Tag: Pham Doan Trang

  • Pham Doan Trang in Article 19 – Vietnam: Campaign against independent voices barrels forward

    Vietnamese authorities regularly use the Penal Code to punish human rights defenders, independent journalists and writers, and others exercising their right to freedom of expression.  Article 19 calls on the immediate release of the 3 leading human rights defenders, including Pham Doan Trang, and for Vietnam to amend its Penal Code in order to make it compliant with international law.


    Excerpt:

    The conviction of three leading Vietnamese human rights defenders in relation to their online advocacy signals the continuation of the Vietnamese government’s repressive campaign against independent voices, said ARTICLE 19. Vietnamese authorities should immediately and unconditionally release Pham Doan Trang, Trinh Ba Phuong, Nguyen Thi Tam, and all other arbitrarily detained human rights defenders.

    “These three convictions are unacceptable acts of reprisal against courageous rights defenders and part of a nefarious campaign to silence and intimidate anyone who speaks out against government abuse,” said Matthew Bugher, ARTICLE 19’s Head of Asia Programme. “The Vietnamese government is clearly allergic to criticism and routinely reacts by jailing independent journalists and others who use social media to document and disseminate information about its failures.”

    On 14 December 2021, the Hanoi People’s Court convicted Pham Doan Trang under Article 88 of the 1999 Penal Code, which criminalises the ‘making, storing, distributing or disseminating information, documents and items against the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.’ The court sentenced her to nine years’ imprisonment.

    In a statement released ahead of her trial, Pham Doan Trang wrote, ‘The longer the prison sentence, the more demonstrable the authoritarian, undemocratic, and anti-democratic nature of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.’

    Authorities arrested Pham Doan Trang on 7 October 2020, less than a month after five UN Human Rights experts raised concerns about the harassment of independent writers and journalists in Vietnam, including against Pham Doan Trang. She was held incommunicado for over a year before being allowed to meet with her lawyer on 19 October 2021. Court documents indicate that she was targeted for writing about human right issues and meeting with foreign journalists.

    In September 2021, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found that Pham Doan Trang’s detention was arbitrary. In October eight UN human rights experts, including members of the Working Group, noted that she was ‘only the latest victim of the authorities’ use of vaguely defined propaganda charges to persecute writers, journalists and human rights defenders, criminalising the exercise of their right to freedom of opinion and expression to share information.’

    Ahead of the original date for her trial in November, ARTICLE 19 and 27 other human rights and freedom of expression organisations released a statement calling for the Vietnamese authorities to immediately and unconditionally release and drop all charges against her.

    International human rights experts have repeatedly called on Vietnam to amend its Penal Code in order to make it compliant with international law. In 2019, the UN Human Rights Committee called on Vietnam to revise vague and broadly formulated legislation and to end violations of the right to freedom of expression offline and online ‘as a matter of urgency.’ In early 2021, four UN Special Rapporteurs stated that Article 117 of the 2015 Penal Code is ‘overly broad and appears to be aimed at silencing those who seek to exercise their human right to freely express their views and share information with others.’


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  • Pham Doan Trang in Le Monde News: Vietnamese journalist Pham Doan Trang sentenced to nine years in prison

    Multi-awarded journalist and human rights defender Pham Doan Trang gets a harsh conviction for writing “anti-state propaganda.” Her lawyer said that she refused to “confess” for crimes that she believes she did not commit.  

    Pham Doan Trang  is known for her peaceful means to advocate her causes.  


    Excerpt:

    Note: Original texts in French.

    Rewarded abroad by several prizes crowning her fight for freedom of expression, the writer and blogger was accused of “anti-state propaganda” and statements “prejudicial” to social stability.

    Nine years in prison for “crimes” of writing and “anti-state propaganda”  : this is the harsh sentence to which the famous Vietnamese journalist and blogger Pham Doan Trang was sentenced on Tuesday, December 14. Aged 43, the young woman was accused by the Hanoi regime of “defaming the government of Vietnam and inventing false news” .

    The fact of having granted interviews in the past to the BBC and to Radio Free Asia, a media financed by the United States Congress, probably aggravated his case: whereas a sentence of seven to eight years had been requested against her, the judges imposed an even heavier sentence on the journalist, on the pretext that her statements were “prejudicial” to the stability of Vietnamese society.

    The blogger refused to plead guilty

    Arrested in October 2020 after being placed under house arrest for many months in her Hanoi residence, the blogger refused to plead guilty and will no doubt appeal. Her lawyer, Ngo Anh Tuan, wrote on her Facebook page on Monday that Trang told her on October 19, during her first meeting with one of her defenders since her incarceration, that she had always refused to “confess” to her. during the dozen interrogations that were inflicted on him.


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  • Pham Doan Trang in Union of Catholic Asian News: Vietnam jails its most famous human rights activist

    UCA discloses how Pham Doan Trang is a “woman of freedom” and summarizes her works on defending human rights and freedom in Vietnam.


    Excerpt:

    Well-known human rights activist and dissident journalist Pham Doan Trang has been sentenced to nine years in jail for “conducting propaganda against the State of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.”

    The People’s Court of Hanoi City on Dec. 14 convicted her on charges that included giving interviews to foreign newspapers and publishing reports on marine pollution and religious violations in Vietnam.

    Trang, who won the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) Press Freedom Prize for Impact in 2019, was arrested in October 2020 in Ho Chi Minh City, just a few hours after the annual human rights dialogue between the United States and Vietnam.

    The activist is the founder of Luatkhoa.org, an online magazine that specializes in providing legal information. Before her arrest, she was an editor of Thevietnamese.org, which assists Vietnamese citizens to defend their rights in the communist-run country.

    Lawyer Mieng said during a meeting with the lawyers at the No. 1 Prison before the trial, Trang told him that she always prays for the nation and all people to be in love, good health and peace although she does not follow any religion. She sent her warm regards to other activists and friends.

    Pham Thanh Nghien, a rights activist and Trang’s close friend, said she was sentenced to nine years in prison for daring to speak up for freedom and truth.

    “Those who have dared to commit themselves to freedom are always liberals even in prison. Pham Doan Trang is always a woman of freedom,” Nghien said.

    Trang reportedly told the jury that the longer the sentence, the more they prove the dictatorial and anti-democratic nature of the Vietnam government.

    “You can put me in jail and crow that you have erased a thorn in your eyes, but you will never be able to erase the bad reputation, dictatorship and anti-democracy. As beasts are forever animals, they can never become human,” she said.


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  • Pham Doan Trang in CNN: Dissident journalist jailed in Vietnam for 9 years for ‘anti-state’ acts

    CNN outlines the trial of Pham Doan Trang, citing her legal team’s statement on the 9 year conviction as “severe.”  International human rights organization finds the verdict unacceptable.


    Excerpt:

    A court in Vietnam jailed a journalist and prominent dissident for nine years on Tuesday for anti-state activities, her lawyers and state media said, in a case that attracted the attention of international human rights groups.

    Pham Doan Trang, who published material widely on human rights and alleged police brutality in Vietnam, was convicted of “conducting propaganda against the state” by a Hanoi court, according to her legal team and state-controlled media.

    Despite sweeping economic reform and increasing openness to social change, Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party retains tight media censorship and tolerates little criticism.

    Calls to the court seeking confirmation of the verdict went unanswered on Tuesday.

    “It was such a long sentence, close to the maximum term for such activities,” said one of her lawyers, Nguyen Van Mieng, adding that Trang did not plead guilty at the trial and they would meet later to discuss a possible appeal.

    Trang, 43, was detained hours after an annual US-Vietnam human rights dialogue in October last year, an arrest the US embassy said could impact freedom of expression.

    Dang Dinh Manh, another member of her legal team, said the nine-year sentence was severe.

    “The sentence is too long. The judges insisted that Trang’s activities were dangerous for society and for the administration,” Manh said.

    Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, called the verdict an unacceptable sentence for a brave woman who only spoke her mind.

    “The imprisonment of such a committed reformer dedicated to promoting human rights, good governance and justice is a searing indictment of everything that is wrong with authoritarian Vietnam today,” he said.

    “In a democratic society, Trang’s prolific ideas and writings would be admired and extolled rather than criminalized.”

    In May 2016, police detained and prevented Trang from attending a meeting with then-US President Barack Obama, who had invited her to join him at an activists’ forum.

    Two years later, she was detained after meeting with a European delegation that was preparing for an annual EU-Vietnam human rights dialogue.


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  • Pham Doan Trang in Voice of America: Tense One-Day Trial Ends in 9-Year Sentence for Vietnamese Journalist

    VOA spoke to the lawyer of Pham Doan Trang after a nine-year sentence was handed down to the Vietnamese author and journalist by a Hanoi court.


    Excerpt:

    The award-winning journalist was convicted of “spreading anti-state propaganda” under Article 88 of Vietnam’s Penal Code. The charge has been criticized by her lawyer Dang Dinh Manh and international rights organizations, who say Trang is being penalized for her work.

    “We believe what Trang has done was merely exercising the right to freedom of speech,” said Manh, one of five lawyers who defended the 43-year-old journalist.

    He added that the charge contradicts provisions in Vietnam’s constitution that protect free speech.

    The lawyer told VOA the Hanoi People’s Court judges maintained that Trang’s behavior was “dangerous to the society and the administration.”

    Manh added that in an unusual move, the court handed down a prison term longer than requested by the prosecution.

    Manh said that Trang was frequently interrupted when addressing the court.

    The journalist, who was arrested in October 2020, pleaded not guilty.

    “We believe that the conviction of Trang does not have enough of a legal basis,” said Manh.

    Trang’s family has protested the sentence. Her brother, Nguyen Chinh Truc, who attended the trial with their 81-year-old mother, told VOA he raised objections at the hearing.

    International reaction

    The United States and other governments, along with international rights groups, have condemned the conviction of Trang, who is known for her reports on human rights and legal issues affecting Vietnamese.

    In a statement released Tuesday, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said that Trang “did nothing more than peacefully express her opinions.”

    He called on Vietnam to release the journalist “who has been recognized internationally for her work to advance human rights and good governance in Vietnam.”

    Britain, Germany and the Czech Republic also voiced concern at the sentencing.

    Vietnam’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to VOA’s request for comment on Trang’s case and the international condemnation of her conviction.

    The ministry spokesperson has previously said that only criminals are imprisoned in Vietnam.

    Trang is one of at least 23 journalists in jail for their work as of December, according to data by the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists.

    In 2019, Trang was honored with the prize for impact by media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

    The watchdog criticized her sentencing and is campaigning to have Trang released.

    “This is political justice carried out on the ruling party’s orders with the sole aim of punishing a journalist just for trying to inform her fellow citizens,” Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF’s Asia-Pacific desk, said in a statement.

    “We urge the international community to impose targeted sanctions on the Vietnamese officials responsible for Pham Doan Trang’s unacceptable fate, in order to obtain her immediate release,” he added.

    Before becoming an advocate for democracy and human rights in Vietnam, Trang worked for state-owned newspapers.

    She founded the online law and human rights magazine Luat Khoa and has authored several books that authorities banned from publication.


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  • Pham Doan Trang in Radio Free Asia: Vietnamese independent journalist Pham Doan Trang is jailed for 9 years

    Trang had called for democracy and good governance in Vietnam, and had spoken with Radio Free Asia and the BBC.


    Excerpt:

    A court in Vietnam has sentenced an independent Vietnamese journalist and activist to nine years in prison following her conviction on a charge of “carrying out propaganda” against the state, her lawyer said on Tuesday.

    Pham Doan Trang, who has won multiple foreign awards for her writing, was sentenced Tuesday at the Hanoi People’s Court, with trial judges handing down a sentence longer than the prison term requested by prosecutors, defense attorney Dang Dinh Manh told RFA.

    “The trial’s atmosphere was pretty tense,” said Manh. “But finally the panel of judges came out and pronounced a sentence of nine years’ imprisonment, which was higher than that proposed by the Procuracy.”

    “They had called only for a seven- or eight-year jail term,” Manh said, adding that the judges in announcing their verdict said that Trang’s actions had been harmful to society, and had therefore called for a harsher sentence.

    The judges had based their decision only on the arguments and information provided by prosecutors and had rejected all arguments presented by lawyers working in Trang’s defense, Manh said.

    “The verdict surprised us, and we think that Pham Doan Trang will certainly appeal against it.”

    The U.S. State Department on Tuesday condemned the conviction and sentencing of Trang, saying she had done nothing more in her writings than peacefully express her opinions.

    “We note as well the recent opinion of the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, which found Trang’s detention to be arbitrary and in contravention of Vietnam’s international human rights commitments and obligations,” said State Department spokesman Ned Price.

    “The United States calls on the Vietnamese government to release Trang, who has been recognized internationally for her work to advance human rights and good governance in Vietnam, and to allow all individuals in Vietnam to express their views freely and without fear of retaliation,” Price said.

    Writing on Monday on his Facebook page, defense lawyer Ngo Anh Tuan said that in a meeting with Trang on Oct. 19 — her first meeting with lawyers after her arrest — Trang said she had refused during 10 periods of interrogation to confess to the charges against her.

    “In some of these sessions, investigators also asked her if she would be willing to leave Vietnam and live in a foreign country if it seemed she would be sentenced during her trial to many years in prison,” Tuan said, adding that Trang had refused to consider such a move.

    “She said she would never be willing to be a ‘commodity’ to be exchanged with a foreign government,” he said.


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  • Pham Doan Trang in BBC News Vietnamese: Hanoi court sentenced freelance journalist Pham Doan Trang to 9 years in prison

    The first-instance trial of journalist Pham Doan Trang ended at the end of the afternoon on December 14 with a 9-year prison sentence for her for “conducting propaganda against the State of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam”, as prescribed at Article 88 of the Penal Code 1999.


    Excerpt:

    Speaking to BBC News Vietnamese right after the trial, lawyer Ngo Anh Tuan, one of the defense lawyers for Ms. Doan Trang, said:

    “The representative of the Procuracy suggested 7 to 8 years in prison. The trial panel sentenced him to 9 years in prison. They pronounced this sentence not against the law. Previously, the trial panel only pronounced within the framework proposed by the Procuracy, but according to the new law. Now, they have the right to declare higher than the proposal of the Procuracy.”

    When asked whether the lawyers and Ms. Pham Doan Trang were able to present enough arguments in the trial, lawyer Tuan briefly said, “incomplete”.

    The Vietnamese media said, “The prosecution assessed that Pham Thi Doan Trang’s anti-corruption activities seriously affected security and order, causing anger and anger among the public and the people.”

    On his personal Facebook page, lawyer Dang Dinh Manh, one of Pham Doan Trang’s defenders in court today, wrote:

    “Talking to us at the detention center the day before the trial, perhaps 90% of Ms. Pham Thi Doan Trang will decide to appeal the first-instance judgment.”

    Pham Doan Trang was arrested on the day of the end of the two-day Vietnam-US human rights dialogue, October 6-7, 2020.

    During more than a year in detention, Ms. Pham Doan Trang only met her lawyer once on October 19, 2021 and never met her family.

    Lawyer Ngo Anh Tuan recounted his exchange with Ms. Doan Trang on October 19, 2021 on his personal Facebook:

    “In 10 times, she was pressured but she refused to answer and asked for a new lawyer to declare but was not accepted;

    During the working process, Ms. Trang did not cooperate, did not confess and never confessed, so if there is a clip of confession released in any form, it means that it was cut, not correct. the truth.”

    What does the international say?

    After the trial, Phil Robertson, Deputy Asia Director, Human Rights Watch, issued a statement saying:

    “It is infuriating that Pham Doan Trang was sentenced to 9 years in prison just for expressing his views and defending his beliefs.”

    “The imprisoning of a reformer dedicated to promoting human rights, good governance and justice is a stinging indictment.”


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  • Pham Doan Trang in Reuters: Vietnam jails dissident journalist for 9 yrs over ‘anti-state’ acts

    Reuters discloses how the Vietnam Communist Party retains tight media censorship and tolerates little criticism, as it jails journalist and prominent dissident Pham Doan Trang for nine years.


    Excerpt:

    A court in Vietnam jailed a journalist and prominent dissident for nine years on Tuesday for anti-state activities, her lawyers and state media said, in a case that attracted the attention of international human rights groups.

    Pham Doan Trang, who published material widely on human rights and alleged police brutality in Vietnam, was convicted of “conducting propaganda against the state” by a Hanoi court, according to her legal team and state-controlled media.

    Despite sweeping economic reform and increasing openness to social change, Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party retains tight media censorship and tolerates little criticism.

    Calls to the court seeking confirmation of the verdict went unanswered.

    “It was such a long sentence, close to the maximum term for such activities,” said one of her lawyers, Nguyen Van Mieng, adding that Trang had not pleaded guilty at the trial and they would meet later to discuss a possible appeal.

    Trang, 43, was detained hours after an annual U.S.-Vietnam human rights dialogue in October last year, an arrest the U.S. embassy said could impact freedom of expression.

    Dang Dinh Manh, another member of her legal team, said the nine-year sentence was severe.

    “The judges insisted that Trang’s activities were dangerous for society and for the administration,” Manh said.

    The United States condemned the conviction and called on the government to release Trang, adding that everyone should be allowed to express views freely and without fear of retaliation.

    “We also urge the government to ensure its laws and actions are consistent with the human rights provisions of Vietnam’s Constitution and Vietnam’s international obligations and commitments,” the state department said in a statement.

    Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, called the verdict an unacceptable sentence for a brave woman who only spoke her mind.

    “The imprisonment of such a committed reformer dedicated to promoting human rights, good governance and justice is a searing indictment of everything that is wrong with authoritarian Vietnam today,” he said.

    “In a democratic society, Trang’s prolific ideas and writings would be admired and extolled rather than criminalised.”


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  • Pham Doan Trang in The Bangkok Post: Prominent dissident journalist jailed in Vietnam

    Pham Doan Trang — a campaigner for press freedom and civil rights — has long been a thorn in the side of authorities, writing on a host of controversial issues from land grabs to police violence.


    Excerpt:

    The former state media reporter was accused of “spreading propaganda against the socialist republic of Vietnam”, said judge Chu Phuong Ngoc.

    “Her behaviour was dangerous for society… implemented with the intention of violating the socialist regime… and (she) must be seriously punished”.

    During the hearing, Trang testified to being detained 25 times since 2015, and said she had been “terrorised” by security forces.

    She walked with a limp due to a leg injury sustained when police broke up an environmental protest she attended six years ago.

    In 2016, as a freelancer, she wrote extensively on the country’s worst environmental disaster, a toxic spill that killed tonnes of fish in central Vietnam and prompted rare protests across the country.

    That same year she was detained by police on her way to a meeting with then-US President Barack Obama in Hanoi, who had invited her to join a gathering of activists during his visit.

    Trang was detained again in November 2017 after meeting with a European Union delegation, which was preparing for the annual bilateral human rights dialogue between the EU and Vietnam.

    In her book “Politics of a Police State”, she recounted the continual harassment she endured during these years.

    It included police pouring glue over her apartment’s door lock to prevent her from leaving and posting intimate photos taken from her computer.

    In a letter she wrote in 2019 entitled “Just in case I am imprisoned”, Trang urged the public to focus on fighting for free and fair elections in Vietnam, rather than her freedom.

    “I don’t want freedom for just myself: that’s too easy,” she wrote.

    “I want something greater: freedom for Vietnam.”


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  • Pham Doan Trang in Reporters Without Borders: Vietnamese journalist Pham Doan Trang, 2019 RSF Prize, sentenced to nine years in prison

    Pham Doan Trang in Reporters Without Borders: Vietnamese journalist Pham Doan Trang, 2019 RSF Prize, sentenced to nine years in prison

    Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF) reacts on Hanoi court decision against journalist Pham Doan Trang prison sentence.


    Excerpt:

    The sentence, pronounced by the Hanoi court against journalist Pham Doan Trang, comes after 434 days of arbitrary detention. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) denounces this sentence, which muzzles an emblematic figure in the fight for press freedom, in Vietnam and around the world.

    The hearing was dispatched in a few hours. Journalist Pham Doan Trang , winner of the 2019 RSF Prize , was sentenced today, Tuesday December 14, to nine years in prison by the Hanoi People’s Court for “propaganda against the state”, on the grounds of Article 117 of the penal code.

    The court’s verdict went beyond the requisitions of the prosecution, which had asked for seven to eight years in prison. In his recitals, Judge Chu Phuong Ngoc maintained that “the behavior [of the journalist] was dangerous for society”, with the intention of “violating the socialist regime”.

    “The pathetic arguments put forward by the Hanoi court to justify its verdict do not deceive anyone,” said the head of RSF’s Asia-Pacific office, Daniel Bastard. We are dealing with political justice, at the orders of the ruling party, whose sole purpose is to punish a journalist who simply tried to inform her fellow citizens. We call on the international community to impose targeted sanctions on the Vietnamese dignitaries responsible for the unacceptable fate that befalls Pham Doan Trang, in order to secure his immediate release.”

    International mobilization

    Arrested at her home in Ho Chi Minh City on the night of October 6 to 7, 2020, the journalist was then placed in incommunicado detention for more than a year, until October 19, after more than a year of pre-trial detention. His trial, initially scheduled for November 4, was postponed at the last minute, a few days after the publication, on October 25, of a joint statement by eight UN experts calling for his release.

    Prior to this appeal, RSF launched an international campaign on his behalf as soon as Pham Doan Trang’s arrest was announced. As such, the organization had collected the video testimonies of several Vietnamese journalists and bloggers in exile, who showed their solidarity.

    Another video , published last April, also mobilized the community of winners of the RSF press freedom prize. From Poland to the Philippines, and from India to Turkey, their testimony had made the world aware of the plight of their colleague Pham Doan Trang, and of Vietnamese journalists in general.

    According to the barometer constantly updated by RSF, Vietnam currently has a record number of 43 journalists and bloggers currently in detention.

    The country ranks 175th out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index established by RSF in 2021.


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