California congressman raises case of missing ‘monk’

Says Thich Minh Tue should be released if he is being unjustly detained.

 

RFA | 2024.07.02

An ethnic Vietnamese congressman from the California State House of Representatives has written to the U.S. ambassador to Vietnam about the case of Buddhist “monk” Thich Minh Tue, who went missing for a second time on June 12.

On July 1, Thich Minh Tue’s younger brother Le Anh Thin wrote to the police at the commune, district and provincial level requesting help finding his brother.

The same day, congressman Ta Duc Tri wrote to U.S. Ambassador Marc Knapper, to express his concern about Tue, who became an internet sensation after going on a pilgrimage across Vietnam.

Tue, whose real name is Le Anh Tu, drew a wide following on social media in May when influencers documented his journey across Vietnam on TikTok and other social media platforms. Supporters were drawn to his simple lifestyle and humble demeanor.

Congressman Tri had already written to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom on June 4 to voice his concerns about religious freedom in Vietnam, after Tue and more than 70 mendicants were rounded up in a police raid and sent to their home provinces.

“Unfortunately, since I wrote that letter, the situation with Thich Minh Tue has deteriorated and my concern for his wellbeing has grown considerably,” the congressman wrote.

In a letter on his Facebook page, the congressman, who was once mayor of Westminster city, which has a large Vietnamese population, said he had no confidence in the Vietnamese government to give a truthful account of Tue’s condition.

“I hope you will stand with me for religious freedom as a fundamental human right and immediately call to end the religious persecution of Thich Minh Tue and for his release if he is in fact being held unjustly. The United States must continue to press this issue at every available opportunity with the government in Vietnam,” the congressman wrote.

Radio Free Asia emailed the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the U.S. Embassy in Vietnam with requests for comment on the congressman’s letter but they did not immediately respond.

Family call for help

Thich Minh Tue does not claim to be a monk but he has become a symbol for many Buddhists by drawing attention to what many people say is the lack of religious freedom in Vietnam.

Freedom of religion is technically enshrined in Vietnam’s constitution but Tue does not belong to a Buddhist sect that is recognized by the state. Without recognition, religious groups are not allowed to organize.

 

 

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