JOINT STATEMENT CALLING FOR THE RELEASE OF VIETNAMESE
PRISONER OF CONSCIENCE, TRAN HUYNH DUY THUC
24th May 2015
On 24 May 2009, Tran Huynh Duy Thuc, Vietnamese ICT entrepreneur and blogger,
was arrested under the initial charge of “promoting anti-government propaganda”
under Article 88 of the Vietnamese Penal Code for peacefully exercising his right to
freedom of expression. On 20 January 2010, in a one-day trial, Tran Huynh Duy Thuc
and his three co-defendants – Le Cong Dinh, Nguyen Tien Trung and Le Thang Long –
were prosecuted at the People’s Court of Ho Chi Minh City for “conducting activities
aimed at overthrowing the people’s administration” under Article 79 of the Penal Code.
Thuc was sentenced to 16 years’ imprisonment followed by 5 years of house arrest, while
Dinh, Trung and Long, were sentenced to 5 years, 7 years and 5 years’ imprisonment
followed by 3 years of house arrest, respectively.
Contrary to being found guilty of aiming to “overthrow” the state, the activities for which
Thuc and his co-defendants were prosecuted comprised only blogging that called for
political reform and respect for human rights (e.g.
https://tranfami.wordpress.com/2012/02/05/hewing_quest_for_democracy_and_pro
sperity/) They did not receive a fair trial and relatives of the defendants and foreign
journalists were not allowed in the courtroom. The defendants’ microphones did not
function when Thuc’s defense counsel tried to speak on his behalf or when Long
attempted to inform the court that the defendants’ confessions were written under
duress. According to eyewitnesses, the judges deliberated for only 15 minutes before
returning with the judgment, which took 45 minutes to read, suggesting it had been
prepared in advance of the hearing.
On 29 August 2012, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention
(WGAD) adopted the opinion that Thuc and his three co-defendants’ detention violated
the right to freedom of opinion and expression guaranteed by Article 19 of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), as well as the right to
liberty and security of person (Article 9) and the right to freedom of association (Article
21). Vietnam is a party to the ICCPR. Consequently, the WGAD requested the
Vietnamese government to release them and provide them with compensation, in
accordance with its international obligations. Although Vietnam accepted 31 of the
recommendations calling for the respect and protection of freedom of expression at the
Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council in 2014, the Vietnamese
government has still failed to resolve Thuc’s case.
Today, 24 May 2015, marks Thuc’s 6th year of imprisonment. Until now, Thuc remains
in prison while his three co-defendants have been released early. As such, we would like
to call on the Vietnamese government to abide by their international and domestic
obligations by ensuring that Thuc is immediately released. Only when the relevant
authorities have taken the necessary steps so that his conviction is overturned, will
justice to Thuc be restored. The international community and human rights
organizations will be watching.