Vietnam Free Expression Newsletter No. 26/2018 – Week of June 25-July 1

Vietnamese activists have compiled a report on violent police responses to overwhelmingly peaceful protests on several days in June, called “Black Sundays.” The report details the detentions of unarmed protests and the physical assault that amounts to torture against them, and calls for accountability from the Vietnamese government in line with international human rights obligations. The report has been sent to foreign governments, the UN, and international organizations.

A female activist residing in Nha Trang was kidnapped and tortured by a group of men on June 25. Cao Hoang Tram Anh had participated in recent national protests against the new cyber security law and a draft law on special economic zones; she also has posted social commentary on Facebook. Before the kidnapping, authorities had twice come to her house, demanding she stop her online activities.

Also this week, undercover police agents attacked the residence of labor activist and former political prisoner Do Thi Minh Hanh. They threw rocks and a homemade explosive at the home. A blogger was also assaulted by thugs after visiting Hanh at the residence.

Catholic priest, Father Nguyen Duy Tan, recently protested in front of a prison north of Ho Chi Minh City, demanding the release of one of his parishioners. The prisoner, a mother of five, was detained after protesting in nationwide demonstrations against legislation in June. Authorities have also targeted Father Tan due to his activism, including last month when airport officials prohibited him from leaving Vietnam to travel to Malaysia with a group of other priests.

June 26 was the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture. Two former political prisoners were blocked from meeting with activists in Ho Chi Minh City to commemorate the day. Plainclothes police outside the homes of Le Cong Dinh and Pham Ba Hai prevented them from attending an event organized by the Former Vietnamese Prisoners of Conscience.

Vietnam Forces Facebook and Google to Pick Privacy or Growth: “The law mirrors efforts globally to safeguard domestic users’ information and open up access to data that governments say they need to combat threats — what China refers to as its cyber-sovereignty. It also reflects a growing wariness about the influence of internet and social media giants that handle and parse information on and for billions around the world. ‘If they comply with this law, they violate their own terms of service to protect the privacy of their users,’ said Tim Bajarin, president of Creative Strategies Inc. ‘Officials could also censor content at will given the way the law is written.’ Vietnam’s move to assert greater control over what its people do online underscores the dilemma for tech companies that rely on countries wary of social media for growth.”

Vietnam Expects Economic Boom from EU Trade Deal: “Analysts say a Vietnamese trade ministry meeting this month with the EU’s trade commissioner indicates that a deal is nearly done. The two sides ‘reached consensus’ at that meeting on all content of an investment protection agreement, the Communist Party news website said. In a possible snag, European Parliament members had voiced concerns last year over human rights in Vietnam. Some suggested more debate in Vietnam on political rights and freedom of expression.”

Property rights could spell Vietnam Communist Party’s downfall: “Some changes have been enacted. A 2013 land law didn’t recognize private ownership but did extend the leases of many plots for another 50 years. Still, this doesn’t seem to have done any good, and many analysts think land-rights protests will continue to plague the Communist Party in the coming years. But if the party wants to prevent all of this, it will have to dismantle its own monopoly of power. First, it may have to accept that land can actually be owned by individuals without state interference. Second, to  settle disputes between land owners and developers properly, including government-backed ones, it requires an independent judiciary to decide over these cases. But that would mean the party has to loosen its dominance over the judiciary, something that would certainly curtail its ability to enforce its own laws. If this happens, why not representational democracy as well?”

Vietnam: a month of mass protests: “To make the optics even grimmer, the bill on cybersecurity was passed by a super-majority vote. With the [special economic zones] bill postponed, many Vietnamese are aggrieved that while national sovereignty has been temporarily kept intact, the cyber law will curb their freedom of speech and right to privacy. All of these concerns are not necessarily substantiated, but such negative public perceptions are warranted. The situation has all the hallmarks of a crisis of trust, given that a majority of the public believes that public sector corruption is chronically severe in Vietnam. Though the nationwide anti-graft campaign is winning popular support, the people are still pessimistic about the public sector, thus are less likely to give new policies the benefit of the doubt. No matter what, as per Professor Carl Thayer’s observation, the current situation is toxic.”