Human Rights Activist Tran Thi Nga with her two kids Phu and Tai
By Defend the Defenders, July 24, 2017
Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called on Vietnam to immediately and unconditionally release human rights defender Tran Thi Nga, dropping all charges against her, who has four children and two of them are seven and five years old.
The call was made on July 23, two days ahead of the trial against Nga, who was arrested on January 21 this year and charged with “conducting anti-state propaganda” under Article 88 of the country’s 1999 Penal Code. She is facing an imprisonment of up to 20 years in prison, according to the Vietnamese current law.
State media reported that Nga was arrested for having “accessed the internet to post a number of video clips and articles” critical of the government.
In HRW statement, Deputy Asia Director Phil Robertson said “The Vietnamese government consistently goes to extremes to silence its critics, targeting activists like Tran Thi Nga with bogus charges that carry a long prison sentence, and subjecting their families to harassment and abuse.”
Nga’s arrest is part of Vietnam’s ongoing crackdown on bloggers and activists who have been charged with vaguely interpreted national security violations, said HRW, adding more than 100 activists are currently imprisoned for exercising their basic freedoms of expression, assembly, association, and religion.
Nga is a longtime labor rights activist who has fought against abuses including trafficking, police brutality, and land confiscation. She has participated in environmental protests, attended trials of bloggers and activists, and visited the houses of political prisoners to show solidarity.
Before being arrested, Nga has been a subject of intimidation, harassment, and physical assault by Vietnam’s security forces in response to her consistent political activism. She was brutally beaten, kidnapped and placed under house arrest by plainclothes agents and police officers. Her two kids were also attacked sometimes.
Nga is among numerous Vietnamese rights bloggers and activists who use Facebook and YouTube to voice criticisms, share updates about protests and detainees, and support one another in their struggles for political freedom.
Vietnam should unconditionally release Nga and other activist and repeal all laws that criminalize peaceful expression, said HRW.
Foreign donors should use their leverage to push for Nga’s release now, and make it clear that closer relations depend on Vietnam tolerating its critics, rather than sending them to prison, the New York-based human rights organization said.
The sentence for Nga will be hard, according to local observers. In late June, Vietnam sentenced prominent human rights defender Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh to ten years in jail for allegation of “conducting anti-state propaganda” under Article 88 of the Penal Code.
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July 24, 2017
HRW Urges Vietnam to Release Rights Defender Tran Thi Nga
by Nhan Quyen • Tran Thi Nga (Tran Thuy Nga)
Human Rights Activist Tran Thi Nga with her two kids Phu and Tai
By Defend the Defenders, July 24, 2017
Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called on Vietnam to immediately and unconditionally release human rights defender Tran Thi Nga, dropping all charges against her, who has four children and two of them are seven and five years old.
The call was made on July 23, two days ahead of the trial against Nga, who was arrested on January 21 this year and charged with “conducting anti-state propaganda” under Article 88 of the country’s 1999 Penal Code. She is facing an imprisonment of up to 20 years in prison, according to the Vietnamese current law.
State media reported that Nga was arrested for having “accessed the internet to post a number of video clips and articles” critical of the government.
In HRW statement, Deputy Asia Director Phil Robertson said “The Vietnamese government consistently goes to extremes to silence its critics, targeting activists like Tran Thi Nga with bogus charges that carry a long prison sentence, and subjecting their families to harassment and abuse.”
Nga’s arrest is part of Vietnam’s ongoing crackdown on bloggers and activists who have been charged with vaguely interpreted national security violations, said HRW, adding more than 100 activists are currently imprisoned for exercising their basic freedoms of expression, assembly, association, and religion.
Nga is a longtime labor rights activist who has fought against abuses including trafficking, police brutality, and land confiscation. She has participated in environmental protests, attended trials of bloggers and activists, and visited the houses of political prisoners to show solidarity.
Before being arrested, Nga has been a subject of intimidation, harassment, and physical assault by Vietnam’s security forces in response to her consistent political activism. She was brutally beaten, kidnapped and placed under house arrest by plainclothes agents and police officers. Her two kids were also attacked sometimes.
Nga is among numerous Vietnamese rights bloggers and activists who use Facebook and YouTube to voice criticisms, share updates about protests and detainees, and support one another in their struggles for political freedom.
Vietnam should unconditionally release Nga and other activist and repeal all laws that criminalize peaceful expression, said HRW.
Foreign donors should use their leverage to push for Nga’s release now, and make it clear that closer relations depend on Vietnam tolerating its critics, rather than sending them to prison, the New York-based human rights organization said.
The sentence for Nga will be hard, according to local observers. In late June, Vietnam sentenced prominent human rights defender Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh to ten years in jail for allegation of “conducting anti-state propaganda” under Article 88 of the Penal Code.