US drops Vietnam from religious intolerance list

The US has dropped Vietnam from its list of nations that severely violate religious freedom ahead of a visit there this week by President George W. Bush, US officials said yesterday.

The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, also said Uzbekistan had been added to the State Department's annual list of "countries of particular concern" for violating religious freedom.

The list, to be unveiled by the State Department at 2 p.m. (1900 GMT) yesterday, will also include China, Eritrea, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea, Saudi Arabia and Sudan, they said.

The US decisions were to be announced shortly after Vietnam yesterday deported a US citizen convicted of plotting against the communist-run government, a move that resolved a long-running irritant between Washington and Hanoi.

Mr Bush and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice are scheduled to travel to Hanoi this week for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting.

Asked about the State Department possibly removing Vietnam from its list of "countries of particular concern" for their religious practices, a Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman said: "I think there is something in her hand."

Under US law, the State Department each year compiles a list of countries of particular concern because they "engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom." Presence on the list can lead to economic sanctions.

The US and the EU have long pressured Vietnam to improve its human rights and religious rights record. Diplomats report progress in recent years, including the release of some religious leaders.

The US officials gave no reasons for the US decisions on Vietnam and Uzbekistan, although they were telegraphed in the State Department's annual "Report on International Religious Freedom" released in September.

In that report, the State Department said "overall respect for religious freedom improved" in Vietnam but it noted that the government continued to restrict the activities of religious groups not officially sanctioned by the state.

The report noted some police harassment and beatings of unregistered believers who belong to unrecognized religions but said Protestants in the north found improvement in most officials' attitude toward their religion.

It also said Protestants were generally allowed to gather for worship without significant harassment.

That report also found some deterioration in respect for religion in Uzbekistan.

"The most serious problem over the last few years in Uzbekistan has been an inappropriate arrest of some Muslims who are simply observant, maybe praying five times a day, perhaps they have a beard, and just on the basis of these outward signs are suspected of having terrorist ties," John Hanford, the US ambassador at large for international religious freedom, told reporters in September.

"In some cases, these people have been horribly treated," he said.