Bahá'í Faith in Vietnam

The Bahá'í Faith in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam started in a late phase of the First Indochina War. The history of the development of the Bahá'í Faith in Vietnam would begin with its arrival out of India more than a century after it's founding in Persia. The first Bahá'í in Vietnam was Shirin Fozdar,cite journal | url = http://www.religiousunity.org/BahArt/Shirin%20Fozdar.htm | title = Shirin Fozdar: An Outstanding Pioneer | first = Anil | last = Sarwal | journal = Bahá'í Digest | year = 1989 | accessdate = 2008-02-23] who arrived in February 1954, which was followed by periods of large growth for the religion in the 1950s and 1960s. With the arrival of communism the practice of the religion was proscribed, but since 2007 the religion has once again been recognized.

Early mentions

The first mention of the religion in Vietnam is likely to have come from the Bahá'í teacher Martha Root who visited Vietnam around 1924. [cite web | title = The Bahá'í Faith in Hong Kong | url = http://www.hk.bahai.org/The_Faith_in_Hong_Kong.html | first = Graham | last = Hassall | date = 2000-01 | publisher = Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Hong Kong | accessdate = 2008-02-23] The country's next Bahá'í visitor was likely Shirin Fozdar; Shirin Fozdar was born in the Bahá'í community of India during the early 1900s and rose to prominence and served as a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of India from 1936 to 1951. Her main area of work from 1925 to 1950 was in a large community of Untouchables or Harijans in Ahmedabad.

In 1950 Fozdar and her husband volunteered, to go to Singapore (then a part of the Federation of Malaya) to fulfill the desire of Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith, to expand the religion to South East Asia. The first Local Spiritual Assembly in South East Asia was formed in Singapore in 1952, exactly two years after their arrival. In February 1954, Fozdar went to Saigon, now Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and then to Cambodia to establish the religion in those two countries; there she received a gold medal from Prince Sihanouk of Cambodia for her inspiring lectures.

Period of growth

During the 1950s and 1960s the Bahá'í Faith spread rapidly in Vietnam, and the surrounding countries of Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines.cite book | url = http://www.northill.demon.co.uk/bahai/intro9.htm | title = A Short Introduction to the Bahá'í Faith | chapter = The Bahá'í Today | first = Moojan | last = Momen | year = 1996] From 1957 to 1963 the Bahá'í community in Vietnam had more than tripled (including among the Koho, Thổ, Annamese, and Cham peoples) and several schools were established.cite book |author = Rabbani, R. (Ed.) |authorlink = Rúhíyyih Khanum |year = 1992 |title = The Ministry of the Custodians 1957-1963 |publisher = Bahá'í World Centre |id = ISBN 085398350X | pages = p. 138, 140, 360 |url = http://bahai-library.com/published.uhj/ministry.custodians.toc.html] In 1957 the Bahá'í marriage certificate was recognized in Vietnam. [cite book |first = Shoghi |last = Effendi |authorlink = Shoghi Effendi |year = 1971 |title = Messages to the Bahá'í World, 1950-1957 |publisher = Bahá'í Publishing Trust |location = Wilmette, Illinois, USA |id = ISBN 0877430365 |url = http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/se/MBW/mbw-54.html.iso8859-1?#gr18 | pages = p. 107] In 1962 16 Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assemblies formed, and by 1963 there were more than 40 (and perhaps over 100) Spiritual Assemblies in South Vietnam. [cite book | title = The Bahá'í Faith 1844-1963| url = http://bahai-library.com/index.php5?file=handscause_statistics_1953-63&chapter=all | author =Ccompiled by the Hands of the Cause Residing in the Holy Land | year = 1964 | pages = p.91] By 1963 there were also 6 local Bahá'í Centers or Haziratu'l-Quds, including in Saigon and Da Nang, and more lands had been bought for future centers.

In 1958 African Americans Dempsey and Adrienne Morgan came to Vietnam after becoming Bahá'ís in September 1955 and over succeeding years helped establish administrative procedures among the Local Spiritual Assemblies of Vietnam.cite book | first = Gwendolyn | last = Etter-Lewis | coauthors = Thomas, Richard Walter | year = 2006 | publisher = Baha'i Publishing Trust | id = ISBN 1931847266 | pages = p. 113-119 | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=L2KVX4mx1xEC&pg=PA114&lpg=PA114&dq=&source=web&ots=fCNpvOrhIR&sig=8m5BfEjijgoegCSfM6T7nS8dlB8#PPA114,M1 | title = Lights of the Spirit: Historical Portraits of Black Bahá'ís in North America 1898-2000 ] During their stay in Vietnam, the Morgans also identified Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Bahá'ís Faith, with the Maitreya Buddha, who in the Buddhist tradition is the successor to Gautama Buddha and who is to appear on Earth, achieve complete enlightenment, and teach the pure dharma.cite web | title = Buddhism and the Baha'i Faith | first = Moojan | last = Momen | publisher = bahai-library.org | url = http://bahai-library.org/encyclopedia/buddhism.html | accessdate = 2008-02-23 | date = 2002-03-02] During this period of growth a number of Buddhist monks also become Baha'is. After this time there was a divergence in the fortunes of Bahá'í communities in South East Asia. In some countries, such as Indonesia and Vietnam, the Bahá'ís came under persecution, while in other countries expansion continued. For example in 1959 the South Vietnam government arrested the entire Saigon Local Spiritual Assembly and forced the Morgan family to leave. They were able to visit Saigon when Rúhíyyih Khanum visited in 1961 and were able to move back to Saigon before the end of the year. There was also a local newsletter the "Baha'i News" in publication by then.

Period of the Vietnam War

As the number of Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assemblies in Vietnam increased, the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Vietnam was established in 1964. [cite web | url = http://bahai-library.com/?file=handscause_statistics_1953-63&chapter=1#22 | title = The Bahá'í Faith: 1844-1963: Information Statistical and Comparative, Including the Achievements of the Ten Year International Bahá'í Teaching & Consolidation Plan 1953-1963| author = Compiled by Hands of the Cause Residing in the Holy Land | pages = p. 22, 46] As the Vietnam war continued in Vietnam, there were a number of American Bahá'ís who were stationed in Vietnam, but following the Bahá'í teaching of the sacredness of all life and of obedience to one's government, Bahá'ís would request to avoid being placed in a position to take the life of another, and thus American Bahá'ís served as clerks and medics.cite book | title = Religious Dimensions of Child and Family Life: Reflections on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child | chapter = Child and Family in Baha'i Religion| first = John | last = Hatcher | editor = Coward, Harold G. | year = 1996 | publisher = University of Victoria | location = Victoria, B.C.| id = ISBN 155058104X | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=JD8_s94htQMC&pg=PA159&lpg=PA159&dq&source=web&ots=9JpT9IFm-s&sig=00rSRLGRxn5d6tXI92bxo7LVZPQ | pages = p. 141-160 ] [cite web | url = http://www.bahai.us/node/77 | title = Selected profiles of African-American Baha'is, William H. “Smitty” Smith | date = 2006-06-28 | accessdate =2008-02-23] [cite web | url = http://www.veteransforpeace.org/Nikko_schoch_tribute.vp.html | title = About Veterans for Peace: Remembrance of Nikko Schoch | first = Frank Barry | last = Smith | accessdate = 2008-02-23] [cite book | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=t57XsKWhb1QC&pg=PA191&source=gbs_toc_r&cad=0_0&sig=Oyv3NP8fhv-N3-gZGUjR2ERslFE#PPA199,M1 | chapter = Becoming a Man | first = Sidney | last = Morrison, | title = Equal Circles: Women and Men in the Baha'i Community | editor = Caton, Peggy | year = 1987 | publisher = Kalimat Press | id = ISBN 0933770286 | pages = p. 199] At the end of the war in 1975, the community continued to grow and there were an estimated 200,000 Bahá'ís in South Vietnam.cite web | url = http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90159.htm | title = International Religious Freedom Report - Vietnam | year = 2007 | date = 2007-09-14 | accessdate = 2008-02-23 | author = Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor | publisher = United States State Department]

Legal proscription

As communist rule spread in Vietnam after the Vietnam war, open practice of the Bahá'í Faith was banned from 1975 to 1992. As late as 2000 some localities of Bahá'ís have been able to practice their religion quietly with local permission while in Da Nang the Bahá'ís were unable to obtain approval of an application for registration of official religious activities. [cite web
last = compiled by Wagner
first = Ralph D.
title = VIETNAM
work = Synopsis of References to the Bahá'í Faith, in the US State Department's Reports on Human Rights 1991-2000
publisher = Bahá'í Academics Resource Library
url = http://bahai-library.com/documents/hr/hr-vietnam.htm
accessdate = 2008-05-04] The number of believers dropped sharply during this time of proscription until in 2007 there were but 6880 known Bahá'ís. [cite journal |title= The Baha'i Faith 1957–1988: A Survey of Contemporary Developments | first = Moojan | last = Momen | coauthors = Smith, Peter | year = 1989 | url = http://bahai-library.com/?file=momen_smith_developments_1957-1988.html |volume = 19 | journal = Religion | pages=pp. 63–91 |doi= 10.1016/0048-721X(89)90077-8] Thousands of Bahá'ís moved as refugees from Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia to the United States during the 1970's. [cite book | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=QT3i34vGS-cC&pg=PA127&lpg=PA127&dq=&source=web&ots=VGosCgIyhU&sig=W8UfsIshH5Re90Tv559vWLPM4UQ#PPA127,M1 | title = The Routledge Historical Atlas of Religion in America| first = Bret E. | last = Carroll | pages = p. 127 | id = ISBN 0415921317 | publisher = Routledge | year = 2000] Other counts by World Christian Encyclopedia estimated 300,000 Bahá'ís in Vietnam in 2000. [cite web | url = http://www.adherents.com/largecom/com_bahai.html | publisher = Adherents.com | title = The Largest Baha'i Communities | accessdate = 2008-02-23 | date = 2005-09-30]

While Vietnam had ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights(ICCPR) which has provisions for religions freedom (Article 18),cite web | url = http://www.uniya.org/research/view_vietnam.html | title = View on Vietnam | first = Lyndall J. |last = Stoyles | date - 2004-11 | publisher = Uniya Jesuit Social Justice Centre | accessdate = 2008-02-23] and the Vietnamese Constitution codes this kind of freedom in Article 70:

"The citizen shall enjoy freedom of belief or religion; he can follow any religion or none. All religions are equal before the law. The places of worship of all faiths and religions are protected by the law. No one can violate freedom of belief and of religion; nor can anyone misuse belief and religion to contravene the law and State policies."

an analyst notes:

"Only religions that have been officially recognised have legal rights. To be authorised, the group must obtain Government approval of its leadership and overall scope of its activities. Failure to comply leads to persecution. The Government retains supervisory control of authorised religions. All religious organisations have to be affiliated with the Communist Party of Vietnam and an organisation called the Patriotic Front. Government permission is required for many religious practices, including general meetings, charitable activities, operation of schools and ordination and promotion of clergy and travel outside the country. Religious training must be approved by the State and must promote the policy of “socialism”. State approved churches are also required to promote Government policies on a wide range of issues."

End of proscription

The first signs of the end of the legal proscription ending came in November 2006 when the US State Department reported that restrictions were being eased though issues remained. [cite web | url = http://www.america.gov/st/washfile-english/2006/November/20061114150908mlenuhret0.4384882.html | title = Vietnam Praised, Uzbekistan Faulted on Religious Freedom | first = Lea | last= Terhune | | publisher = Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State | date = 2006-11-14 | accessdate = 2008-02-23] The Bahá'í community of Vietnam held a ceremony in February 2007 to celebrate the awarding of its certificate of operation from the government’s Committee for Religious Affairs in January 2007. The community had six places of worship and more than 6,880 followers in five provinces in the central and southern regions of the country. Ngo Yen Thi, head of the Committee for Religious Affairs, stated: "The State policy on religion respects and ensures freedom of belief and religion for all Vietnamese citizens as stipulated in the country’s first constitution in 1946 and in revised versions," as he was granting certificates of operation simultaneously for the Bahá'ís, and two Buddhist sects. [cite web | url = http://vietnamnews.vnagency.com.vn/showarticle.php?num=01REL220307 | title = Nation's Baha'i community gets religious recognition | date = 2007-03-22 | publisher = Viet Nam News, Vietnam News Agency | location = Hanoi, Vietnam | accessdate = 2008-02-23]

Recent developments

The Bahá'í Faith was registered nationally in 2007. There are some signs of large scale growth from the 50's-60's resuming. On March 21, 2008, the National Spiritual Assembly was elected and it's charter was adopted at a national congress in Ho Chi Min City on the anniversary of the Government’s recognition of the religion’s legal status and a Bahá'í holy day of Bahá'í Naw-Rúz. The event was attended by attended by over 250 delegates and visitors. [cite news | coauthors = Vietnam News Agency | title = Baha’i sect receives legal recognition | work = VietNamNet Bridge | language = English | publisher = VietNamNet Bridge | date = 2008-03-22 | url = http://english.vietnamnet.vn/social/2008/03/774707/ | accessdate =2008-03-24 ] The National Spiritual Assembly received its certificate of national recognition in July 2008. [cite news
coauthors = Vietnam News Agency
title = Baha’i community recognised as religious organisation
work = VietNamNet Bridge
language = English
publisher = VietNamNet Bridge
date = 2008-07-26
url = http://english.vietnamnet.vn/politics/2008/07/795619/
accessdate = 2008-0-27] Individual local spiritual assemblies must be registered as well.

External links

* [http://www.geocities.com/bahaisvietnam/ an individual's webpage about the Baha'is in Vietnam]

References

ee also

*Religion in Vietnam
*List of ethnic groups in Vietnam