Human Rights Watch Urges Australia to Set Clear Benchmark for Human Rights Progress in Vietnam

Key events:

• Human Rights Watch: Australia Should Pressure Vietnam to Make Progress in Human Rights
• Member of Repressed Pro-Democracy Group Finishes Prison Term
• EU Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell ‘Briefly’ Mentioned Human Rights in Meeting with Vietnam Representative

Human Rights Watch: Australia Should Pressure Vietnam to Make Progress in Human Rights

As the 19th Australia-Vietnam Human Rights Dialogue was scheduled for July 30 in Canberra, New York-based rights advocate Human Rights Watch (HRW) submitted recommendations for Australia so that it could achieve “clear, concrete, and measurable benchmarks for progress” regarding the protection of civil rights in their meetings with Vietnamese representatives. The call has come amid the severe deterioration of the human rights situation in Vietnam and a warmer relationship between Canberra and Hanoi. 

Daniela Gavshon, Australia director at Human Rights Watch, notes that although Canberra had held 18 human rights dialogues with Hanoi in the past two decades, they were fruitless and did not bring any notable progress. “Instead of taking a reactive approach to human rights, the Australian government should press for systemic reforms backed by clear benchmarks,” Gavshon said. The letter also raised concerns over the detention and imprisonment of human rights activists and journalists, with the recent arrest of journalist Huy Duc.

HRW’s submission lists five significant issues of Vietnam’s human rights situation. They include the detention of prisoners and detainees, the arrests of environmental activists on politically motivated charges, the repression of labor rights, the lack of due process for political detainees and suspects, and the continued crackdown on the right to freedom of religion and belief. HRW also suggested in the public letter that Hanoi’s upgrade of the diplomatic relationship with Canberra to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership should not “become an obstacle to addressing the human rights of the Vietnamese people.”

Member of Repressed Pro-Democracy Group Finishes Prison Term

Pham Van Troi, an activist and prisoner of conscience imprisoned twice for his pro-democracy activities, finished his imprisonment and returned home on July 30.

Troi, 52, one of the leading members of the Brotherhood for Democracy, was sentenced to seven years in April 2018 due to his alleged engagement in “activities to overthrow the people’s administration,” a violation of Article 79 of the former 1999 Penal Code.

Troi was arrested in July 2017, along with other founders and members of the group, including Nguyen Van Dai, Nguyen Bac Truyen, Nguyen Trung Ton, and Truong Minh Duc. Several members of the Brotherhood for Democracy have been forced to live in exile, while others are still behind bars. Previously, in 2009, Troi was imprisoned for “distributing anti-state propaganda” and received a four-year prison sentence. The activist was released earlier than expected, in September 2012.

Following the completion of his sentence, Troi will have to serve another year of probation. In an interview with Radio Free Asia (RFA), he revealed the harsh conditions of the Ba Sao Prison, Nam Ha Province, where he was held. According to Troi, the food and water were almost inedible, and activities such as reading and studying were strictly controlled. He said the prison also restricts prisoners' rights to medical examinations and treatment, adding to their plight.

Meanwhile, prisoners had to toil eight hours a day, five days a week, without any payment. Troi said their main job was hand-weaving household products, which were not paid for. However, the prisoners could get compensation as their daily meal portions increased for the time they worked. In prison, Troi stated that he also suffered from skin issues and other non-transmittable diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure. 

EU Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell ‘Briefly’ Mentioned Human Rights in Meeting with Vietnam Representative

The European Union's Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell has offered to assist Vietnam with improving its maritime and cybersecurity capabilities while expressing the EU’s wish to upgrade its diplomatic relation with Hanoi in a meeting with Vietnamese Foreign Affairs Minister Bui Thanh Son on July 30. Borrell, who began his three-day visit to the Southeast Asian country starting on July 29, underscored the importance of maintaining peace and security in the South China Sea, a major shipping route for EU trade.

During the meeting, Borrell “briefly” touched upon human rights issues with Hanoi, but the details of the discussion remained undisclosed. The EU foreign policy chief also emphasized the need for Vietnam to accelerate its coal-reliance reduction plan, as the anti-corruption campaign has significantly slowed policy-making and project approval as government officials feared the campaign could lead to their being implicated.

This June, a Vietnamese court sentenced an energy policy expert, Ngo Thi To Nhien, to three and a half years in prison for “appropriating official documents and seals,” a charge deemed politically motivated by many human rights organizations. The imprisonment of Nhien and other climate change activists has raised doubts about Vietnam’s commitment to meet its sustainability targets.

Quick takes:

Office of Human Rights Lawyer Searched After He Fled to United States:

The inspection authorities of Thu Duc District, Ho Chi Minh City, on July 29 searched the law office of attorney Nguyen Van Mieng, a defense lawyer for the Buddhist temple A Small Zen Hermitage on the Edge of the Universe (Thiền am bên bờ vũ trụ), months after he fled to the United States to avoid government persecution. Although Mieng’s law office has ceased operations, the Thu Duc authorities still ordered his sister to remove the signboard attached to the main entrance. Mieng told RFA that he believed the authorities wanted to “wipe clean” the existence of his office from the public view.

U.S. Congresswoman Michelle Steel Raises Health Issue of Journalist Le Huu Minh Tuan: 

U.S. Congresswoman Michelle Steel on July 30 raised her concern about the health deterioration of independent journalist Le Huu Minh Tuan with U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam Marc Knapper, calling on the ambassador to secure the release of Tuan so he could receive better treatment for his condition. Tuan, who is serving an 11-year sentence on “anti-state” charges, has suffered from severe illnesses that threaten his survival. The correctional authorities have restricted him from receiving proper health treatment and other essential examination services. Representative Steel noted that Vietnam continued to violate its human rights obligations with the arrests of activists, journalists, and ethnic minorities.

Public Security Ministry Appoints New Security Investigation Bureau Chief:

Col. Gen. Luong Tam Quang, Minister of Public Security, appointed Lt. Gen. Pham The Tung as the new chief of the Security Investigation Bureau. This agency deals with national security and terrorism threats. The appointment came during a monthly conference evaluating security and social order on July 30. Tung, 52, is a career police officer from Hung Yen Province - the hometown of President To Lam and Minister Luong Tam Quang. In Dec. 2023, Lt. Gen. Tung became the Department of Internal Political Security director. In July 2024, he ascended to deputy minister of Public Security.

Vietnam Insight: Learn more about Vietnam

Vietnam Veers into Unknown as Career Cop Makes Communist Party Power Play

Nikkei Asia/ Lien Hoang/ July 30

“[To] Lam was briefly in the limelight in 2021, when a video showed the Turkish celebrity chef known as Salt Bae feeding him a gold leaf-topped steak at a London restaurant. The incident was not reported in Vietnam's official media.

Yet at the security ministry, which is traditionally close to China, Lam was [Nguyen Phu] Trong's enforcer in the relentless anti-corruption crackdown in recent years, dubbed the "blazing furnace."

For some human rights activists, alarm is growing that if Lam does retain leadership of the Communist Party and the presidency over the long term, his authority could be similar to that of Chinese leader Xi Jinping, rather than Vietnam's historically distributed-power style of government.”

Is Vietnam's Hard-Line Leader's Death the End of an Era?

Foreign Policy/ Dien Luong/ July 26

“The anti-corruption drive has also shifted significant power to the police and security forces, making them key enforcers of [Nguyen Phu] Trong’s policies, drowning out dissenting voices, and dramatically altering Vietnam’s political landscape. Alexander Vuving, a veteran Vietnam watcher, aptly observed that Trong left behind a regime that leans heavily on coercion and control rather than building governance through consensus and legitimacy. In pushing for absolute ideological conformity, Trong sanctioned the severe crackdown on civil society and public discourse.