Vietnam Free Expression Newsletter No. 16/2018 – Week of April 16-22

Ten years ago this week, blogger Nguyen Van Hai (Dieu Cay) was arrested. Hai founded the Freelance Journalist Club in 2007, one of the first independent press organizations within the communist regime of Vietnam to report on controversial social and political issues that state-owned newspapers failed to publish. Members of the FJC also organized anti-Chinese protests in 2007-2008 in  downtown Saigon, which led to the persecution and arrests of many of its prominent members. In a new series of articles for The 88 Project, Hai discusses the past ten years, “the longest trip away from home” in his life, from the arrest in Da Lat city to his current activities in the United States where he’s living in exile, and offers his opinion on the state of the Vietnamese democracy movement today compared to where it was ten years ago. Read the first installment of the series here.

Community at Risk

Locals in Binh Dinh province briefly detained government officials in an attempt to free local protesters who were detained after an environmental protest. The villagers had protested the construction of a wind power plant, believing the plant is a cover-up for a titanium ore program. Fourteen were detained for participating in the protest. In response, community members went to the local government office and detained five government officials, releasing them later that day once the 14 protesters had also been released. The incident is reminiscent of a land standoff between locals and government officials last year in Dong Tam commune, which ultimately resulted in the locals losing the contested land and the mayor of Hanoi going back on promises not to prosecute villagers who had briefly detained government officials in the course of the conflict.

About 300 school-aged children and their parents in Nghe An province marched peacefully to and from their primary school to protest fees for “extra” classes. In protest of the school’s decision, some children have been out of school since April 9.  Local authorities have reportedly said that the school is not allowed to collect the fees. Parents of Catholic students at the same school, seeking to remedy the fee dispute, were attacked outside the school in February by thugs believed to be connected to the government.

Will #MeToo finally have its break in Vietnam?: “In Vietnam, while sexual harassment in the workplace was recognized in the Labour Code for the first time almost three years ago in May 2015, many victims still do not speak up or come forward with their stories. One reason could be that there are still no clear and well-defined legal definitions for conducts that would constitute sexual harassment. According to CARE, an international organization working on gender-based violence in Hanoi, Vietnam, 78.2% of victims of sexual harassment in the workplace are women. Without a clear legal framework to protect them, female workers in Vietnam dare not to speak up because they are afraid of losing their job.”

Vietnam’s socialist dream hits on hard times: “Trong might think that socialism in Vietnam isn’t yet dead – far from it – but it is increasingly hard to miss is that its state sector is fast withering away, reduced to a lumpen state amid market forces and the Party’s own inadequacies in financial and economic management. […] Mounting government debt, persistent budget deficits, low tax collection and wasteful state spending means the government is now in full austerity mode. At the same time, concerns about wealth inequality are rising, a worrying development for a nominally socialist society. The recently published Provincial Governance and Public Administration Performance Index, a report compiled by state and non-state actors, found that Vietnamese people believe poverty is now their main concern; in the past it was graft.”

Vietnam War refugees deported under Trump struggle to settle: “Since many refugees sided with the US-backed South he fears they could ‘end up being human rights cases’ in the country with a tarnished reputation for jailing critics – including those who still pledge allegiance to the former regime. That’s what Vu Ha fears. Immigration officials in California issued his removal orders last year after he served time for burglary and he spent nearly a year in ICE custody until his recent release. Vietnam still has not agreed to have him back, locking him in limbo between two governments that do not accept him. ‘I’m just stuck right in the middle,’ Vu, 37, told AFP after checking in with immigration officials in Los Angeles. He’s not been back since he left at age nine and is terrified about a communist government he doesn’t side with. ‘There’s nothing good to say about Vietnam. The government is attacking the civilians, they don’t have any kind of rights as far as freedom of speech or anything,’ said Vu, who has a daughter about to graduate from high school.”

TAKE ACTION

Support the families of political prisoners in Vietnam by donating to help them cover their financial needs while their family member is imprisoned. Currently, we have an appeal for support from the family of Le Thu Ha. Ha was sentenced to nine years in prison on April 5 for her peaceful, pro-democracy work. The Conscience Foundation requests 4 million VND/month (approx. US$ 175) for the family to visit Lê Thu Hà and look after Lê Thu Hà’s mother until the time of her release from prison. To donate, or for more information on how you can help the families of political prisoners, see the Support the Families page of our Vietnamese Political Prisoner Database.

Are you interested in human rights in Vietnam? Are you bilingual in Vietnamese and English? Do you want to get more involved in advocacy? Consider applying to be a Volunteer Vietnamese to English Translator/Editor or a Board Member with us. We are looking for dedicated and reliable individuals to help us advance our mission of supporting free expression in Vietnam. The positions are flexible and remote work is possible. Please click on the links in this paragraph to learn more and to apply.

© 2018 The 88 Project