Le Thi Binh
Current Status: Likely released - at risk
Other Names: Lê Thị Bình
Date of Birth: 1976
Gender: F
Ethnicity: Kinh
Last Known Prison: Long Tuyền prison, Can Tho Province
Areas of Activism:
- Freedom of expression
- Sovereignty
- Press
Details
Immediate Concerns
October 2023:
Former prisoner Le Thi Binh told Project 88 she had been fined 7.5 million dong for a video livestream on Facebook in January 2023. The police said Binh made false statements in the video when she accused them of harassing her when she went to the police station to inquire about some family matters. Binh said she told the police she wouldn’t pay the fine because she didn’t have the money.
BackgroundShe is from Bình Thủy, Cần Thơ Province.
History of ActivismBinh participated in the peaceful nationwide protests against the draft Laws on Cybersecurity and Special Economic Zones on June 10, 2018. She posted on her Facebook many articles about Vietnamese issues. She was charged under Article 331 of the 2015 Criminal Code for “abusing democratic freedoms.”https://the88project.org/profile/160/le-minh-the/
Family SituationShe is the younger sister of Lê Minh Thể, a former political prisoner who spent two years in jail; he was released in June 2020.
She has at least one son; he was told to sign some papers when he came by his mother’s house and saw that it was being searched.
Sentenced to 2 years in prison under Art. 331 (2015 Code). Expected Release is December 22, 2022.
April 22, 2021 - Date of trial
The People's Court of Can Tho Province
2 years in prison
December 22, 2022
Details of Imprisonment
Binh was traveling by taxi from Cần Thơ toward Đồng Tháp when she was abducted in Bình Tân village, Vĩnh Long Province, around 8:30am as her taxi was chased and stopped by plainclothes men.
After the kidnapping, Can Tho Police broke into her house and searched it without a warrant. They said they found many incriminating documents “whose content is against the national interest."
April 2021:
On April 22, the People’s Court of Can Tho Province sentenced Le Thi Binh, 45, to two years in prison for “abusing democratic freedoms” through her social media accounts.
The government accused Binh of using her mobile phone between October 2019 to November 2020 to connect to the internet to livestream and post her opinions to get people to respond and criticize the government.
Physical Health HistoryJune 2022:
Project 88 spoke with Binh's family in early June 2022. Binh had been allowed to see her family since the Covid restrictions were lifted. According to her daughter, Binh was suffering from severe hair loss. The family raised concerns about Binh's health in prison. Her hair loss may be caused by contaminated water.
ResourcesState-run Tuoi Tre announces arrest of Le Thi Binh
Nguoi Viet magazine’s account of Le thi Binh’s abduction from a taxi
Account of police illegally breaking into Binh’s home
Cần Thơ: 1 nữ Facebooker bị phạt 2 năm tù, Phap Luat
Vietnamese Facebook User Jailed for Two Years for ‘Abusing Democratic Rights’, Radio Free Asia, April 22, 2021
Profile last updated: 2024-06-13 20:34:06