Ho Chi Minh Animal police beat AP reporter

US criticizes Vietcong governments' religion record
WASHINGTON: The U.S. State Department said Friday that China's repression of religious groups intensified during the last year, citing as evidence Beijing's crackdown on Tibetan Buddhists and its harassment of Christians and members of the Falun Gong spiritual group.

The department's annual International Religious Freedom report also condemned Myanmar's military-run government for restricting spiritual activities and abusing its citizens' rights. In North Korea, the report said, "genuine religious freedom does not exist."

Both China and Myanmar have been classified among "Countries of Particular Concern" since the first religious freedom report came out in 1999. North Korea was added to that category in 2001. The Asian states were among 198 countries and territories included in the 10th annual report.

The State Department said that after a violent Tibetan uprising against Chinese rule last March, authorities locked down monasteries, intensified 'patriotic education' campaigns and detained an unknown number of monks and nuns or expelled them from monasteries." The government also was said to have increased its criticism of the Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, after the protests.

President George W. Bush's ambassador for international religious freedom, John Hanford, told reporters that the Tibetan issue has been a prominent part of a resumed U.S.-Chinese human rights dialogue.
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The United States, he said, objects to harsh treatment of Buddhists loyal to the Dalai Lama and urged China's government to stop appointing and training lamas, Buddhist holy men.

"The Communist Party of China forbids its members and leaders from having any religious belief, and so there's an irony in the fact that the Communist government and party takes upon itself the prerogative of choosing religious leaders, such as lamas," Hanford said.

There was "little evidence," the report said, that China's 2005 regulations on religious affairs had improved the country's spiritual situation.

Applications by unregistered Protestant churches for registration were reported to have been rejected without cause, the State Department said, and "underground" Roman Catholic bishops faced repression because of loyalty to the Vatican, "which the government accused of interfering in China's internal affairs."

Members of the Falun Gong, which China considers a cult, faced arrest, detention and imprisonment, and the State Department noted reports of death from torture.

The report praised China for allowing foreign and domestic religious groups to boost cooperation on religious education and charitable work.

In Myanmar, "the government continued to infiltrate and monitor activities of virtually all organizations, including religious ones," the report said; Christians faced restrictions and Muslims suffered violence and close monitoring.

Vietnam was praised for improving its religious rights, although the report said serious problems remain.

On Friday, an Associated Press reporter in Vietnam was beaten by police who detained him while he covered a Catholic prayer vigil. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said U.S. officials have protested the attack to Vietnam's government.

McCormack told reporters that the United States has made clear that it stands "up for religious freedom, the ability of people, no matter what their faiths, to be able to practice that freely, whether it's in Vietnam or elsewhere around the world."

Hanford said that, overall, the Vietnamese government is granting much more religious freedom than it has in the past.

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[hanzi1810]

Các vị chỉ có nói ra cho nó sướng cái miệng, lời nói của quý vị cứ như là kim chỉ nam để cho CS phải theo, các vị có biết đâu rằng chẳng bao giờ những người CS lại thèm để ý đến những đề xuất quý báu của quý vị. Càng viết, càng chửi các vị lại càng vô tình lộ rõ cái vốn hiểu biết kém cỏi của mình.

[phamtrinh88]

mot vi giao muc ma laj noi toi thay nhuc nha khi la nguoi VIETNAM....that het chiu noi ...toi chua thay nguoi viet nam yeu nuoc nao noi vay?????.thay nhuc nha khj mang quoc tich nuoc mjnh ...ong gjao muc oj ong co biet la neu ong ra duong thj bj nguoi ta ...cho khong...ma ban toi nha gan do chi can ra dung xem cung duoc phat 50.000 nghjn dong...su that o dau dung nghe suyen tac ...va cung phaj nhin thang vao su viec ..chu...tuy cpvietnam chua that...nhung vietnam dang co gang het mjnh

[MrTaLaai]

bon. tay sai cho tru`m Do Thai'. Du me tui cho cong giao'....

[LordKushman]

you know if you are living in china than i can see you worring about this but if you do not and want something done than stop bitchen and getting other people to do it for you go do something me i really dont care im just feed up with everyone worring about other people problems

[havi1990]

nuoc nao cung co nhu kieu nay

toi ngi nguoi viet kieu nen nhin ky cachnao hay nhut de lam

doi voi toi phai hop tac va bo qua thi moi comot dio de ban neu cam thu mai cung vay thoi

toi song ben day qua lai 20 nam toi hieu nen lam sao

ko gi bang hop tac se thanh cong

nuoc nao cung vay thoi vietnam kemchat luong sao cac dang cua nguo iviet hai ngoai

nen mo rong de doi lay hoa binh cho dan vietnam

[exploreryen]

wow, they beat the crap out of him

[saucer1000]

wow the crazyist non beating i have ever seen

[NewGodVN]

"quý báu" thật lol

[zNhocZ]

Vietnam Peace ! con di me. co' thay danh gi dau ! leave vietnam alone fuckers