US Says Vietnam Has Made Progress in Religious Freedom

美称越南宗教自由有进步

The Bush administration is defending its recent decision to remove Vietnam from a list of the world's worst violators of freedom of religion. Liston, the director of the State Department's Office of International Religious Freedom told a congressional committee Thursday that Vietnam has made real progress promoting religious freedom. He said over the past two years, Vietnam's government has put in place a series of new laws on the issue. He said they include legalizing hundreds of religious meeting places and allowing for hundreds of new clergy members to be trained.

The head of the independent U.S. Commission on International Freedom said the progress is not enough to warrant Vietnam's removal from the list of the world's worst violators of freedom of religion. Some lawmakers also expressed concerns. New Jersey Republican Christopher Smith said he was appalled by the lack of religious freedom he saw in Vietnam during a 2005 visit.

布什政府为最近把越南从世界上违反宗教自由最严重的国家名单上除去的决定提出辩护。美国国务院国际宗教自由办公室负责人利斯通星期四对国会的一个委员会说，越南在推动宗教自由方面取得了真正的进步。他说，在过去两年里，越南政府在这方面实施了一系列新的法律。他说，其中包括将几百个宗教集会地点合法化，并允许数百名新教士接受培训。

美国独立的国际自由委员会负责人表示，这些进步不足以把越南从世界上违反宗教自由最严重的国家名单上去除。美国一些国会议员也对此表示关注。新泽西州共和党议员史密斯说，他2005年曾前往越南访问，那里宗教自由的匮乏让他感到震惊。