Nguyen Tri Gioan

Current Status: Sentenced to prison

Other Names: Nguyễn Trí Gioãn

Date of Birth: 1979

Gender: M

Ethnicity: Kinh

Occupation: Farmer

Areas of Activism:

Democracy
Sovereignty

Highlighted Human Rights Concerns:

Denial of Family Visit/Punitive Prison Transfer
Online commentator

Immediate Concerns

January 2022:

Nguyen Tri Gioan, who was sentenced in November 2021 to seven years in prison for engaging in “anti-State propaganda,” has begun to serve his prison sentence—but in a location at least 300km from his hometown near Cam Ranh.

Details - Background, History of Activism.

Background

Nguyen Tri Gioan lives and works in Cam Thuan Ward, Cam Ranh City, Khanh Hoa Province.

Profile photo source: Khanh Hoa Online

History of Activism

Gioan has a considerable history involved in democratic activism. He participated in the demonstrations against the draft Law of Special Economic Zones, and he voiced his concerns and criticisms online against the Communist Party since 2018.

A more detailed timeline of his activism is as follows:

February 2018: Gioan created a Facebook account and started posting commentary critical of the government.

June 2018: He was detained and fined after participating in national protests in Ho Chi Minh City. He was fined 750,000 dong for “disturbing public order.”

August 2018: He was summoned by Khanh Hoa provincial police (Cam Ranh City) to discuss his Facebook posts. He was asked to remove the critical posts. He promised to do so, as well as stop posting, but he did not.

In 2019, he created a new Facebook account for more posts.

Resources

Nguyễn Trí Gioãn lĩnh án 7 năm tù vì dùng facebook chống phá Nhà nước, Quân đội Nhân dân, November 15, 2021

Khánh Hòa: Tuyên phạt Nguyễn Trí Gioãn 7 năm tù vì tội chống Nhà nước | Pháp luật | Vietnam+, Vietnam Plus, November 15, 2021

Xét xử vụ án Nguyễn Trí Gioãn chống Nhà nước: Tuyên phạt bị cáo 7 năm tù, Báo Khánh Hòa, November 15, 2021

Dùng Facebook tuyên truyền chống Nhà nước, Nguyễn Trí Gioãn lãnh án 7 năm tù, Báo Công an Nhân dân, November 15, 2021

Khanh Hoa: Man imprisoned for anti-State activities, Vietnam Plus, November 15, 2021

Arrested November 15, 2021. Sentenced to 7 years in prison and 3 years probation under Art. 117 (2015 Code). Expected Release is November 15, 2028.

Arrest November 15, 2021

Charges

Art. 117 (2015 Code)

Authority of Arrest Cam Ranh City public security, Khanh Hoa province

Location Cam Ranh City (map)

Trial November 15, 2021

Court of First Instance The People's Court of Khanh Hoa province

Defense Counsels

Sentence 7 years in prison and 3 years probation

Expected Release November 15, 2028

Actual Release

Rights Violated

freedom from arbitrary arrest or detention
liberty and security of the person
freedom of expression
fair trial

Actions Taken By

Details of Imprisonment

Gioan was accused of using two Facebook accounts to post and disseminate poems and pictures deemed defamatory and libelous against Ho Chi Minh, the Communist Party, and other Party leaders, from 2018 to 2019. To justify the seven year-imprisonment against Gioan, the court and the procuracy cited a total of just 13 posts. See the section on “History of Activism” for more details on his online and in-person activism.

Gioan is also subject to a three year-probation, according to the judgment.

The 88 Project is so far unable to verify his arrest date, so we have listed the trial date as the arrest date for the time being and will continue to seek more information.

Supporting Documents