Dang Dinh Bach
Current Status: Sentenced to prison
Other Names: Đặng Đình Bách
Date of Birth: 1978
Gender: M
Ethnicity: Kinh
Occupation: NGO worker
Last Known Prison: Hanoi Police Detention Center No. 1, Hanoi
Areas of Activism:
- Rule of law
- Anti-corruption
- Environment
Highlighted Human Rights Concerns:
- Denial of Family Visit/Punitive Prison Transfer
May 2022:
According to the wife of political prisoner Dang Dinh Bach, the appeal trials of Mai Phan Loi (originally scheduled for last week) and Bach Hung Duong have been postponed. No new dates have been announced.
March 2022:
The wife of arrested environmental lawyer Dang Dinh Bach, who was scrutinizing Vietnam’s trade deal with the EU, urged Brussels to “take responsibility to intervene in my husband’s release immediately.”
February 2022:
Bach’s lawyers and the family have not been allowed to see him since the trial. Also, they have not been informed by the authorities if Bach was transferred to another prison. They have no updates on Bach’s current physical and mental health situation. Bach’s request to appeal his conviction was approved on February 14, 2022 but his lawyers, Nguyen Van Hung and Nguyen Thi Huong, did not receive the court’s notice until February 21.
January 2022:
On January 24, he was sentenced to five years in prison and no probation. He did not know of his trial date until his lawyers visited him on January 14. His family was not allowed to attend. He was also ordered to pay a fine of VND 1,381,093,134 (~ US$ 60.922).
The family has not been allowed to see him. They said because Bach is a vegan, he has been eating very little while in prison. His lawyer said Bach has gone on a hunger strike since January 10 to protest against his prolonged detention and not being allowed family visits. Bach has also demanded to be released on bail.
On January 18, 2022, Thao and attorney Huong went to the Hanoi Court to submit a document saying that Bach’s family would pay compensation (on the accusation of tax evasion) before the trial, amounting to VND 500,000,000 (~US$ 22,000). However, they were told that they need to ask for the judge’s signature to be allowed to do so. As of the time of this writing, the family still has not received the approval needed to pay the fine. The family was advised by their attorneys that they should propose again at trial to pay the compensation with the hope that Bach will receive a minor sentence. It is refundable if Bach is proven innocent.
Details - Background, History of Activism, Family Situation.
Bach lives and works in Hanoi. He is currently the Director of the non-profit Law & Policy of Sustainable Development (LPSD).
LPSD is a member of the Vietnam Environmental Network (VEN), Vietnam Sustainable Energy Alliance (VSEA), and the Vietnam Non-Communicable Diseases Prevention and Control Alliance (NCDs-VN).
Bach, 43, is known for his ability to mobilize young people to volunteer for charitable projects such as helping victims of storms and disasters, especially those impacted by global warming and environmental catastrophes. Bach has created many competitions and awards for innovation in the field of sustainable living which attracted the participation of many young Vietnamese. LPSD has also been a strong supporter of the government’s fight against the spread of COVID-19.
According to Bach’s curriculum vitae shared by Bach’s wife, Tran Phuong Thao; Bach is also a member of the World Commission on Environmental Law (IUCN), member of the Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide (ELAW.) Moreover, he is the Vietnamese member in Mekong Legal Network which is currently facilitated by Earth Rights International, the US NGO working on protecting human rights and environment at national, regional and international levels.
Profile picture: Dang Dinh Bach. Source: Thiennhien.net
Bach was not known for his role in political activism.
Một giám đốc Trung tâm nghiên cứu bị bắt về tội trốn thuế, Nguoi Lao Dong, July 3, 2021
Khởi tố đối tượng Đặng Đình Bách về tội trốn thuế, Cong an Nhan dan, July 2, 2021
Khởi tố Giám đốc Trung tâm nghiên cứu pháp luật và chính sách phát triển bền vững, Voice of Vietnam, July 3, 2021
Arrested June 24, 2021. Sentenced to 5 years in prison under Art. 200 (2015 Code). Expected Release is June 24, 2026.
January 24, 2022
The People's Court of Hanoi, Hanoi
- Nguyen Van Hung
- Nguyen Thi Huong
5 years in prison
June 24, 2026
- freedom from arbitrary arrest or detention
- liberty and security of the person
- freedom of expression
- fair trial
FIDH
Bach’s arrest and charge were announced on July 2, the same day as Mai Phan Loi’s. He was charged under Article 200 for “tax evasion.”
On June 24, 2021, Bach was detained by the police in Hanoi for questioning, along with the LSPD accountant on vaguely formulated charges of “tax evasion.” There was not any arrest warrant shown at the time of his arrest. The accountant was released after the investigation. According to the court indictment issued on November 29, 2021, both Bach’s house and his workplace were searched and items confiscated.
Both places were examined by police at the same time, at 10 am on June 24, 2021, his wife, Thao said. There was not any search warrant presented. The police and law enforcement did not give any specific reasons for holding Bach other than a generic statement saying that he had violated Article 200 of the 2015 Criminal Code, which was sent to the family one day later, on June 25, 2021.
His wife received the court announcement document on July 5, 2021 by post, three days after its issued date. Thao shared that on July 10, 2021, she was called by a Hanoi Court investigator and handed Bach’s letter from the detention center. In his letter, written on July 8, 2021, Bach insisted that he was innocent. He is a victim, and he was targeted because he was involved in the Son La Hydroelectric plant. He collected complaint documents of the Son La victims and submitted them on their behalf to relevant stakeholders; that might be also another reason he was jailed, his wife said.
It is also argued that allegations against Bach and Loi are a response to their attempts to build up a connection of NGOs under the regulation of EVFTA. These organizations could play an important role in monitoring Vietnam’s obligations under EVFTA. Read our analysis here.
January 2022:
His family can send him food (which is bought at the detention center) twice per month. Bach is a vegan. The family is concerned that Bach can not maintain his physical and mental health if he follows the vegan diet, due to the poor nutritional value of food in the detention center. As a result, they have sent him non-vegan food. Nevertheless, he has given it all away to his fellow inmates. Bach follows a meager diet of rice, sesame, and salt. The family worries for him because he has lost a lot of weight since his arrest. He was in good health before the arrest, his wife reported.
April 2022:
The International Federation on Human Rights (FIDH) published a briefing ahead of the EU-Vietnam human rights dialogue listing Vietnam’s persistent violations of its obligations under the EVFTA. Among the many cases highlighted, of particular concern is that of Dang Dinh Bach, an environmentalist and steering member of VNGO-EVFTA.
VN: Ông Mai Phan Lợi bị khởi tố, bắt tạm giam về tội 'trốn thuế', BBC Vietnamese, July 2, 2021
Một giám đốc Trung tâm nghiên cứu bị bắt về tội trốn thuế, Nguoi Lao Dong, July 3, 2021
Khởi tố đối tượng Đặng Đình Bách về tội trốn thuế, Cong an Nhan dan, July 2, 2021
Khởi tố Giám đốc Trung tâm nghiên cứu pháp luật và chính sách phát triển bền vững, Voice of Vietnam, July 3, 2021
Vietnam arrests CSO leaders and blocks civil society participation in scrutiny of EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement, Que Me, July 8, 2021
July Arrests Mark Turn for The Worse, The 88 Project, July 10, 2021
Environmental leader Dang Dinh Bach, accused of “tax evasion,” faces trial, The 88 Project, January 23, 2022
Profile last updated: 2022-05-25 16:09:40