Donar
Donar

We continue to receive worrying reports of harassment and intimidation against religious minorities in Vietnam, including Christians, Muslims and Hoa Hao Buddhists. To make matters worse, human rights defenders are also a target – this August we marked 600 days since the arrest of Christian human rights lawyer Nguyen Van Dai, who has yet to be put on trial. Join us in praying for Vietnam this week.

This week it will be two years since Nguyen Van Dai was arrested and charged with ‘spreading propaganda against the state’. With the government releasing very little information, we don’t know what conditions Mr Dai is being kept in or the state of his health: so please keep praying that he would be released and the charges against him dropped.

Nguyen Van Dai’s colleague, Le Thu Ha, was arrested at the same time as him and has also been held for two years without a trial. Like Mr Dai, we don’t know what she’s going through: today, please pray for her safety and health.

Mr Dai’s wife, Vu Minh Khanh, has been campaigning tirelessly for his release. She’s travelled all over the world raising awareness of what has happened to her husband: pray that God would grant her strength, endurance and encouragement, and that she’d see her husband again soon.

Today, please pray for the release of Pastor A Dao, who was arrested in August 2016 and charged with ‘illegally taking people to Thailand’. His friends and family haven’t been allowed to visit him in prison and the church he used to lead, the Evangelical Church of Christ, has been harassed by government officials.

It’s not just Christians who are harassed and intimidated in Vietnam. Hoa Hao Buddhists also face routine discrimination and violence: please pray for God’s protection for them and that the government’s extremely harsh attitude towards independent religious communities would change.

One particularly shocking case is that of Nguyen Huu Tan, a Hoa Hao Buddhist who died ten hours after being taken into custody. The police claim that he committed suicide, but injuries suggest he was tortured and the police have given inconsistent and contradictory evidence. Mr Tan’s family is still appealing for justice: pray that God would aid them in their struggle today.

Father God, today we bring Vietnam to you in prayer. We ask that you would watch over its human rights defenders: thank you for their bravery and perseverance. Please release those who have been imprisoned for their work so that they can continue fighting for justice in Vietnam. Amen.