One of Vietnam’s most high-profile political prisoners has refused amnesty. Prison guards still forced him onto a plane

On By Rgal Nv

For nearly 16 years, Tran Huynh Duy Thuc remained in prison awaiting his release.

On September 20, he was told he could return home to his family after Vietnamese President To Lam pardoned him just eight months before his sentence was due to end.

But Mr. Thuc refused to leave.

The 57-year-old human rights activist said he had committed no crime and would not accept a presidential pardon.

Despite demanding to stay in prison, Mr. Thuc said he was forced to leave.

“I was forced to accept the amnesty, an unprecedented event in this country,” Mr. Thuc wrote on his Facebook page in Vietnamese, after his release.

“More than 20 people from prison number 6 burst into my cell to announce that the president had signed amnesty decision number 940 on September 20, 2024, to “pardon” me.

“They (prison guards) forcibly took me out of the prison gate amid protests from political prisoners, then put me in a car and took me to Vinh Airport.

“In the end, I was forced to take a late flight to Saigon.”

Prisoner release a political ploy, critics say

The release of Mr Thuc and another prominent political prisoner, climate activist Hoang Thi Minh Hong, came just a day before President Lam’s trip to the United States.

Mr Thuc believes he was used as a political pawn.

A group of four people are sitting in a restaurant in Vietnam

Tran Huynh Duy Thuc (second from right) after a presidential pardon ended his 16-year prison sentence. (Facebook)

“By default, I became an important player during the president’s visit to the United States,” Thuc wrote on Facebook.

Mr. Thuc was arrested in 2009 for “activities aimed at overthrowing the people’s government” after posting articles online criticizing the government.

The Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, established by the US Congress, advocated for the activist’s release earlier this year.

In 2016, then-French President François Hollande called for the release of four imprisoned dissidents, including Mr. Thuc.

According to a spokesperson for the Vietnamese embassy in Australia, the decision to grant amnesty to the prisoners was taken by Mr. Lam at the end of July “in accordance with Vietnam’s humanitarian traditions and the Party’s policies of clemency and the State towards offenders.

“This decision coincides with the celebration of the 79th National Day of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam on September 2, 2024 and the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Hanoi on October 10, 2024,” the spokesperson said.

However, Human Rights Watch’s Australian director Daniela Gavshon said the release of the two political prisoners was a set-up and the modus operandi of a country that is increasingly cracking down on free speech.

Ms Gavshon spoke about the imprisonment of blogger Hoang Viet Khanh on September 24 during Mr Lam’s visit to the United States.

“Vietnam is holding its own citizens like hostages. When they need to win points with Western countries, they release some political prisoners. But at the same time, they put new ones in prison. It’s like a door rotating,” she said.

Vietnamese authorities convicted and sentenced Mr. Khanh to eight years in prison under Article 117 of the country’s penal code.

Article 117 criminalizes “the manufacture, storage, dissemination of information, materials and objects with the aim of opposing the State of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam”.

To Lam sitting in a chair with two microphones in front of him on a lectern.

Vietnamese President To Lam pardoned two political prisoners a day before his trip to the United States. (Reuters: Minh Hoang)

Currently, according to Human Rights Watch, 172 political prisoners are serving prison sentences in Vietnam and 21 political detainees are being arrested for political reasons without trial.

“Unfortunately, we can only document cases that are known to the public,” Ms Gavshon said.

“The actual number of political prisoners and detainees is probably higher.”

Vietnam insists it does not hold political prisoners.

The future of Vietnam, a concern for members of the diaspora

Trung Doan is a former federal president of the Vietnamese community in Australia and a long-time advocate for refugees and labor rights.

Some of Mr. Doan’s friends in Vietnam are languishing in prison for reasons including defending unions.

“Three of them are still in prison, some have been released and fled Vietnam to seek refuge in Thailand and overseas,” said Mr Doan, who arrived in Australia in 1973 as a student.

A man in a suit and tie holds a microphone at an event.

Trung Doan, former federal president of the Vietnamese Community of Australia, said Vietnam was increasingly suppressing free speech. (Provided)

Mr Doan said Vietnam was becoming increasingly authoritarian and he feared for its future.

“Since the 1990s, freedom of expression (in Vietnam) has seen one crackdown after another,” he said.

“There is absolutely no civil society in Vietnam and even the groups, the NGOs, that advocate for climate change have been effectively shut down because their leaders are imprisoned.”

HRW’s Gavshon said the Vietnamese government has used tactics such as intrusive surveillance, house arrest, physical attacks, interrogations and arrests by police to silence individuals who express their opinions critical of the government.

Besides the lack of independent media, Vietnam has also banned all independent organizations, including labor, religious and human rights groups, she said.

The use of Articles 117 and 331, the latter which punishes those who abuse democracy and freedom to harm the interests of the state, organizations and individuals, has also led to an increase in arrests.

“Between 2019 and 2024, hundreds of people have been arrested and imprisoned under articles 117 and 331 of the penal code,” Ms Gavshon said.

“Over the past three years, police have expanded arrests to include traditional environmental activists and even democracy activists who have not been active for several years.”

Political prisoners like Thuc offer hope

In his first interview since his release from prison, Mr. Thuc recalled the difficult conditions of life in prison, including not having access to hot water to prepare food and not being able to exercise. outdoors.

“Prisoners are supposed to be allowed access to the yard once a week to stretch,” Thuc told the Saigon Broadcasting Television Network (SBTN).

“But they prevented political prisoners from entering by erecting fences. We political prisoners call them the tiger cage fence.”

SBTN is a Vietnamese television channel headquartered in California, United States.

A man in a blue shirt sits on a sofa next to two other people

Tran Huynh Duy Thuc (center) said he remains hopeful for Vietnam’s future after its liberation. (Facebook)

During his prison sentence, Mr. Thuc also allegedly organized several hunger strikes to protest his treatment in prison.

Mr. Doan said political prisoners like Mr. Thuc could not be broken by the regime, even if they faced a real risk of being re-incarcerated.

“We are talking about a fearless man (Mr. Thuc), the greatest tool the regime has over people is the fear of imprisonment. But this man is not afraid of imprisonment, so the regime does not ‘There’s nothing left to scare him,’ Mr. Doan said.

“He is probably one of dozens of people who are not intimidated by the threat of imprisonment.

“But Mr. Thuc is very special in the sense that he fought against amnesty, and this is the first time I’ve heard of anyone doing that.”

Meanwhile, Mr. Thuc urges his supporters to believe that Vietnam is “embarking on a great, irreversible transformation.”

“It is a peaceful transition, led by a gentle movement with gentle energy, transforming the anger accumulated for generations,” he said.