Redemptorists and a bishop have condemned Vietnamese officials for destroying more than 100 houses and called on the government to compensate victims. “I learned with great sorrow of the destruction of your beloved homes and properties by the authorities in Ho Chi Minh City,” Bishop Vincent Nguyen Van Long of Parramatta in Australia told the victims in an open letter. “I would like to express my deep solidarity with you and add my support to your struggle for dignity in the midst of the incredible ordeal that has been forced on you. I pray that you remain committed in your faith and your search for justice.” Bishop Long, who was born in Vietnam before he fled the communist country on a refugee boat in 1979, said the evicted land belongs to generations of people who moved from the north 65 years ago.

Justice Bhuyan Calls for Protection of Dissent and Personal Liberty
Supreme Court Justice Ujjal Bhuyan has expressed concern over the growing trend of treating peaceful dissent and ordinary actions as criminal offences. Speaking at a