110,000
Vietnamese Dead at Sea! THE TFP APPEALS:
TO
PAUL VI
"His
Holiness Pope Paul VI
The Brazilian Society for the Defense of Tradition,
Family, and Property paying to Your Holiness the homage of its profound
respect, solicits by your leave your precious attention to the tragic destiny
to which Vietnamese families — many of them Catholic — are subjected. These
people, fleeing from the brutal Communist persecution which has been
established in the land of their fathers, have ventured onto the open seas in
fragile vessels and pinned their hopes on the sense of justice and compassion
of the navigators they may meet in their odyssey.
The ports of the neighboring nations — some of them
only yesterday allies of the fugitives — in the great majority of cases were
coldly and inexorably closed to them. The ships of almost all nationalities
also avoided picking them up. So these families suffer risks and torments that
defy description, and many end by perishing in a desolation that is easily
imagined.
Such reports as this appearing of late in scattered
accounts were confirmed by the tragic declarations made in
With this in mind Your Holiness will certainly not
doubt that History wi11 one day record with severity and horror the fact that
families, which have given proof of elevated moral dignity and noble
intrepidity by preferring to risk their lives rather than subject themselves to
the degrading yoke of Communism, have been the object of such treatment in our
century.
The tragic and undeserved situation in which these
true heroes find themselves would be enough to demonstrate the tact that terror
of displeasing the Communist governments has dominated that extensive area and
inhibits the freedom of action of nations and private shipping companies which,
in normal conditions, would obviously come to their assistance.
In a word, Holy Father, to our way of seeing things,
there is not now in the world an episode in which more fundamental human
rights are at stake.
To deny this, Your Holiness can see quite well, would
amount to saying that these heroic Vietnamese do not have rights, or that they
are not men.
Since the august throne of Saint Peter is the highest
and most powerful source of justice and charity among men, to it at this moment
turn the afflicted and hopeful eyes of those who all over the world are grieved
by this tragedy. They are moved by an ardent and respectful desire that your
Holiness appeal to all the powers on earth still capable of taking pity at this
situation and urge them to do everything in favor of these unfortunate children
of Your Holiness.
The Brazilian Society for the Defense of Tradition,
Family, and Property, the largest civil anti-communist organization in Brazil,
here respectfully addresses its appeal to Your Holiness that you intervene,
being certain that it is expressing the general longing of all those for whom
the words "human rights" have an elevated Christian content.
It seems to us that a public intervention of Your
Holiness would stimulate the non-communist governments to give a guarantee to
the countries of the Far East that they will have no reprisal to fear should
they grant asylum to these victims of Communist cruelty.
We also think that at a request of Your Holiness the
governments of the free peoples would hasten to send planes, ships and all kinds
of assistance to those unfortunate Vietnamese.
Human
Rights Policy at Stake
Your Holiness, who has made so many pronouncements on
human rights will undoubtedly feel in Your heart that the continuation of the
state of abandonment in which these glorious and unfortunate families have
found themselves up to now threatens to put the very authenticity and efficacy
of the world-wide campaign for human rights in question before the eyes of
public opinion.
These considerations encourage in the members and
cooperators of this Society the conviction that this appeal will not rise in
vain to Your Holiness. In this disposition of soul, they are already beseeching
Divine Providence to favor and crown with success the measures that Your
Holiness may see fit to take in this matter.
Asking the blessing of Your Holiness for the Brazilian
Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family, and Property and for myself, I
sign with veneration. Plinio Corręa de Oliveira, President of the National
Council." [
TO
CARTER
In a similar message to President Carter, Prof. Plinio
Corręa de Oliveira says:
"The Brazilian Society for the Defense of Tradition,
Family, and Property, the largest civil anti-communist organization of Brazil,
respectfully addresses Your Excellency, as the universal promoter of the
campaign in favor of human rights, imploring you to start with the utmost
urgency an efficient investigation of the facts we have mentioned; that you
address all the countries and shipping companies involved with this matter, to
give them guarantees so that they may fulfill the international laws of hospitality
without fear of reprisals of any nature. We also ask Your Excellency to send
ships and planes there which may give immediate assistance to those refugees.
"Your Excellency, Mr. President, has in your
hands the greatest political, military, and economic power in today's world. We
request that you use it to aid these unfortunate people. Thus you will obtain the
blessings of God, so indispensable for any grandeur to be lasting and truly
great."