpoint regarding the Spratly and Paracel islands and the border land between Vietnam and China.

Those are two young university students. The state media—again, that independent organisation—accused the two of:

… calling and agitating people to protest against the Communist Party of Vietnam and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

As I said, in other democracies, if people were put people on trial for distributing leaflets critical of the government, you would have a revolution on your hands. I find it incredible, and I know that is mirrored by the Vietnamese community that is here today, my Vietnamese community. They feel very deeply about the fact that, after a one-day trial, in May 2013, Nguyen Phuong Uyen—a young university student—was given six years in prison, whilst Dinh Nguyen Kha received eight years following a one-day trial. A one-day trial—that is a system of justice in a country isn't it?

According to Human Rights Watch, Nguyen Phuong Uyen, 21, from Ham Thuan Bac district, Binh Thuan province, is a student-as I said—at the capital's university. The police arrested Uyen on 14 October 2012 in Tan Phu district, and took her to the police station in the Tan Phu district's Tay Thanh ward without informing her family. Imagine if, in this country, your son or daughter, for protesting legitimately, was taken away, and you were not told where they were. Phuong Uyen's family and friends launched an intensive search for her by making inquiries at the police station and alerting the public via non-state channels, including the BBC and Radio Free Asia. It was not until eight days later-eight days-that an officer at the Tay Thanh police station told Uyen's mother that she had been transferred to the police of Long An province. On 23 October 2012 the Long An police acknowledged that Phuong Uyen had been charged with 'conducting propaganda against the state'—that is what free speech gets you in Vietnam—under article 88 of the penal code. According to the indictment, Nguyen Phuong Uyen was officially arrested on 19 October 2012, leaving five days unaccounted for by officials. According to reports, Phuong Uyen's mother claims that on a visit on 26 April 2013, she saw many bruises on her daughter's neck, upper chest and arms. Her mother said that Phuong Uyen told her that in detention she was beaten and kicked severely in the stomach. It was only when she fainted that prison guards came in to stop the beating and took her to see a doctor. Human rights in Vietnam!

According to Human Rights Watch, Dinh Nguyen Kha was from the city of Tan An. On 10 October 2012, he allegedly dropped anti-government leaflets at the An Suong overpass in the capital. On 29 September 2012, the People's Court of Tan An City convicted and sentenced Dinh Nguyen Kha to two years in prison for 'intentionally dropping leaflets'. Don't hand out leaflets, because in Vietnam, particularly when they speak about freedom, they cause injury to others, according to the government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. He was also charged with terrorism under article 84—a very convenient article.

The Australian government must continue to strongly condemn these human rights abuses because they are nothing more than human rights abuses. On behalf of the Vietnamese community, we need to continue to raise these issues until the government changes its stance, until they treat their people with respect, until they afford their people the rights that Vietnamese people in this country have.

I also want to briefly raise in the time I have remaining the ongoing case of Father Thadeus Nguyen Van Ly, a Catholic priest who has been nominated for the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize by members of the US Congress Chris Smith and Zoe Lofgren. We know the story of Father Ly, but what you might not know is that in 2006 my state parliamentary colleague Luke Donnellan, the member for Narre Warren North, visited Father Ly in March 2006 to discuss his treatment at the hands of the authorities. After visiting Father Ly in Vietnam, Mr Donnellan—a member of the state government—was banned by the Vietnamese government from visiting Vietnam for five years. This action by the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to ban a Victorian member of parliament from visiting Vietnam is disappointing to say the least—and I am using diplomatic language. Mr Donnellan was standing up for the universal principles of protecting and defending human rights.

Thank you, again, member for Fowler for this motion. We will continue to raise these ongoing issues and ongoing abuses. Young university students in this country can protest without imprisonment, without being beaten and without being taken off the streets. This happens in Vietnam. The government cannot conduct discussions with Vietnam without continuing to raise these issues. As long as I am in this place, we will continue to do so.

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