AAAS Scientific Responsibility, Human Rights and Law Program

View Alerts By > Case | Date | Country | Victim

AAAS Human Rights Action Network

Letter of Appeal from the AAAS Committee on Scientific Freedom and Responsibility

2 June 2000

Phan Van Khai
Prime Minister
Hoang Hoa Tham
Ha Noi
Socialist Republic of Vietnam

Your Excellency:

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is the largest organization of natural and social scientists in the United States, and the world's largest federation of scientific organizations, with 143,000 individual members and 273 affiliated groups. Our AAAS Committee on Scientific Freedom and Responsibility was formed in 1976 to protect the human rights of scientists and to deal with issues relating to scientific freedom worldwide.

On behalf of the Committee, I am writing to express our deep concern about the arrest of Nguyen Xuan Tu, better known by his pen name, Ha Si Phu, a biologist and former Vice-Director of the Vietnamese Institute of Science. The Committee has received information indicating that Ha Si Phu was arrested on 12 April 2000 and it likely to be charged with treason under Article 72 of Vietnam's Criminal Code.

The Committee requests information concerning the reasons for Ha Si Phu's arrest which we fear may stem from his record as an outspoken advocate of human rights and democracy and his writings calling for multi-party democracy and peaceful reform.

If this is the case, we respectfully point out that the arrest of Ha Si Phu constitutes a serious violation of international human rights standards, including basic protections listed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, ratified by Vietnam on 24 September 1982. These include:

· the right to life, liberty and security of person;
· freedom from arbitrary arrest, detention, or exile;
· the right to freedom of opinion and expression without interference and to seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media regardless of frontiers; and
· the right to freedom of association.

The Committee urges your government to adhere to its obligations under the international human rights treaties to which it is a State Party and to insure Ha Si Phu's immediate and unconditional release from custody. We would be indebted to you for any information concerning other reasons for Ha Si Phu's confinement and the current disposition of his case.

Sincerely,

Irving Lerch, Chair AAAS Committee on Scientific Freedom and Responsibility

Main | CSFR Letters | Science and Human Rights Program