Viet Nam
01.10.25
Urgent Interventions

Vietnam : New sentencing of land rights defender Trinh Ba Phuong

© Jack Goren/Unsplash

New information
VNM 001 / 0422 / OBS 026.5
Sentencing /
Arbitrary detention /
Judicial harassment
Vietnam
30 September, 2025

The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a partnership of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), has received new information and requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Vietnam.

New information:

The Observatory has been informed about the second conviction and prison sentence of imprisoned land rights defender Mr Trinh Ba Phuong. Mr Ba Phuong has campaigned against land grabbing and to highlight its impact on small-scale farmers across the country, along with his mother Ms Can Thi Theu and brother Mr Trinh Ba Tu. All three of them have been arbitrarily incarcerated since June 24, 2020.

On 27 September 2025, the People’s Court in Danang City held the trial of Mr Trinh Ba Phuong on charges of “propaganda against the state” (Article 117 of the Criminal Code), in connection with an A4 paper with the slogans “Down with the Communist Party that Violates Human Rights” and “Down with the Court that Convicted Me,” which police found in Mr Trinh Ba Phuong’s prison cell in November 2024, while he was serving another prison sentence in An Diem Prison, in Quang Nam Province. Mr. Trinh Ba Phuong denied writing those slogans. After about three hours of proceedings, the court found Mr Trinh Ba Phuong guilty of the charges and sentenced him to 11 years in prison. Trinh Ba Phuong’s lawyers were not allowed to present their defense and Mr Trinh Ba Phuong himself was not allowed to make his final statement. Neither family members nor foreign diplomats were allowed to attend the hearing. The courtroom was surrounded by hundreds of security and police officers, and all access points were blocked.

The Observatory recalls that Mr Trinh Ba Phuong was already serving a 10-year prison sentence and five years of probation in An Diem Prison. With this new sentence, Mr Phuong must now serve a total of 21 years in prison and five years of probation.

Mr Trinh Ba Phuong was arbitrarily arrested in Hanoi on June 24, 2020, on charges of “propaganda against the state” under Article 117 of the Criminal Code. On the same day, in Hoa Binh Province, his mother Ms Can Thi Theu, and brother Mr Trinh Ba Tu, were arbitrarily arrested on the same charges. They were all arrested and detained for denouncing on social media the excessive force used by the authorities against farmers of the Dong Tam Village near Hanoi, during a deadly police raid conducted in January 2020, in which a farmer and three policemen were killed. During the investigation, Trinh Ba Phuong was subjected to acts of torture and ill-treatment, and was detained in a psychiatric ward for one month in March 2021.

On December 15, 2021, Trinh Ba Phuong was sentenced to 10 years in prison and five years of probation. On August 17, 2022, his conviction and prison sentence were upheld by the Hanoi High People’s Court and the sentence was final.

Can Thi Theu and Trinh Ba Tu were sentenced by the Hanoi People’s Court to eight years of imprisonment each under Article 117 of the Criminal Code on May 5, 2021. Their convictions and prison sentences were upheld on December 24, 2021, and were final. At the time of publication of this Urgent Appeal, they remained detained in Thanh Hoa Prison No. 5 and Thanh Hoa Prison No. 6, respectively, and their detention conditions remained unknown.

In October 2023, Trinh Ba Phuong reported he and two fellow inmates had been subjected to torture and ill-treatment in September 2023, and had not received any medical care afterwards. Until the date of publication of this urgent appeal, the Observatory is not aware of any investigations into these abuses.

The Observatory expresses its grave concern over the high risks of torture and ill-treatment Trinh Ba Phuong, Can Thi Theu, and Trinh Ba Tu face while in detention.

The Observatory expresses further concern about the physical integrity and psychological well-being of the three human rights defenders’ families, who have been subjected to threats and short periods of detention to intimidate them and prevent them from attending the trials of their relatives.

The Observatory further notes that Trinh Ba Phuong remains detained 850 km away from his home, while Trinh Ba Tu and Can Thi Theu are detained 300 km and 120 km from their homes, respectively. The continued detention of the above-mentioned human rights defenders in remote prisons has a punitive effect on them and their families, as each prison visit requires high traveling costs and onerous journeys, and consequently cannot take place regularly.

The Observatory urges the Vietnamese authorities to protect and respect Trinh Ba Phuong, Trinh Ba Tu, and Can Thi Theu’s right to be free from torture and other acts of ill-treatment, and to carry out an immediate, thorough, and impartial investigation into the above-mentioned allegations of torture and ill-treatment and hold those responsible accountable.

The Observatory further condemns their ongoing arbitrary detention and calls on the authorities to quash their prison sentences and to immediately and unconditionally release them.

The Observatory urges the Vietnamese authorities to stop using Article 117 of the Criminal Code to prosecute human rights defenders and silence dissent in Vietnam, and recalls that several United Nations Special Procedures mandate holders declared that this article is “overly broad and appears to be aimed at silencing those who seek to exercise their human rights to freely express their views and share information with others.”

Actions requested:

Please write to the authorities of Vietnam asking them to:

i. Guarantee, in all circumstances, the physical integrity and psychological well-being of Trinh Ba Phuong, Trinh Ba Tu, Can Thi Theu, their relatives, and all other human rights defenders in Vietnam;

ii. Immediately and unconditionally release Trinh Ba Phuong, Trinh Ba Tu, Can Thi Theu, as their detention is arbitrary and is merely aimed at punishing them for their legitimate human rights activities;

iii. Carry out an immediate, thorough, transparent, and impartial investigation into the alleged acts of torture and ill-treatment against Trinh Ba Phuong and Trinh Ba Tu, in order to hold those responsible accountable;

iv. Quash the prison sentences of Trinh Ba Phuong, Trinh Ba Tu, and Can Thi Theu, and put an end to any act of harassment, including at the judicial level, against them, their relatives and all human rights defenders in Vietnam, and ensure in all circumstances that they are able to carry out their legitimate activities without any hindrance or fear of reprisals;

v. Repeal or significantly amend Article 117 of the Criminal Code to bring it into line with Vietnam’s international human rights obligations, and ensure prison regulations uphold and facilitate the rights of people in detention or imprisonment and comply with international standards on the treatment of detainees and prisoners, including the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Nelson Mandela Rules).

Addresses:

Please also write to the diplomatic representations of Vietnam in your respective countries.

***

Paris-Geneva, 30 September, 2025

Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.

The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (the Observatory) was created in 1997 by FIDH and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT). The objective of this programme is to prevent or remedy situations of repression against human rights defenders. FIDH and OMCT are both members of ProtectDefenders.eu, the European Union Human Rights Defenders Mechanism implemented by international civil society.

To contact the Observatory, call the emergency line:

Tags

Human rights defenders
Arbitrary detention

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