Chairman ZABLOCKI. If there is no further discussion, the Chair will call upon the chief of staff to read House Concurrent Resolution 378. Mr. FASCELL. I ask unanimous consent the bill be considered as read and open for amendment. Chairman ZABLOCKI. Is there objection? If there are no amendments, the Chair will put the question. All those in favor of House Concurrent Resolution 378 will signify by saying "aye"; and opposed, "no." The "ayes" have it. House Concurrent Resolution 378 is favorably reported.1 [Whereupon, the committee proceeded in consideration of other business.] 1H. Con. Res. 378 passed the House of Representatives by voice vote under unanimous con sent on Sept. 30, 1982. Subsequently, this passage was vacated and S. Con. Res. 73, a similar Senate-passed resolution, was agreed to in lieu. RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION AS A VIOLATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS The Presbyterian Church of Asia THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 1982 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND The subcommittee met at 2:15 p.m., in room 2200, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Don Bonker (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. Mr. BONKER. The subcommittee will come to order. This is the Subcommittee on Human Rights and International Organizations. Today we are convening for the purpose of hearing further cases of religious persecution as an aspect of human rights violations. This is the seventh hearing of the series, and today we will be considering the case of the Presbyterian Church in Asia. For the benefit of those in the audience, our previous hearings have included two sessions on general overview of religious persecution. We have looked at the problems of the Baha'is in Iran, the problems experienced by the Falashas in Ethiopia, the Coptic Church in Egypt, and the persecution of the Jews and Christians within the Soviet Union and in certain Eastern bloc countries. We are now continuing to focus on religious sects which are victims of religious persecution. It does not matter if you are Father Ed de la Torre, who many Members helped, the last time he was detained in the Philippines, to have him released, or Reverend Kao, the head of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan--both are languishing in jail, or missionaries in South Korea, or members of "House Churches" in China, the problem always seems to be the same. They experience some form of persecution or are the victims of governmental repression. The church suffers because there is a reciprocal relationship between religion and other rights. In most instances, the church is the one institution that is capable of challenging the power and the authority of the state. As governments deny their citizens basic fundamental freedoms and human rights, the church is strong enough to protest and, of course, speak for a very broad constituency. When the church speaks out against injustice, it experiences some sort of oppression by the state. It is difficult to have religious freedom without the protection and promotion of human rights. We see the two inextricably linked and that is why religious persecution is the subject of this subcommittee's attention. [Mr. Bonker's prepared opening statement follows:] PREPARED OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. DON BONKER, CHAIRMAN, SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS This is the seventh hearing of the series on Religious Persecution as a Violation of Human Rights. Today we continue our study of specific examples of violations by considering the case of the Presbyterian Church in Asia. At a previous session of these hearings, a witness testified that the real issue faced by the church everywhere is the "struggle to maintain the freedom of people to think for themselves, to witness to God and obey Him, and to act morally according to the dictates of their conscience." On numerous occasions members of the church from Asia have visited me and they have described this problem. They point out that one cannot exercise the right of religious liberty if other human rights are not guaranteed. It does not matter if you are Father Ed de la Torre, who many members helped the last time he was detained in the Philippines, or Reverend Kao, the head of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan-both languishing in jail or missionaries in South Korea or members of "House Churches" in China, the problem is always the same. The church suffers because there is a reciprocal relationship between religion and other rights. In most instances, the church is the one institution that is capable of challenging the power of the state. As governments deny their citizens basic fundamental freedoms and human rights, the church is strong enough to protest. Inevitably, when the church speaks out against injustice, it is suppressed by the state. You cannot have religious freedom without the protection and promotion of human rights. Mr. BONKER. We are fortunate to have three distinguished witnesses: Dr. Arie Brouwer, who is general secretary of the Reformed Church in America; Dr. Coe, who is former director of the Theological Education World Council of Churches; and Pastor Moon, who, I gather, is not associated with the other Pastor Moon who has received celebrated attention in this county. He is pastor of Capitol Union Presbyterian Church. Gentlemen, we welcome you to the subcommittee. We are pleased that you are here and are prepared to testify before the subcommittee. I might ask at this time if the ranking minority member, Mr. Leach of Iowa, has an opening statement or any comments to make. Mr. LEACH. Mr. Chairman, I would just like to express my appreciation for your holding this hearing and welcome our three witnesses. I want to particularly welcome Dr. Coe, who symbolizes the Taiwanese Presbyterian Church, whose leader, Reverend Kao, is currently in jail, as are other Presbyterian ministers, all for, in essence, standing up for their interpretation of what is right and proper under their religious convictions. Therefore, I think it is very timely to hear from our witnesses about the situation, particularly in Taiwan, but also Korea and other parts of Asia. Thank you. Mr. BONKER. Are there further comments before we proceed with the witnesses? The reporter will note the presence of Congressman Pritchard of Washington and Congressman Gejdenson of Connecticut. We will start with Reverend Brouwer. STATEMENT OF REV. ARIE BROUWER, GENERAL SECRETARY OF THE REFORMED CHURCH IN AMERICA Reverend BROUWER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. My name is Arie Brouwer and I am the general secretary of the Reformed Church of America, a member church of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America, on whose behalf I am privileged to address you today. The council is a fellowship of 32 churches of Protestant and Orthodox faiths. While the views I express here are not given in the precise words of these member churches' statements, they do reflect the common concern of those communions expressed more formally in policy statements of the National Council of Churches. Since the document is long and our time is short, I wish now orally to note the main points of the document and add a few personal words. The first point I wish to emphasize is that this testimony concerning religious persecution in some Asian societies is based on relationships which are direct and personal. The people who are imprisoned, tortured, and made to disappear are our friends, sometimes our brothers and sisters or sons and daughters. Second, I want to note that my remarks today on religious persecution are made in the wider context of civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights for all people. The National Council of Churches is convinced that religious freedom is an essential human right. We also hold that it should never be used to claim privileges for one group over another. That by religious freedom we, of course, mean the right of religious worship, practice, and teaching. We also mean the freedom of religious bodies to criticize the ruling powers, when necessary, on the basis of their religious convictions. The importance of this conviction is clearly seen when parliaments are disbanded, political parties outlawed, trade unions repressed, or the courts stripped of their authority. Then the churches often provide virtually the last remaining place to stand together for justice. As the churches have been faithful to their Christian calling to work with and speak for the oppressed, they in turn have become explicit objects of attack by regimes wishing to establish total control and to silence all opposition. The roll is long of pastors, priests, women, and religious laypersons who have been attacked, beaten, imprisoned, and murdered. The specific instances of such persecution are noted in my written testimony. With respect to religious persecution in North Korea, I note that the freedom of Christians is still so severely curtailed that we do not know if any practicing congregations actually exist. In South Korea, a constant barrage of propaganda against the churches' mission work among laborers is broadcast over government-controlled media while at the same time ideological training material systematically portrays the church as pro-Communist and infiltrated by antistate elements. Direct restriction of church activities has also increased. I report a number of specific instances and conclude this section with a list of Christians imprisoned for our common faith. On a personal note, Mr. Chairman, I would like to say that 30 years ago, one of my brothers was killed in Korea fighting for the freedom of that country's people. You will appreciate, I think, that in preparing this testimony concerning oppression in South Korea, I have been keenly aware of the cruel irony of his death. I hope the Congress will remember his sacrifice and that of the thousands of people who died with him as it shapes our country's relationships with South Korea in order that everything possible may be done to assure the freedom for which they died. With respect to the Philippines, Mr. Chairman, I call your attention to the deportation of two Italian priests and the closing of religious radio stations and newspapers and to one example of detention and police murder. I also report the detention of three members of the staff of the National Council of Churches in the Philippines, and I cite the extensive and overwhelming documentation of human rights violations in the Philippines previously reported to your subcommittee by Amnesty International, by the International Commission of Jurists and Filipino church groups, such as the Task Force Detainees. With your permission, Mr. Chairman, I would like to attach to this testimony a statement of the Right Reverend Monsignor Norberto Hacbang, who is vicar general in Samar, on the arrest list of the Government in the Philippines. Mr. BONKER. Do you have that statement with you? Reverend BROUWER. Yes, sir, and copies have been provided to the subcommittee staff. Mr. BONKER. Is there any objection to having that included in the record? It will be so ordered. [Rt. Rev. Msgr. Norberto Hacbang's prepared statement follows:] PREPARED STATEMENT OF RT. REV. MSGR. NORBERTO HACBANG, VICAR GENERAL, CALBAYOG DIOCESE AND Parish Priest, Catbalogan, Samar Metro Manila daily newspapers came out with news items Saturday, September 4, 1982 saying that a military raid was conducted on the Social Action Center of Catbalogan, Samar resulting in the discovery of subversive documents, propaganda materials, printing paraphernalia and a gun. The items further reported the arrest of a nun, Sister Helena Gutierrez and two men named Juanito Delameda and Antonio Assistio. The papers added that the following eluded arrests: Fr. Edgardo Kangleon, Msgr. Norberto Hacbang, Sister Thelma Laureon, Sr. Ludivina Davantes, Don Mabuhay and Teodoro Reyes. The report said that the raiding team searched the center on the basis of a search warrant and that the raid was conducted after months of surveillance and that the activities of the center were of the underground nature led by radical priests in the area. The Social Action Center referred to in the news items is actually the Paul VI Center erected some twelve years ago in the parochial compound of Catbalogan. The building holds the offices of the pastoral secretariat of the dioceses of Borongan, Calbayog and Catarman in Samar, and Palo in Leyte (BCPC). It is used for the pastoral programs set up by the BCPC Pastoral Conference made up of the four bishops of the dioceses, the Executive Secretary, the four Vicars General, of whom I am one, and their pastoral commissions heads. The building is also used by various Catholic mandated organizations like the Legion of Mary, Catholic Women's League, Knights of Columbus, Apostleship of Prayer, Confraternity of Our Lady of Lourdes, Ladies of Charity, etc. It is the hub of Catholic apostolic activities and not underground activities as reported in the said daily newspapers. It is so widely and general used and so |