Press Release

December 15, 2024

 

The 2024 Vietnam Human Rights Award Ceremony in Houston, Texas, USA

 

Houston, TX, USA – The 2024 Vietnam Human Rights Awards Ceremony (YouTube - Facebook) and the celebration of the 76th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights were solemnly held at the New Diamond Club in Houston on the afternoon of December 15, 2024.

This is the second time the Vietnam Human Rights Network has organized the Vietnam Human Rights Awards ceremony in Houston. The 9^th Vietnam Human Rights Award took place in Houston in 2010. This year, the event was organized by the cooperation of the Vietnam Human Rights Network, the Vietnamese Community in Houston, and the Vietnam Hung Ca Movement.

The 2024 Vietnam Human Rights Awards were presented to three human rights activists who are serving very harsh prison sentences in Vietnam: Prisoners of Conscience Bui Van Thuan, 8 years in prison and 5 years of probation; Dang Dang Phuoc, 8 years in prison and 4 years of probation; and Do Nam Trung, 10 years in prison and 4 years of probation. All three were convicted on charges of propaganda against the communist state of Vietnam.

About 300 attendees filled the hall. In addition to representatives of religious and political organizations and community activists in Houston, some guests came from faraway places such as Oregon, Colorado, California, Oklahoma, and Dallas.

Speaking about the significance of this year’s Award, Dr. Nguyen Ba Tung, VHRN Executive Director, said: “After nearly 50 years of so-called national reunification, the fight to regain authentic human rights from the brutal communist regime has continued and is becoming more and more fierce and urgent. Many people from all walks of life, men and women, intellectuals, workers, and farmers from the North or the South, have defied hardship and imprisonment to stand up and demand justice, the right to live, the right to equal treatment, even though they have to endure brutal repression.

That is the case of the prisoners of conscience that we honor today: Bui Van Thuan, Dang Dang Phuoc, and Do Nam Trung. Unfortunately, those who won the Award are not present today to receive this honor. However, your large attendance also shows that human rights fighters in the homeland are never alone in this arduous but just fight.”

Through visual media, relatives of the laureates spoke on behalf of the laureates from Vietnam, thanking overseas compatriots for always standing by the side of human rights fighters in the country in general and this year’s award winners in particular. Such spiritual and material support is invaluable in supporting and encouraging those facing oppression and imprisonment for courageously speaking up for human rights in their homeland.

To conclude the Award Ceremony, in a solemn atmosphere, Father Vu Minh from the state of Colorado, representing all the attendees, offered the Almighty a common prayer for human rights, freedom, and democracy to soon be realized in the homeland of Vietnam. 

Two special guests, Venerable Thich Huyen Viet, and Artist Nam Loc, were invited to deliver their speeches. Both expressed their admiration for the brave will and great sacrifice of this year’s Human Rights Award winners. The two also called on their compatriots present and absent from the ceremony to turn to their homeland and lend a hand to those dedicating themselves to the great cause of defending and promoting human rights.

The second part of the event was a series of patriotic song performances by the Vietnam Hung Ca Movement, Saint Paul II Choir, singers and musicians Viet Khang, Huynh Phuong, Tran Dinh, Chi Hue, Bich Le... while the attendees enjoyed dinner hosted by the Organizing Committee. The unexpected performance of the song “Return to the People” by the former Vietnam Human Rights laureates Pham Thanh Nghien, Nguyen Chinh Ket, Do Thi Minh Hanh, Viet Khang, and former prisoner of conscience Vu Hoang Hai created a strong impression on the event.

The Vietnam Human Rights Award was founded by the Vietnam Human Rights Network in 2002 to honor individuals or organizations who have made outstanding achievements in the struggle for the human rights of the Vietnamese people. The Award also aims to create a bridge of solidarity between Vietnamese people everywhere and individuals and organizations fighting for freedom and human rights in their homeland. Since its establishment, the award ceremony has been held annually on the International Human Rights Day in many places around the world where there are large concentrations of Vietnamese refugees, such as Paris (France), Frankfurt (Germany), Melbourne (Australia), Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto (Canada), and many states in the United States. Through 22 award ceremonies, 61 individuals and six organizations in Vietnam have received the Award./.

 

 

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