Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) has welcomed the launch today of
a report by the Campaign to Abolish Torture in Vietnam.
The campaign
advocates for humane treatment of detainees and prisoners in Vietnam and
the elimination of the practice of torture and other abuses in
Vietnamese prisons, jails, police stations, re-education centres, and
other places of detention.
The report echoes CSW’s own research, which found that the torture of
prisoners, and in particular religious and political prisoners, is
still widespread in places of detention in Vietnam.
In 2013, the torture of several persons detained in connection with
their religion or belief resulted in their deaths in police custody. In
many cases, victims of torture were forced to flee to other parts of the
country, or to neighbouring countries.
The Campaign to Abolish
Torture in Vietnam calls for specific milestones marking the
government’s progress in eliminating torture.
These include prompt
ratification of the Convention against Torture (CAT), the signing and
ratification of its Optional Protocol and International Labour
Organisation (ILO) Convention No. 105 (Abolition of Forced Labor), as
well as new mechanisms and changes to existing practices and regulations
which will promote the abolition of torture in Vietnam.
CSW’s
Chief Executive Mervyn Thomas said: “In 2013 Vietnam was elected to the
UN Human Rights Council and signed the Convention against Torture and
other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. This year is
therefore an opportunity for the government to take steps to challenge
practices and reform regulations which allow or perpetuate torture. CSW
calls on the government to implement the steps outlined by the Campaign
to Abolish Torture in Vietnam, to demonstrate a genuine commitment to
the promotion and protection of the rights enshrined in the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Vietnam
is a party.”