When Vietnam’s human rights record was up for review at the United Nations in 2019, writer and activist Pham Doan Trang submitted three reports critical of Vietnam’s human rights practices. In the middle of the night in October 2020, Trang was jailed by the Vietnamese government. Among the evidence cited were her reports to the U.N.
Now, as Vietnam’s human rights record comes under scrutiny again in the 4th cycle of the U.N. Universal Periodic Review, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Do Hung Viet claims a commitment to the process and “dedication to protecting and promoting human rights.” Their record tells a different story.
The Vietnamese government continues to heavily restrict freedom of expression, with writers, journalists, and human rights defenders facing harassment, arbitrary detention, and harsh prison sentences under vague anti-state laws. Reprisals like those against Pham Doan Trang reflect the grim reality of these ongoing rights violations.
PEN America, alongside PEN International and the Vietnamese PEN Abroad Centre, submitted a report to the Universal Periodic Review and delivered an oral statement in Geneva in February with examples of how Vietnam has failed on human rights and continues to arrest, charge, and imprison writers, journalists and activists for their speech. This pattern of repression placed Vietnam tied for third place in the 2023 PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Index, with 19 writers imprisoned.
While Vietnam has said it is “embracing” the Universal Periodic Review, it rejected specific recommendations to repeal laws that infringe on free expression, including articles of the 2015 Penal Code and Cybersecurity Law that have been used to silence critics. Amending these laws would not only be a clear signal that Vietnam is indeed taking its human rights obligations seriously, but also a crucial step toward fostering a truly free environment for speech and dissent. It is clear that the pattern of imprisoning, releasing, and then either re-imprisoning or arresting other writers, journalists, and activists will remain a relentless cycle until there is systemic change.
“Writers, journalists, and activists in Vietnam are likely to become more hesitant to report human rights violations or engage in advocacy, fearing similar punitive measures,” PEN America’s Anh-Thu Vo, manager of research and advocacy for the PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Center, said last week at a U.N. side event hosted by the International Service for Human Rights. “It’s likely that your family will be harassed and you could be sentenced to 10 years in prison.”
“Even those who flee to neighboring countries like Thailand have faced continued intimidation and the threat of deportation. Activists remain vulnerable to surveillance, intimidation, and potential deportation, even as many seek asylum,” Vo said.
Lawyers in Vietnam face similar threats, with many forced into exile, leaving fewer international human rights lawyers available to defend writers and activists. Additionally, prisoners in Vietnam face severe isolation, with restricted access to communication and legal representation.
The lack of contact makes it all the more difficult to keep attention on cases like Trang’s to increase diplomatic pressure on the repressive government. This year, Trang’s case was dropped from the U.N. Secretary General’s report on reprisals due to a lack of new information.
Trang’s imprisonment – which the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found is in contravention of Vietnam’s international human rights commitments – is not unique in Vietnam. This year, Vietnamese blogger Nguyen Vu Binh was sentenced to seven years in prison under the same article of the penal code that was used against Trang. Activist and online commentator Dang Thi Hue was abducted, detained, and interrogated about her Facebook page and activism. Author and journalist Trương Huy San was detained for Facebook posts critical of the Vietnamese government.
The recent release of poet Tran Huynh Duy Thuc highlights the potential impact of bilateral talks between the U.S. and Vietnam on advancing human rights. When U.S. President Joe Biden met Vietnam’s General Secretary To Lam last month, PEN America pressed to make human rights part of the conversation and continues to urge key state partners like the U.S. to continue to prioritize human rights in their bilateral engagements with the Vietnamese government. PEN America also insists that Vietnam must do more to allow writers, journalists, and activists to express their views without fear of repression or punishment.
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The PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award kicked off a year of advocacy by PEN America on Trang’s behalf. Support Trang with the Write to Trang campaign.
