Le Trong Hung was heading home with his two young sons when police stopped him. They seized his house keys before taking him into custody. Police later searched his house and seized personal documents, according to his wife. Two weeks earlier Hung had announced his intention to stand in the May election as an independent candidate. He has been critical of the ruling communist party and his arrest appears to be politically motivated. His arrest is part of an ongoing crackdown on dissent in Vietnam, which Human Rights Pulse covered here.

TWO CANDIDATES ARRESTED AHEAD OF MAY ELECTION

Hung, 42, is a former high school teacher. He is now a journalist and commentator on Chan Hung TV, which broadcasts Facebook livestreams about social and political issues. A few days before his arrest, Hung criticised the ruling Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) for hampering independent candidates from standing in elections. Elections to the National Assembly of Vietnam are tightly controlled by the CPV. In the 2016 general election, independent candidates took 21 seats; the CPV took 473 seats.

Hung is the second candidate to be arrested ahead of the May election to the National Assembly. Tran Quoc Khanh, 61, was arrested on 9 March for Facebook posts allegedly defaming the government and opposing the CPV. On 6 March, he had criticised the government during a Facebook livestream, calling on it to respect the rule of law. Khanh had also used his Facebook page to post about corruption and human rights abuses in Vietnam.

Both Hung and Khanh have been charged under article 117 of the Vietnam Penal Code, which criminalises “making, storing, distributing or disseminating information, documents and items against the Socialist Republic of Vietnam”. Conviction carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison. The police have already confirmed that they intend to detain Khanh for four months in pretrial detention. He will be unable to stand in the May election.

CRACKDOWN ON DISSENT IN VIETNAM

Both Hung and Khanh have been arrested and charged, ostensibly, for their social media posts. The ruling CPV has been cracking down on dissent since 2019. The crackdown has targeted online dissent in particular. Those posting opinions or information critical of the CPV on Facebook and YouTube face censorship, intimidation, and harassment, as well as imprisonment.

Amnesty International has documented cases of each in their recent 78-page report: “‘Let us Breathe!’ Censorship and Criminalization of Online Expression in Viet Nam”. Its report includes beatings and death threats carried out by police officers. As of 1 December 2020, around 69 prisoners of conscience in Vietnam were in prison solely for their social media activity. This number has risen in 2021 and will continue to rise as the CPV looks to quell dissent ahead of elections in May.

Samuel is a trainee solicitor and postgraduate at Cardiff University. He is active in several U.K.-based organisations campaigning on behalf of Hong Kong and BNOs. His research interests include transitional justice and the rule of law.

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