January 9, 2020, will be remembered as one of the most horrific events in Vietnam’s contemporary history. At dawn, more than 3,000 police officers were deployed around Dong Tam Commune. They fired shots at a residence in Hoanh Village, Dong Tam Commune, My Duc District, Hanoi. The owner of that house, Le Dinh Kinh, was killed and three police officers also died in the skirmish. Twenty-nine villagers were arrested and convicted in a trial a year later, with two of them receiving the death sentence.

Two years after this atrocious attack in Hoanh village, the government still needs to address several issues of concern to Le Dinh Kinh’s family.