Name: Pastor Y Yich
Country/Area of Origin: Vietnam (Ethnic Montagnard)
Background: Y Yich is a Protestant pastor advocating for religious freedom for his fellow church members in Vietnam’s Central Highlands.
Reason for Arrest:
Because his congregation prefers to be free of State control over their religious activities, the local government persecutes adherents of the unapproved Church. The police forces of Aluk Village (home to Rev. Y Yich) and K’Dang Commune (a part of the Town of Pleiku, encompassing a number of villages, including Aluk) had been assaulting him to prevent him from serving his congregation. He was arrested on May 13, 2017 (second time after serving 4 years of a previous sentence)
Latest Updates:
- In December 2020, Pastor Yich’s son Mrui reported that he and his family have been harassed by authorities in an attempt to coerce them to renounce their Christian faith.
- Also in December 2020, the Vietnamese People’s Evangelical Fellowship (VPEF) revealed the following:
- “As a result of being beaten and tortured in prison, his health has deteriorated. He has been denied medical treatment for high blood pressure, rheumatism, and stomach inflammation; and prison authorities have refused to deliver medicine to him which was brought to the facility by his family.”