Tran Anh Kim
Trần Anh Kim
Detainment Type: Sentenced to prison
Other Names: Trần Anh Kim
Date of Birth: 1949
Gender: M
Ethnicity: Kinh
Occupation: Veteran
Known Prison(s):
Prison No. 5, Thanh Hoa province (December 16, 2016 - present)
Activist Focus:
- Democracy
- Human rights
Organizational/Political Party Affiliation:
Details
Immediate Concerns
May 2018:
Political prisoner Tran Anh Kim is suffering from headaches and prostate inflammation while imprisoned. He recently had to be treated in the hospital for 20 days, and his wife is concerned that he will not live to complete his 13-year sentence if these health conditions persist without proper treatment.
Amnesty International has released a new Urgent Action for Kim, highlighting the concerns for his health. Please take the Urgent Action, calling on Vietnam to provide him with proper medical care and immediately release him from prison.
BackgroundTran Anh Kim is from Thai Binh province in northern Vietnam. He is a retired military officer and fought in the Vietnam War.
History of ActivismTran Anh Kim has long been a supporter of democracy and a critic of perceived Communist Party corruption. He was also an initial supporter of pro-democracy group, Bloc 8406. At the time of his second arrest, he was planning to establish a pro-democracy organization called the “National Force to Launch the Democracy Flag," along with Le Thanh Tung and four others he had not met in person.
In 2009, he won Human Rights Watch's Hellman/Hammett grant for his activism.
Sentenced to 5 years 6 months in prison under Art. 79 (1999 Code). Released January 7, 2015.
July 7, 2009
- Art. 79 (1999 Code)
Viet Nam
December 28, 2009 - Date of trial
5 years 6 months in prison
January 7, 2015
Sentenced to 13 years in prison under Art. 79 (1999 Code). Expected Release is September 21, 2028.
September 21, 2015
- Art. 79 (1999 Code)
Viet Nam
December 16, 2016 - Date of trial
Tran Thu Nam
13 years in prison
September 21, 2028
Details of Imprisonment
Physical Health History
First arrest:
Tran Anh Kim was arrested in 2009 for alleged ties to the banned Democratic Party of Vietnam. He was sentenced to 5.5 years under Article 79. He was also previously arrested in 1991 and 1994 whilestill in the military.
Second arrest:
Police came and arrested Kim at his home on September 21, 2015, searching the home and calling his wife in for interrogation as well. He was sentenced to 13 years in prison under Article 79 on December 16, 2016, along with Le Thanh Tung, who received 12 years.
May 2017:
Kim and Tungs' appeals of their sentences were denied on May 26, 2017.
August 2017:
Tran Anh Kim and Le Thanh Tung were moved to another prison farther from their homes (from Ha Nam to Thanh Hoa province). Their families were not informed of this transfer at the time.
December 2017:
After a visit on December 17, Kim's wife reported that he is suffering from prostatitis, which has been getting more serious. The prison’s infirmary is unable to treat him, but the prison’s authorities have not yet permitted him to be sent to the province’s hospital to receive treatment, saying they are still waiting for their superiors’ order. Kim is currently detained at Prison No. 5, Thanh Hoa province. Read more in English, here.
May 2018:
Tran Anh Kim is suffering from headaches and prostate inflammation while imprisoned. He recently had to be treated in the hospital for 20 days, and his wife is concerned that he will not live to complete his 13-year sentence if these health conditions persist without proper treatment.
Amnesty International has released a new Urgent Action for Kim, highlighting the concerns for his health. Please take the Urgent Action, calling on Vietnam to provide him with proper medical care and immediately release him from prison.
Actions TakenJanuary 2015:
Human Rights Watch condemned a physical attack on 12 activists who went to Kim's home to visit him after his initial release from prison. The activists were stopped after leaving Kim's house, and when they refused to be taken in for questioning, they were attacked by thugs, thought to be working with police themselves.
December 2016:
US Ambassador to Vietnam at the time, Ted Osius, expressed worries after Kim and Le Thanh Tungs' trial.
May 2018:
Amnesty International released an Urgent Action for Tran Anh Kim, calling on Vietnam to provide him with proper medical care and immediately release him from prison.