Vietnam needs to end its transnational repression of Vietnamese activists abroad.

Statement by the Vietnam Human Rights Network and Defend the Defenders on February 03, 2026, about Hanoi’s repression of human rights defenders and journalists abroad.

 

On January 30, 2026, the Dak Lak Provincial Police issued a decision to prosecute Dr. Nguyen Dinh Thang on charges of “terrorism” under Article 299 of Vietnam’s Criminal Code. Authorities allege that he “directed, incited, and assisted” Y Quynh Bdap in instructing several individuals inside Vietnam to carry out acts of terrorism and murder related to the attack in Dak Lak province on June 11, 2023.

Dr. Nguyen Dinh Thang is a U.S. citizen and a long-standing human rights advocate who has led two nonprofit, non-governmental organizations for more than 35 years: Boat People SOS (BPSOS) and the Coalition to Abolish Modern-day Slavery in Asia (CAMSA). In recent years, BPSOS has conducted extensive international advocacy to promote religious freedom in Vietnam, particularly for ethnic minority communities that continue to face systemic discrimination and repression.

Dr. Thang is not the first person of Vietnamese origin living abroad to be targeted by Vietnam’s one-party government. In late 2025, Hanoi sentenced human rights lawyer Nguyen Van Dai and journalist Le Trung Khoa to 17 years in prison each, in two separate cases, on charges of “propaganda against the state” under Article 117 of the Criminal Code. Both men reside in Germany and were convicted in absentia.

Lawyer Nguyen Van Dai has long been a target of political persecution. He was sentenced to four years in prison in 2007 for “propaganda against the state” and later to 15 years in prison in 2018 for “activities aimed at overthrowing the government.” Although he was released and forced into exile in Germany, Mr. Dai continued his peaceful advocacy for democracy, freedom of the press, and human rights, consistently publishing articles critical of the Vietnamese government’s repression of dissent, exploitation of the population, environmental destruction, and erosion of humanitarian values.

Journalist Le Trung Khoa, a German citizen residing in Berlin, is the editor-in-chief of Thoibao.de. This independent news website has reported on developments in Vietnam and internationally for many years. The site publishes information on critical issues affecting Vietnam, including corruption, environmental degradation, and internal factional struggles within the ruling party.

The peaceful activities of Messrs. Nguyen Dinh Thang, Nguyen Van Dai, and Le Trung Khoa have contributed to public awareness, advanced freedom of information, and promoted respect for human rights in Vietnam. Criminalizing such activities constitutes a grave violation of international law.

The Vietnam Human Rights Network and Defend the Defenders believe that the prosecution of Dr. Nguyen Dinh Thang and the convictions in absentia of lawyer Nguyen Van Dai and journalist Le Trung Khoa constitute an explicit and alarming act of transnational repression. These actions aimed at discrediting activists abroad while simultaneously fostering a climate of fear inside Vietnam, deterring individuals from engaging with overseas human rights defenders or communicating with the international community.

We therefore call on the Government of Vietnam to immediately cease its repression of overseas activists, drop all charges against Dr. Nguyen Dinh Thang, and overturn the politically motivated convictions of Lawyer Nguyen Van Dai and Journalist Le Trung Khoa.

We further call on the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, and the Special Rapporteur on counter-terrorism and human rights to urgently engage with the Government of Vietnam, seek clarification on these cases, and publicly raise concerns regarding the misuse of national security and counter-terrorism laws to silence peaceful human rights advocacy.

We urge democratic governments—particularly the United States, the European Union and its Member States, Canada, Australia, Japan, and other partners of Vietnam—to raise these cases at the highest bilateral and multilateral levels, to condition deeper political and economic cooperation on measurable human rights improvements, and to use available tools, including targeted sanctions and visa restrictions, against officials responsible for serious human rights violations.

 

Tung Nguyen Executive Director The Vietnam Human Rights Network

Ngu Vu Director Defend the Defenders

 

 

 

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