In advance of Vietnam Human Rights Day on May 11, a coalition of international human rights and free expression organizations—including PEN America, Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Legal Initiatives for Vietnam (LIV), PEN International, Reporters Without Borders (RSF), Vietnamese Abroad PEN Centre, and Vietnamese Advocates for Change—released a joint letter urging U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio to press the Vietnamese government for immediate reforms to protect freedom of expression and release imprisoned writers and journalists.

The letter highlights Việt Nam’s ongoing crackdown on free expression, noting that the country is the third-largest jailer of writers, with 23 currently imprisoned—including Phạm Đoan Trang, the 2024 PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award recipient.