Vietnamese Church Leader Released After One Year in Prison

(Christiantoday) – According to a press release from Vietnamese Ministries dated 7th March, a renowned Vietnamese church leader, Nguyen Van Phuong was released from prison on Thursday 3rd March, one day after the one-year anniversary of an incident which sparked the arrest of a number of church leaders. Nguyen Van Phuong, 38, had served various pastoral roles since his mid-twenties. On 2nd March 2004, the Mennonite Church discovered undercover police spies among the congregation. Later, Nguyen Van Phuong together with his two brothers Nguyen Hieu Nghia, Nguyen Thanh Nhan and another major church leader Pham Ngoc Thach were arrested on charges of resisting the police in carrying out their official duty. The release of Phuong has been widely celebrated by the Church and his family, and Phuong has appeared to be in fair health since his release. His wife, Phuong Trang, and one-year-old son were among family members and church friends who met him as he was released from the Bo La Prison, eighty kilometres north of Ho Chi Minh City.