Đà Nẵng Court Confirms Trial of Activist Trịnh Bá Phương Will be on Sept. 27, 2025

 

The Vietnamese Magazine | 2025-09-15 

The People’s Court of Đà Nẵng has rescheduled the first-instance trial of land rights activist Trịnh Bá Phương to Sept. 27, 2025, Phương’s wife - Đỗ Thu - reported on her Facebook account.

Phương faces charges under Article 117 of Việt Nam’s Penal Code, which criminalizes the act of “making, storing, disseminating, or propagating” materials against the state.

According to Phương’s defense lawyer Luân Lê, who was permitted to visit him this week at An Điềm Prison in Quảng Nam Province, the defendant remains calm and coherent despite deteriorating health. Phương reportedly lost more than 10 kilograms after staging a 20-day hunger strike in November 2024, around the time prosecutors opened this second case against him.

The indictment in the new case is based on a banner allegedly found in Phương’s prison cell that contained two lines of text deemed hostile toward the Communist Party and the courts. The authorities cited the banner as evidence of violations under Article 117, invoking aggravating provisions that allow for harsher sentencing on grounds of  “dangerous recidivism.”

Phương is already serving a 10-year prison sentence handed down by the Hà Nội People’s Court in 2021, also under Article 117, for his online commentary and reporting related to the Đồng Tâm land dispute.

Human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have repeatedly criticized the use of Article 117 to suppress dissent, calling it overly broad and incompatible with international human rights standards.

His defense counsel has stated that Phương has requested access to case files in order to prepare his own defense under Việt Nam’s Criminal Procedure Code, though such rights have reportedly been restricted. In his previous trial, Phương delivered a detailed rebuttal to the prosecution’s indictment and closing arguments.

The Đà Nẵng court has confirmed that the trial will proceed on Sept. 27 at its Núi Thành District courthouse. Observers note that the case underscores the Vietnamese government’s continued reliance on national security provisions to prosecute high-profile activists, even while they are serving existing sentences.

 

 

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