NEW YORK (December 27, 2024) – This week, the Human Rights Foundation (HRF) submitted an individual complaint to the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (UNWGAD) on behalf of Nguyễn Chí Tuyến, a prominent Vietnamese activist and blogger also known as Anh Chí.
Tuyến is a well-known civil society activist who uses social media, primarily his YouTube channels, to report on social issues and advocate peacefully for human rights and democracy. He is also a founding member of the No-U Football Club, an association created to protest China’s encroachment in the South China Sea. Tuyến’s activism has made him a frequent target of harassment and violence by the Vietnamese regime. In 2015 and 2017, plainclothes security agents violently attacked him in the streets, leaving him with serious injuries. His most recent detention stems directly from his criticism of the government.
On Feb. 29, 2024, security agents arrested Tuyến at his home in Hanoi, without presenting a warrant. Despite no court decision authorizing his pretrial detention, he was detained for more than five months before his trial and only granted access to a lawyer shortly beforehand. Since his arrest, officials have also denied him any communication with his family.
Following a closed trial on Aug. 14, 2024, permitting only his wife and lawyers in the courtroom, Tuyến was sentenced to five years in prison under Article 117 of the Vietnamese Penal Code, for “making, storing or spreading information, materials or items for the purpose of opposing the State of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.” The charges were based on two YouTube videos he posted in 2021, which criticized government corruption and explored ideas for democratic reform.
Vietnam, a one-party state ruled by the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) since 1975, is one of the few remaining communist regimes in the world. Freedom of the press is heavily restricted, with the CPV and military controlling nearly all media outlets and independent media banned.
“Vietnam routinely uses Article 117 to silence dissent and arbitrarily detain the few remaining journalists, bloggers, and activists who oppose the regime. Without a clear definition of what it means to oppose the state under Article 117, Vietnam can essentially criminalize any form of criticism or opposition, as the UN Human Rights Committee has also already noted,” HRF International Legal Associate Caitlin Triplett said. “Tuyến’s detention directly resulted from the legitimate exercise of his right to freedom of expression.”
HRF strongly condemns Tuyến’s detention, requests that the UNWGAD take action, and urges the Vietnamese regime to immediately release him and other prisoners of conscience unjustly detained in Vietnam.
Supported by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation.
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