Nguyen Thuy Hanh

Immediate Concerns

Oct. 2024:

Nguyen Thuy Hanh finished her 42-month sentence and was released on Oct. 7. In 2020, Hanh founded the 50K Fund, an initaitve to support the families of political prisoners. While in prison, she was constantly shuttled between a hospital to be treated for cancer and a psychiatric hospital for clinical depression. In her first public statement after her release, she stated that the cancer is not completely cured yet, and that her mental health is still fragile.

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Nguyen Thuy Hanh reported to Project88 that she was given the Human Rights Award by the Human Rights Network of Vietnam. However, Hanh said that even though she was very honored and proud for having been recognized, she declined to accept the award because “I feel I do not deserve it as much as some other individuals who have contributed much more than I.”

March 2024:

Late March:

Huynh Ngoc Chenh, Hanh's husband, told Project88 that on March 10 he was called to the police station to file paperwork that would allow him to bring Hanh home for cancer treatment, provided that she remain at the residence where she was living at the time of her arrest. However, that apartment had since been leased to another tenant, and the lease would not expire until March 18. Chenh told the police he would try to negotiate with the tenant to end the lease early so his wife could move back to that residence; however, that effort failed. Then on March 17, he called the authorities to let them know that he could take Hanh home on March 18, but received no response from them. Then on March 22, after Hanh’s radiation therapy, the authorities went to K Hospital and read an order to continue Hanh’s “temporary detention” for another three months. She was then taken back to the jail on 2 Thuong Tin St. It is not clear why Hanh’s family was given such false hopes.

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An update on Nguyen Thuy Hanh’s medical treatment from her husband, Huynh Ngoc Chenh:

Hanh has been getting five sessions of radiation therapy and one session of chemotherapy a week, which restarted on Feb. 19 after the Tet holiday. Every weekday afternoon, Hanh is transported by ambulance from the Central Psychiatric Center in Hanoi, where she’s being held in pretrial detention, to Hospital K for radiation therapy. On days that she also has chemotherapy, the session starts in the morning. Chenh, who lives in Quang Nam Province in Central Vietnam, is renting a room near the hospital so he can come see her when she gets to the hospital and after the session finishes. This allows them to have brief conversations as he walks with her to and from the ambulance.

Hanh has gone through 10 radiation and two chemo sessions, which have caused her extreme pain and discomfort when she gets back to the detention center, where she often throws up her food. Several family members of imprisoned activists have also traveled to Hanoi to see her at the hospital. Hanh said she was aware that many people and organizations are following her case and that this has given her the motivation and energy to fight on.

A petition signed by dozens of prominent citizens and organizations has been sent to President Vo Van Thuong, asking for Nguyen Thuy Hanh to be released from pre-trial detention so that her family can be with her and take better care of her during these excruciating therapy sessions. See the full text of the petition in the "Take Action" section of the profile. 

February 2024:

Nguyen Thuy Hanh’s husband, Huynh Ngoc Chenh, told Project88 that as of Feb. 4 Hanh has had five sessions of radiotherapy and one session of chemotherapy at Tan Trieu’s K Hospital to treat her cervical cancer. She will now go back to the Central Psychiatry Hospital in Hanoi and be kept there until after Tet. Starting on the 10th day of the Lunar New Year, she will undergo 20 more radiotherapy and four more chemotherapy sessions over three months. In the resources section is the first public photo of Hanh since her arrest in 2021. 

January 2024:

Nguyen Thuy Hanh is believed to have been diagnosed with stage 2 cervical cancer, according to a Facebook post by her husband, Huynh Ngoc Chenh. Since April 2022, Hanh has been kept at the Central Psychiatric Hospital in Hanoi, where she is being treated for clinical depression. He believes the lack of sanitation and clean water might be a contributing factor to her illness. At the time of his initial post, Chenh said that Hanh had not been given any radiation therapy due to the long waiting list. 

Update:

Huynh Ngoc Chenh, along with Hanh’s lawyers, has filed a petition asking the government to allow Hanh to be released from temporary detention to be treated for cancer. At the beginning of this year, Hanh started to have unusual symptoms and was taken to Hospital K in Tan Trieu, in Hanoi, for further examinations. On Jan. 25, a team of doctors at the hospital confirmed that she has “middle stage” cervical cancer, according to Chenh. Doctors have recommended a treatment plan for Hanh that includes both chemotherapy and radiotherapy; she has begun treatment.

December 2023:

Human rights activist Nguyen Thuy Hanh’s family told Project88 after their latest visit that Hanh was transferred from the Van Hoa temporary detention center to the Central Psychiatric Hospital, both in Hanoi on April 27, 2022, and has been kept there since. She’s given medication twice a day. Any patient who refuses to take the medication is allegedly tied up and forced to do so, as they did with Hanh.

In October of this year, her condition worsened and she could not sleep and suffered from prolonged periods of stress. Since being prescribed a new medication, she has been able to sleep better. Each room is about 15 square meters and holds seven patients, most of whom have committed serious crimes, such as killing a spouse or child. The family is allowed one visit a month. They are separated by a glass window and must talk by phone. A bit of bittersweet news: Hanh has become a grandmother; her daughter-in-law delivered twin boys three weeks ago.

Background

Nguyen Thuy Hanh lives in Hanoi. In 2016, Hanh self-nominated herself in an election of the National Assembly.

Profile photo source: Facebook Nguyễn Thúy Hạnh

History of Activism

Hanh has been an activist since 2011, but it wasn’t until she founded the 50K Fund that the authorities began to follow her movements in earnest. She later opened an account to raise money for the family of slain Dong Tam Commune leader Le Dinh Kinh, at the request of land rights activist Trinh Ba Phuong. The authorities decided to arrest Hanh after they arrested Phuong, his brother Trinh Ba Tu, and their mother Can Thi Theu. Read Hanh’s husband, Huynh Ngoc Chenh’s, letter about her activism here.

Hanh is an active activist, who often participates in demonstrations against China’s claim of Nine-Dash-Lines on the South China Sea. She also joins campaigns calling for environmental protection and honors soldiers of the former South Vietnam who died in battles to protect the maritime sovereignty of Vietnam.

Hanh created “Quy 50k” (or 50k Fund) to collect money from supporters and distribute it to families of prisoners of conscience. All donations have been publicized on her Facebook Nguyễn Thúy Hạnh.

October 2019:

An Ninh ("Security") TV (antv.gov.vn), a state-owned channel dedicated to security-related news, was airing a series of programs to defame well-known political activists. On October 27, 2019, An Ninh TV aired a program in which it identified several activists as “subversives,” among them: Le Trung Khoa, Le Dung Vova, Nguyen Thuy Hanh, Pham Doan Trang, and Dung Truong. The program also provided ways to recognize those activists on social media. On October 31, 2019, Le Dung Vova and his CHTV channel were publicly-accused of igniting some people to question the government.

December 2019:

Pro-democracy group Viet Tan awarded Nguyen Thuy Hanh the Le Dinh Luong Human Rights Award for her establishment of the 50k Fund, which supports political prisoners and their families through monetary donations. It is unclear if Hanh will be able to accept her award in person in London, as travel restrictions are a common tactic used by the authorities to restrict activism efforts.