From 13 June to 22 June, IGE and a delegation from the U.S. will travel to Vietnam to meet with several top government officials and participate in three major events in Vietnam. From 16 to 18 June, IGE will co-host the third “Religion and Rule of Law” conference in Southeast Asia, in Hanoi. This conference will convene experts in law and religion from 10 countries to discuss comparative approaches to enabling the positive role of religion in society.

IGE will also co-sponsor the second “Roundtable on Protestantism” in Hanoi, examining Christianity’s development throughout the last 35 years and its contribution to the development of Vietnam. This roundtable builds on the success of last year’s December roundtable. The roundtable will take place on 21 June 2011, in conjunction with the 100-year anniversary of Protestantism in Vietnam.

Finally, this year marks the fifth anniversary of IGE’s signed agreement with Vietnam. Together, IGE and its country partner, Vietnam-USA Society, will consider the lessons learned from the past five years and sign a new agreement that comprehensively builds religious freedom in Vietnam, strengthening the bilateral relationship as a result.