10/11/2011 Vietnam (CN) Catholics in the northern city of Vinh, Vietnam, say they will continue mass rallies calling on the government to halt construction of a shopping center they say is being built on Church-owned land.
Fr Francis Xavie Hoang Sy Huong, pastor of Cau Ram parish, said local Catholics have repeatedly urged the government to respect the ownership of the property where the project is being developed.
“We plan to continue staging peaceful rallies asking the government to stop construction and return the land.”
Fr Huong said Catholics have gathered on three occasions in front of the People’s Committee of Nghe An province and asked authorities to respect the former Church property.
Last month more than 1,500 parishioners braved heavy rain to sing hymns and raise banners during a protest.
…
Parishioners were forced to remove a chapel they had built on the land in 1998. The following year, government authorities approved a plan to build a church on a 10,800 square meter plot.
But Fr Huong said the Church is now too small to meet the needs of its 6,000 parishioners, and children have no place to learn catechism.
He added that in the last year the government had sold the former church land to a private company for 2.17 million dong (US$104,660), now designated for a shopping center.
“We have petitioned the government four times to stop construction work on the land and return it to the parish.”
…
[Full Story]