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In an administrative detention hearing, a Thai court in Bangkok ruled on Sept. 30 that Vietnam's extradition request to have Montagnard activist Y Quynh Bdap sent back to Vietnam to serve his 10-year imprisonment on terrorism charges. Vietnam tried Y Quynh Bdap in absentia in January 2024, alleging that he was the mastermind behind the armed attacks that happened on June 11, 2024, in the Central Highlands, Dak Lak Province. Bdap, 32, is a recognized refugee who fled to Thailand in 2018.
Nadthasiri Bergman, Bdap’s defense lawyer, told the Associated Press that her client will file his appeal on the extradition ruling in 30 days. Because the case against Bdap came from the extradition request of Vietnam's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bergman added that the final resolution depends mainly on the Thai government since they could diplomatically decide not to extradite the Montagnard activist if it found that his human rights would be violated. Bergman raised concerns over the risks Bdap could encounter should he be sent back and said that if Thailand’s prime minister protects Bdap's human rights, she could order a stay on the extradition at any time.
According to Radio Free Asia (RFA), the 32-year-old activist remained calm when the court announced the verdict. The judge stated, “It is up to the government to execute the extradition in 90 days regardless of the court ruling.” The court ruling also said that Bdap has 30 days to appeal the extradition verdict, and if he has not been extradited within 90 days, he must be set free. This means the Thai government must use its executive order in Bday's case to send or not send him back to Vietnam. The extradition ruling of Sept. 30 protects Bdap's right to remain in Thailand if he files his appeal in the next 30 days.
Bdap, an ethnic Rhade religious and minority rights defender, co-founded the non-governmental organization Montagnards Stand Up for Justice (MSFJ) in 2019. MSFJ provides training on international human rights laws for indigenous populations in Vietnam’s Central Highlands. He was detained last June over allegations that he violated Thai immigration laws even after he met with officials from the Canadian Embassy in Bangkok regarding his relocation.
Hanoi has denied criticisms from international human rights groups over the country’s discriminatory treatment of indigenous residents and continuously pressured Thailand to send Y Quynh Bdap back to Vietnam and declare MSFJ a “terrorist organization.”
Amnesty International on July 10 urged Thai authorities to resist demands to forcibly return Bdap, saying that it could endanger his safety as the Vietnamese government has long been known for its systemic repression of the right of ethnic minority groups to freedom of religion and assembly.
Meanwhile, California lawmaker Michelle Steel announced on Oct. 1, the day after the extradition trial, that she and other Vietnamese American leaders and community groups have joined efforts to find a home in Canada for Bdap while calling for Canada’s foreign minister to secure his resettlement safely.
United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders Mary Lawlord wrote on X on Sept. 28 that she was “concerned” after Dr. Nguyen Quang A, a critic of government policy and a human rights defender, had been twice “invited” by the Hanoi Police Department over his social media postings and interviews with foreign media agencies. Lawlord added that the police harassed and interrogated Dr. A multiple times due to his human rights advocacy. She also urged Vietnamese authorities to allow him “to protect and promote human rights freely.”
According to photographs of the invitation letters published by human rights attorney Dang Dinh Manh, the Cybersecurity and High-tech Crimes Prevention Office of the Hanoi Police Department issued two invitations for questioning on Sept. 25 and Sept. 27. The letters said the reason for questioning was regarding Dr. A’s “participation in discussions and interviews on social networks.” The Vietnamese Magazine’s sources said Dr. A refused to accept the police requests for questioning because he believed he had done nothing wrong.
Dr. Nguyen Quang A is the former director of the now-dissolved Institute of Development Studies (IDS). This independent think tank analyzes public policy and provides recommendations for the government to improve its policy-making process. He had engaged in popular demonstrations in the past decade, including several protests against the incursion of Chinese ships into Vietnamese territorial waters and the discharge of untreated wastewater by the Formosa Ha Tinh Steel Co. in 2016. The Vietnamese authorities imposed a travel ban on Dr. A for “national security” reasons before he boarded a plane to Bangkok in May 2023.
On Sept. 30, the Investigation Security Bureau of the Dong Nai Provincial Police declared they had arrested two more individuals, Nguyen Viet Tu and Trinh Ba Hanh, allegedly linked to the U.S.-based “Provisional Government of Vietnam.” The police also searched their residences and charged them with “organizing activities to overthrow the people’s administration.” This detention is part of an expanded investigation into the activities of the “Provisional Government of Vietnam” - which the Ministry of Public Security has branded a “terrorist organization.”
Tu, 51, and Hanh, 37, reside in Bien Hoa City, Dong Nai Province. The Dong Nai police searched their residences and confiscated hundreds of Republic of Vietnam flags, computers, and printers. The police also prevented alleged terrorist plots these two individuals intended to carry out during the National Day holiday on Sept. 2, state media reported. However, the Dong Nai authorities did not clarify which “terrorist” activities Tu and Hanh purportedly planned to commit.
The day before, police in Thu Dau Mot City in Binh Duong Province detained Tran Dac Thang, 44, an accountant from Bac Lieu Province. They charged him with Article 331 of the Penal Code, which prohibits “abusing democratic freedoms to infringe on the interests of the state, the legitimate rights and interests of other organizations and individuals.” The investigation results cited Thang’s postings three years ago on social media between April and June 2021 as evidence. Thang was accused of using personal social networks to “write, post, and share many articles and images containing details that distorted policies and guidelines of the party and the state.”
Authorities in coastal Quang Ngai Province said that at least 10 local fishermen were injured after people from two Chinese ships approached and attacked their boats while they were fishing near the Paracels Islands, known as Hoang Sa in Vietnamese, a hotly disputed maritime region.
Phung Ba Vuong, chairman of the People's Committee of Binh Son District in Quang Ngai, said that the Coast Guard officers learned about the incident on Sept. 29. According to Nguyen Thanh Bien, 40, a fisherman working on a Quang Ngai fishing boat numbered QNg-95739-TS, around 10 a.m. on Sept. 29, about 40 individuals from two Chinese ships approached their boat and started to beat them with iron bars. The attack only stopped when Nguyen Thuong, 34, Bien’s brother, kneeled on his knees and begged these assailants to stop.
The people from Chinese ships reportedly damaged all the equipment and took around six tons of catch from the Vietnamese fishing boat.
According to Reuters, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Oct. 1 that Vietnam’s fishing boats “illegally fished in the relevant waters of the Paracel Islands without the permission of the Beijing government and that relevant Chinese authorities took measures to stop them.” Reuters said the ministry added that “no injuries” were found following the attacks.
Stephen Schneck, chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), expressed his concerns on X about the detention of Montagnard Christian Y Thinh Nie due to the practice of his faith. The Dak Lak authorities detained Nie on Sept. 9 after forcing him to abandon his house church and join the state-controlled Evangelical Church of Vietnam-South, his wife, H’Le Mlo, said. As of Sept. 28, Mlo said her husband remained in custody, and she had received no warrants or notices regarding his detention. Schneck said detaining Montagnard Christians because they refused to join a state church is “a clear violation” of the freedom of religion in Vietnam, adding that the USCIRF is “closely following the case of Y Thinh Nie .”
The presidential office announced on Sept. 30 the decision to grant amnesty for 3,763 prisoners and grant two suspended sentences, including 20 foreign prisoners. The imprisoned foreigners were convicted of homicide, trafficking, gambling, and violations of immigration regulations, according to state media. However, prisoners of conscience jailed for “national security” offenses, such as “distributing anti-state propaganda,” “organizing to overthrow the government,” or "committing terrorism,” are ineligible for amnesty. Before President and General Secretary To Lam’s U.S. visit, Hanoi released two prisoners of conscience, Tran Huynh Duy Thuc and Hoang Thi Minh Hong. Vietnam hopes that the West will perceive the release of Thuc and Hoang as a positive sign that it respects human rights.
Coda Story/ Thiện Việt/ Oct. 1
“The term “reactionary forces” or “hostile forces” are often used by the CPV to describe individuals or groups of advocates for democracy. Nowadays, the term “reactionary” has become a common label for any content that the government deems harmful to its legitimacy and reputation. As an example, the BBC Vietnamese website, VOA, RFA, even online for a of public intellectuals who are Party members, have been labeled as “an reactionary outlet” and blocked in Vietnam.
Vietnamese people have every reason not to trust any signs of loosening grip on the freedom of expression. Between 1955 and 1956, a group of Party-friendly writers and artists in Northern Vietnam sought to convince the Party of the need for greater artistic and intellectual freedom. Because they published literary and artistic works that departed from the prescribed Party-centric version of literature, the dissident movement came to be known as the Humanity and Masterworks affair (Nhân văn giai phẩm). What happened later on resembled Mao’s political purge: all writers were denounced and jailed. This left intellectuals-cum-party members remained shocked and silent.”
Radio Free Asia/ Allegra Mendelson/ Sept. 28
“While Vietnam is in the midst of a shift with women seeking support services, advancements have been slower when it comes to reporting violence to authorities.
The 2019 national study found that 90 percent of women who had experienced domestic violence had never sought help from the police. While this number has likely decreased since, according to experts, it is still high.
Many victims do not think the violence is serious enough to report. Others avoid the police so as not to bring shame on themselves or their families, and some stay quiet out of fear of retribution, as Uyen previously did.”
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It has become widely recognized that the Vietnamese government is steadily eroding the right to free speech and expression. This
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