Armed Attack on Two House Church Leaders in Vietnam
Two pastors of house churches in Vietnam were targeted in an armed attack.
Two leaders of house churches in Vietnam were attacked and injured because their churches are not registered with the communist government of Vietnam.
According to the International Committee for Christians (ICC), Pastor “Vai Hang Aion,” 62, and Pastor “Vai-Fu Aban,” 57, oversee unregistered house churches in central Vietnam. According to reports, Aion was attacked by two masked men on motorcycles with plastic bullets and was severely wounded in the legs.
Aban was shot while working on his coffee farm, but with real bullets, which caused serious injury to him, leaving him unable to walk. The International Committee for Christians stated in its report regarding the recently revealed attacks: “Leaders and members of unregistered house churches are often harassed by local authorities and the central government. Especially because they are not part of the officially approved churches recognized by the Vietnamese government. Both pastors have stated that they believe the attacks against them are due to their continued activities in their unregistered churches.”
The Vietnamese government exercises strict control over religions and denominations in the country, and Christians are required to attend churches approved by the government, not unregistered house churches.
The Christian organization “Open Doors” also wrote in its current annual report regarding Christians and the pressures against them in Vietnam: “For many Christians in Vietnam, following Jesus can involve severe hostility and even violence, while Roman Catholic churches enjoy certain freedoms. Protestants, especially evangelical Christians, face considerable hardships in remote central and northern Vietnam due to their faith.”
