Vietnamese social media users are finding different ways to demand an investigation into the fatal crash allegedly involving former National Assembly deputy Nguyễn Sỹ Cương.
The Latest: As of 2 p.m. on Aug. 12, former National Assembly deputy Nguyễn Sỹ Cương has become one of the most discussed figures on the social media platform Threads, accumulating more than 1 million posts.
- Users are actively coordinating across social media platforms to pressure authorities into investigating a fatal traffic accident from the previous year, utilizing tactics that range from virtual check-ins and poetry to official petitions and artificial intelligence-generated media.
The “Justice Tree”: Netizens have renamed the tree at the crash site outside No. 55 Nguyễn Huy Tự Street as the “justice tree.”
- The location has been officially marked on Google Maps as “Cây BMW NSC 30525,” where it has received more than 230 reviews.
- Social media users are encouraging the public to visit the site, “check in,” and place flowers beneath the tree.
- User lamvuuu also posted a video and photos showing citizens placing flowers at the location.
Social Media Outrage: Users are expressing their outrage through various digital means.
- h_p_I_ss_r_m_nt_c wrote: “Everyone, how about we go to the site where Nguyễn Sỹ Cương struck and killed the female student born in 2007 and check in on Google Maps?”
- After visiting the site, nam.paracetamol500mg wrote: “Checking in at the capital’s famous justice tree. I stood there for 30 seconds and became afraid that a car might plow into me or the police might rush out and handcuff me for no reason.”
- ethan189090 created an artificial intelligence-generated video depicting the case, stating: “May I ask whether driving a fancy BMW X3 and hitting someone in Việt Nam is considered against the law? I’m a Party member, by the way!”
Others have turned to official government channels in an effort to “exercise the people’s right to self-governance.”
- User tinhthao submitted a formal request through the “Contact” section of the Hà Nội People’s Council website, stating:
“I am a citizen concerned about public security and order, and I would like to ask about the case in which Nguyễn Sỹ Cương drove a BMW and caused an accident that killed a student. A year has passed, but the case has not reappeared in the media. Because Nguyễn Sỹ Cương is the husband of the minister of culture, sports, and tourism, the case is drawing significant public attention. If it is not addressed and the public is not given an answer, malicious actors could easily exploit the matter and harm the Party and the State!”
Writing Poetry: Echoing the protests seen in the Vân Village case, users are composing poetry. hieplk97 wrote:
“In the Year of the Snake, in the capital city,
A luxury car veered off and severed a civilian’s leg.
A schoolgirl lay covered in blood,
Her bitter death bringing boundless grief.
The driver fled the scene,
Leaving the car amid the wreckage.
A man of swagger and status—
Once a lawmaker, with a powerful wife.
Rumor says influence took care of it:
No prosecution, while his wife rose higher.
Public anger has reached a breaking point,
People demand answers: Will the case be buried?
Alas, the press remains silent.
Have profit and status blinded human hearts?
Remember Vĩnh Long and heaven’s net:
Its mesh may be wide, but escape is hard.”
Why It Matters: The outrage stems from a fatal traffic collision on May 30, 2025, in Hà Nội.
- Nguyễn Sỹ Cương, who served as a National Assembly deputy from 2011 to 2021, is accused of driving a vehicle that killed a young female student born in 2007.
- Despite the severity of the crash, the incident did not result in his criminal prosecution.
Hoàng Nam wrote this news article in Vietnamese and published it in Luật Khoa Magazine on August 13, 2026. The Vietnamese Magazine translated it into English.
