Buddhist dissident supports land seizure protests

Thich Quang Do has publicly addressed protests concerning land seizures and corruption in Viet Nam, Agence France-Presse reported Wednesday. The deputy leader of the Unified Buddhist Church of Viet Nam (UBCV), had not addressed a public demonstration in 26 years.

Do has been held under “pagoda arrest” since the Vietnamese government declared the UBCV illegal in 1981. The UBCV was banned after refusing to give in to governmental supervision. The appearance by Do is unprecedented and illustrates the high importance of the land issue among Vietnamese

“Thich Quang Do cannot leave his pagoda except to visit the doctor once a month,” Vo Vai Ai, UBCV spokesperson said.

Lu Thi Thu Duyen, a protester, spoke of the thousands of people that listened to the monk address the demonstrators.

Do is a 2007 Nobel peace prize nominee.

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