Vietnam’s Human Rights Report 2017: Government Intensifies Crackdown on Local Activists

Defend the Defenders | January 2018

In 2017, Vietnam’s communist government increased persecution, harassment and intimidation against local political dissidents, human rights defenders, social activists and social bloggers throughout the year in what amounted to one of the largest crackdowns in years. The communist regime detained at over 40 activists, and convicted 19 activists, sentencing them to between three to 16 years in jail.

The government crackdown started in early January with the arrest of young blogger Nguyen Van Hoa on January 11 and ended with the detention of former prisoner of conscience Protestant pastor Doan Van Dien on December 24.

During the year, Vietnam convicted 19 activists, with the latest victims being a group of nine activists in the central coastal province of Binh Dinh on allegations of subversion and anti-state propaganda for disseminating leaflets. At the trial on December 28, the activists were sentenced to between three to 16 years in prison, and many years under house arrest afterward.

On December 21, five individuals in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang were sentenced to between three and five years in prison and two years under probation each on allegation of anti-state propaganda, particularly for hanging the flag of the US-based regime South Vietnam which fell to communist troops in 1975. One day later, a court rejected the appeal of well-known human rights advocate and anti-China activist Tran Thi Nga, who was sentenced to nine years in prison and additional five years under house arrest, also on the allegation of “conducting anti-state propaganda” under Article 88 of the country’s 1999 Penal Code.

One month earlier, in late November, the Higher People’s Court in Danang also rejected the appeal of prominent human rights defender Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, a famous blogger who wrote with the penname Mother Mushroom. Quynh was arrested in October last year on allegation of “conducting anti-state propaganda” and in late June, she was sentenced to ten years in prison.

Both Nga and Quynh have two children each.

Vietnam also convicted blogger Nguyen Van Hoa and anti-corruption activist Phan Kim Khanh on the allegation of “conducting anti-state propaganda” under Article 88. The first was sentenced to seven years in prison and three years of probation while the latter was given with six years in prison and four years under house arrest.

Meanwhile, former prisoner of conscience Oai was re-arrested and later sentenced to five years in prison and additional four years of probation on charges of “resisting to on-duty state officials” and “failed to obey imprisonment sentence.”

On December 26-27, Vietnam also convicted 15 young peoples on allegation of conducting terrorist acts against the people’s administration under Article 84 of the Penal Code. In the two-day trial closed for independent observers and foreign reporters, 15 youths were sentenced to between six and 16 years in jail and total 129 years in prison. The convicted were accused of carrying out fuel bombing plot in the Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City, the biggest airport in the country, however, details of their acts were not fully unveiled.

During the year, the government carried out a widespread wave of arrests in which activists were charged with severe allegations in the national security provisions such as Articles 79, 88 and 258 in the Penal Code

The Brotherhood for Democracy (BFD) and the Chan hung Nuoc Viet (Reviving Vietnam Campaign) were the main targets of Vietnam’s crackdown in 2018.

Five key members of BFD namely Nguyen Trung Ton, Pham Van Troi, Nguyen Tuc, Truong Minh Duc and Nguyen Trung Truc were detained in July-August and charged with ““Carrying out activities aimed at overthrowing the people’s administration” under Article 79 of the Penal Code. Two other key members Nguyen Van Dai and Le Thu Ha, who were arrested on December 16, 2015 with the initial allegation under Article 88, were also charged with subversion.

Even two former members Nguyen Bac Truyen and Tran Thi Xuan were also arrested with the same charge.

Under the current law, those who are alleged with subversion may face life imprisonment or even death penalty if convicted.

Three members of the Chan hung Nuoc Viet namely Vu Quang Thuan, Nguyen Van Dien, and Tran Hoang Phuc were detained and charged with “conducting anti-state propaganda” for their live stream publications on Facebook and other social networks. They may face imprisonment of between seven and 20 years in prison if convicted.

Two other activists Dao Quang Thuc and Le Dinh Luong were also arrested and charged with subversion while former prisoner of conscience Nguyen Viet Dung were arrested and charged with “conducting anti-state propaganda” while Hoang Duc Binh, vice president of the unsanctioned Viet Labor Movement, was arrested and charged with “resisting on-duty state officials” and “abusing democratic freedom” under Article 257 and 258 of the Penal Code, respectively.

A number of activists who were arrested in 2016 are still kept in pre-trial detention. Pro-democracy activist Luu Van Vinh and his friend technician Nguyen Van Duc Do were detained in June on allegation of subversion while medical doctor Ho Hai was arrested in November last year on allegation under Article 88.

Along with arrests and convictions, Vietnam’s government applied many other methods to suppress local activists, including kidnap, arbitrary detentions, torture, assets robbery of activists and placing activists under house placement, arrest or heightened surveillance.

Hundreds of activists were arbitrarily detained by police forces, and in many cases, numerous activists were beaten and robbed by police officers in custody. The two emblematic cases were the detentions, torture and robbery of dozens of activists on the appeal hearings of Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh in Nha Trang in November and again of Tran Thi Nga in December.

Many activists, including Nguyen Trung Ton and Tran Hoang Phuc, were kidnapped by plainclothes agents who took them to remote areas where they beat and robbed their belongings before releasing them.

Hundreds of activists in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City and other places were placed under de facto house arrest on many occasions during the year in a bid to prevent them from meeting with foreign diplomats or participating in social events.

Activists Nguyen Quang A, Pham Doan Trang and Bui Thi Minh Hang were detained for hours after meeting with the EU Delegation in Hanoi prior to the EU-Vietnam Human Rights Dialogue.

In many cases, private houses of activists were attacked with dirty messes, often a mix of wasted lubricant oil and fish paste or feces, and plainclothes agents were likely perpetrators. Local police have yet to find the perpetrators so far.

According to Human Rights Watch, Vietnam is holding over 100 political prisoners while Defend the Defenders, BPSOS and 13 other partners, in the Now! Campaign found Vietnam to be holding upwards of 170 prisoners of conscience.

Vietnam always denies of holding prisoners of conscience, saying it imprisons only law violators.

In addition, Vietnam’s government also targets the Catholic community which has about seven millions of followers. Priests who voice about social issues and followers in their areas are under constant persecution.

Many parishes in the central and southern regions were at the center of persecution as the local authorities deploy security forces to the areas and supported thugs of the so-called Red Flag Group who attacked followers and demolished their properties. The same group attacked human rights activist Le My Hanh twice and pro-democracy campaigner Trinh Dinh Hoa once.

A number of priests were barred from foreign trips due to their activities which aim to protect environment and enhance human rights.

Some Protestant groups in the northern mountainous areas were also harassed as authorities demolished their common houses for prayer or prevented them from holding gatherings.

Authorities in Ho Chi Minh City also demolished Lien Tri Pagoda of the United Buddhist Church to take its land for property development projects.

Torture is still rampant in Vietnam two years after Hanoi ratified the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. Dozens of Vietnamese citizens in the country were brutally beaten by police while being held in custody during the year. Police torture led to 12 deaths in 2017, including the deaths of Nguyen Huu Tan in An Giang province and Vo Tan Minh in Ninh Thuan province but police ruled the causes of deaths as suicide or illness.

Appendix: List of arrested, sentenced activists in 2017

More information about Vietnamese prisoners of conscience can be found at: https://www.vietnampocs.com/database

Vietnam, January 2018

Defend the Defenders

Defend the Defenders (DTD), with members and partners in all regions of Vietnam, works   to   systematically   report   and document human   rights violations in Vietnamese and English

on its website vietnamhumanrightsdefenders.net. DTD works closely with the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the London-based Amnesty International and closely coordinates with the Stockholm-based Civil Rights Defenders as well as the Dublin-based Front Line Defenders and other international NGOs.