AAAS Scientific Responsibility, Human Rights and Law Program

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AAAS Human Rights Action Network

FACTS OF THE CASE:

There is continued, serious concern for the health and well-being of prisoner of conscience Dr. Nguyen Dan Que, an endocrinologist and former Director of Cho-Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City. Dr. Que's family members have reported that his blood pressure is at dangerously high levels and that he is in urgent need of medical treatment. Dr. Que's blood pressure was reported to be 250/110 and his pulse rate was 105 per minute. He has been suffering ill health as a result of an untreated recurring duodenal ulcer, and has lost several teeth.

Arrested on 14 July 1990, Dr. Que is serving a twenty-year prison sentence for his activities in connection with a manifesto calling for social and economic change in Vietnam. He is reportedly being held in Z30AB Prison, Xuan Loc in Dong Nai Province. In April 1993, his detention was declared to be arbitrary by the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention.

Dr. Que was dismissed from his post as Director of Cho-Ray Hospital in 1978 for his criticism of Vietnam's health care policies. He was later accused of "rebelling against the regime," and detained without trial until 1988.

Dr. Que has been widely recognized for his contribution to the promotion of human rights. He received the Raoul Wallenberg Human Rights Award in 1994, the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award in 1995, and was recognized at the Science and Human Rights reception during the 1996 AAAS Annual Meeting.

Dr. Que's arbitrary arrest and continued detention, and the denial of medical care constitute serious violations of international human rights standards, including those enumerated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which Vietnam ratified on 24 September 1982. These rights include:

• liberty and security of the person (Article 9 of the UDHR and Article 9 of the ICCPR);
• freedom from cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment (Article 5 of the UDHR and Article 7 of the ICCPR);
• freedom from arbitrary arrest and detention (Articles 3 and 9 of the UDHR and Article 9 of the ICCPR);
• freedom of expression (Article 19 of the UDHR and Article 19 of the ICCPR); and
• freedom of association (Article 20 of the UDHR and Article 21 of the ICCPR).

(Sources of information on this case include family members of Dr. Que and Amnesty International)

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

Please send telexes, faxes, and airmail letters:

• expressing serious concern about the poor health of Dr. Que;
• urging authorities to allow Dr. Que access to immediate medical care; and
• demanding the immediate and unconditional release of Dr. Que on the grounds that he is a prisoner of conscience.

APPEAL AND INQUIRY MESSAGES SHOULD BE SENT TO:

Phan Van Khai
Prime Minister
Hoang Hoa Tham
Ha Noi
Socialist Republic of Vietnam
Salutation: Your Excellency

Le Minh Huong
Minister of the Interior
Ministry of the Interior
Tran Binh Trong
Ha Noi
Socialist Republic of Vietnam
Salutation: Dear Minister

Nguyen Mang Cam
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
1 Ton That Dam
Ha Noi
Socialist Republic of Vietnam
Salutation: Dear Minister

COPIES SENT TO:

His Excellency Bang LE
Ambassador to the United States
Embassy of Vietnam
1233 20th St., NW, Suite 501
Washington, DC 20036
Fax: 202 861 0917


Ambassador Douglas B. Peterson
Ambassador to Vietnam
Embassy of the United States of America
PSC 461, Box 400
FPO AP 96521-0002
Fax: 011 8350484

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