In Defense of Religious Liberty, Grothman Adopts Two Vietnamese Prisoners of Conscience

 

Seehafer News | Oct 28, 2022  

Congressman Glenn Grothman has adopted two men who were sentenced to spend over a decade each in Vietnamese prisons.

Grothman’s adoption of Y Pum Bya and Y Yich was made possible by the Defending Freedoms Project of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission.

Both men were imprisoned for their work toward spreading religious freedom in Vietnam.

Y Pum Bya was arrested by Vietnamese authorities in 2018 following allegations of “spreading false information about Vietnam’s violations of minority rights and religious freedom”.

While imprisoned, he was allegedly interrogated about his religious activities, tortured, and forced to sign commitments to stop worshipping.

Y Yich was arrested in Vietnam in 2013, and sentenced to

12 years in prison for “undermining national unity policy,” like Y Pum Bya.

Y Yich was accused of meeting with prisoners of conscience and spreading Degar Protestantism, a religious movement not approved by the Vietnamese government.

Grothman, one of 36 sitting Members of Congress to adopt a Prisoner of Conscience said of his involvement, “The stories of Y Pum Bya and Y Yich remind us of the importance of protecting religious freedom in the United States. Nobody should be persecuted, hurt or killed because of their religious beliefs.”

You can learn more about the program and these men by visiting WisPolitics.com.