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I. Introduction

Recent religious reforms announced by the Vietnamese government are not improving religious freedom for many Christian Montagnards, indigenous hill people from Vietnam’s Central Highlands.¹

A directive on Protestantism issued by the Prime Minister in February 2005 provides greater legitimacy to some branches of the Protestant Church. This was followed in early March by implementation regulations for a new ordinance on religion that was enacted in last November. 

New evidence from the Central Highlands, however, indicates that officials are using the new regulations to force Montagnard Christians to abandon religious organizations that operate independently of the government-authorized Evangelical Church of Vietnam (ECVN), on threat of arrest. 

The directive encourages officials to publicly expose “those disguised Protestants whose activities go against the nation and sow division among the people as well as their illegal activities.”  Targeted in particular are Montagnard house church members and those perceived as following Tin Lanh Dega, or Dega Christianity, an unsanctioned form of evangelical Christianity followed by many Montagnards, who distrust government-controlled religious organizations and seek to manage their own affairs. 

The Vietnamese government, which bans Tin Lanh Dega, charges that it is not a religion but a separatist political movement controlled by “hostile forces” overseas who aim to undermine Vietnam's policy of state unity. The government's desire to eliminate Dega Christianity has impacted Montagnard Christians, whether they are Dega supporters or not.²

Since March 2005, Human Rights Watch has received reports of increasing arrests of Montagnards in Gia Lai province, including Cu Se, Dak Doa, Ia Grai, Ayun Pah, Mang Yang, and Cu Prong districts.³ 

Government security forces⁴ continue to search for villagers, including Dega Church activists, who have fled their villages and gone into hiding after government crackdowns on protests in 2001 and 2004. Police have been conducting midnight raids on villages, during which they have ransacked the homes of women whose husbands are in hiding. Some of the women, and their children, have been beaten during these raids.

In late March a number of Montagnards in hiding were arrested by police and soldiers, who were conducting search operations with dogs in the coffee fields and forests. Several villagers suspected of assisting those in hiding by providing food to them, as well as some Montagnard house church leaders were also arrested at that time.  Credible reports obtained by Human Rights Watch indicate that some of those arrested were beaten or tortured in detention.⁵

Despite provisions in the Prime Minister’s directive banning compulsory renunciation ceremonies, Human Rights Watch continues to receive a steady stream of reports about government authorities forcing Montagnards, primarily those thought to be followers of Tin Lanh Dega, to recant Christianity under the threat of arrest. 

Officials have summoned dozens of Montagnards, including Bible teachers and house church leaders, to district centers for mandatory all-day meetings in which they are interrogated about church activities in their villages and ordered to cease the practice of Christianity. In some cases, Montagnards have been pressured to drink wine during these sessions, which they feel goes against their religion.⁶  In many villages, officials have been convening meetings in which they instruct villagers not to hold Christian gatherings.

Information about treatment of Montagnard returnees from refugee camps in Cambodia remains extremely difficult to obtain. In April, Human Rights Watch received reports about the detention and beating during interrogation of at least four Montagnards who voluntarily returned to Vietnam in March. Upon return to their villages they were confined to their homes, at least initially.

At least 180 Montagnards continue to serve prison sentences of up to thirteen years for their participation in demonstrations, involvement in the Dega Church movement or Christian activities in general, or for attempting to seek asylum in Cambodia.  

Since January of this year, fourteen Montagnards have been tried and sentenced, according to reports in the Vietnamese state media. On January 12, seven people, including some who had been forcibly returned from Cambodia last June, were tried and sentenced in Ayun Pa district, Gia Lai.⁷ On January 24, three people were sentenced in Dak Doa district, Gia Lai.⁸ On March 28, two people were sentenced to prison in Ia Grai; Vietnamese state media reported that border police had arrested them last July as they were trying to flee to Cambodia.⁹ On March 30, two more Montagnards were sentenced to prison, in Dak Nong province.¹⁰