Vietnam Free Expression Newsletter No. 22/2017 – Week of July 24-30
Dang Thi Kim Lieng, in black shirt, self-immolated on July 30, 2012. Source: BBC
Greetings from Huong, Ella, and Kaylee from The 88 Project! We are bringing you news, analysis, and actions regarding human rights and civil society in Vietnam during the week of July 24 to 30. Tran Thi Nga was sentenced to nine years in prison on July 25, and the international community has been outraged by another brutal prison sentence under Article 88. Pastor Nguyen Cong Chinh, who faced torment in prison, as did his family, has been released early from prison and has left for the U.S. Veteran Le Dinh Luong was arrested on July 24 on subversion charges, and his son and daughter-in-law targeted by police. July 30 brought four more arrests: Nguyen Bac Truyen, Truong Minh Duc, Pham Van Troi, and Nguyen Trung Ton were all arrested in one day, immensely adding to an already dismal human rights record in Vietnam this July. There is follow-up from the Dong Tam land conflict and commemoration of July 30, 2012, when Dang Thi Kim Lieng self-immolated just weeks before her daughter Ta Phong Tan’s trial.
Read the full newsletter, here.
And please subscribe!
HUMAN RIGHTS & CIVIL SOCIETY



RELEVANT NEWS & ANALYSIS
Vietnam is imprisoning female bloggers over their Facebook posts: ““Vietnam’s female bloggers have come to political activism from a variety of personal experiences as internet access has expanded in Vietnam. Nguyen Anh Tuan, the editor of the online news site VietNamNet, has written about how Vietnam began deregulating the internet in 2000, going from one provider to 18 (pdf, p. 19) in less than a decade. Internet penetration has expanded, going from 12% to 44% (paywall) between 2005 and 2015, and helping Vietnam become one of the most active users in Southeast Asia of foreign social media sites such as Facebook, although it’s a one-party Communist state like China.”
Human rights defenders in Viet Nam should ‘never be treated as criminals,’ says UN rights office: “OHCHR pointed out that over the last six months, at least seven other human rights defenders have been arrested and face prosecution, several dozen are currently detained, and two have been deported or sent into exile abroad. Many others have been intimidated, harassed and brutally beaten.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Dang Thi Kim Lieng, in black shirt, self-immolated on July 30, 2012. Source: BBC
July 30 marks five years since Dang Thi Kim Lieng (above, black shirt), mother of former political prisoner Ta Phong Tan, died from self-immolating at a government building in protest of her daughter’s long detention and impending trial under Article 88. The burden of political repression effects families and the community at large, as well as the individuals themselves. Our Content Manager, Kaylee, wrote a reflection on this to commemorate Dang Thi Kim Lieng.
“Every aspect of the pre-arrest, arrest, detention, trial, and even release of Vietnam’s political dissidents is designed to minimize their contact with the outside world. The Communist regime wants them forgotten. It wants other malcontents to take heed.”
TAKE ACTION
Please take Amnesty International’s Urgent Action for Mother Mushroom, as she is being held in incommunicado detention. Support is needed for her appeal.
Sign the change.org petition asking the British government to work to free prisoners of conscience in Vietnam. This is a particularly relevant action for our British followers to take.
© 2017 The 88 Project