As public resistance to the Red River Landscape Boulevard Project intensifies, Hà Nội authorities are deploying grassroots task forces to manage public backlash and placate community unrest.
The Latest: On June 11, the Hà Nội Party Committee issued Directive No. 16 to address growing public pushback against the Red River Landscape Boulevard Project.
- The directive orders the 16 communes and wards situated within the project’s clearance zone to form distinct working groups tasked to “go to every alley, knock on every door, and review every case.”
The Details: The newly mandated working groups are instructed to “hold dialogues, receive citizens, proactively grasp the local situation and the thoughts and aspirations of the people, and promptly resolve legitimate petitions from the grassroots level.”
The Hà Nội Party Committee issued a stern warning that local agency heads will “be held accountable before the Standing Committee of the Hà Nội Party Committee” if they permit “delays, legal violations, public security flashpoints, or prolonged mass petitions.”
- The committee stated that these measures will “ensure harmony among the interests of the state, the people, and society” and “place people at the center as the subject of the development process.”
Directive 16 Missing: A reporter from Luật Khoa could not locate the exact text of Directive No. 16 on either the Hà Nội Party Committee portal or the Hà Nội People’s Committee portal.
- The most recently published documents on both platforms date back to May 2026.
Controversial Media Coverage: Media coverage of the directive has become controversial.
- Báo Xây dựng reported that the Party Committee evaluated the project as having secured “high consensus from the majority of the people.”
- However, other major publications excluded this claim.
This decision follows a prior move on June 4, when the Hà Nội People’s Committee issued Decision No. 2807, creating an information and communications working group explicitly to “proactively grasp the ideological situation and public opinion.”
The Background: The Red River Landscape Boulevard Project is a strategic megaproject designed to reshape the urban layout along the river.
- The development traverses 16 communes and wards, directly impacting an estimated 200,000 residents.
- The city has officially designated the land clearance and implementation phases as an “especially important political task.”
Outcry From Residents: Since the project details became public in early May 2026, residents in the targeted zones have fiercely opposed the initiatives through collective petitions, open letters, public appeals, banners, coordinated clothing, and group marches.
- They cite inadequate compensation rates, unreasonable resettlement frameworks, and the imminent destruction of historical sites and deeply rooted communities.
Why It Matters: Residents have formally demanded “no complete clearance,” the preservation of existing residential communities, transparent information, fair compensation, on-site resettlement, and the prioritization of communal culture.
Because these core demands remain unresolved, the Hà Nội government has resorted to varied tactics to build “social consensus,” which includes asking residents to comply with clearance plans and ordering the removal of protest banners under the guise of maintaining “urban aesthetics.”
Hoàng Nam wrote this article in Vietnamese and published it in Luật Khoa Magazine on June 12, 2026. The Vietnamese Magazine has the copyrights to the English translation.
