Man who took part in nationwide protests in 2018 released early from prison

By RFA Vietnamese2024.10.24

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A man who was imprisoned in 2018 following nationwide protests has been released 21 months early – the third activist in a month to be set free ahead of their full sentence.

In September, two prominent political prisoners – climate campaigner Hoang Thi Minh Hong and human rights activist Tran Huynh Duy Thuc – were released from prison a day before top leader To Lam flew to the United States to speak before the United Nations General Assembly.

On Tuesday, Tran Long Phi was released from Chau Binh Prison in southern Ben Tre province, according to state-run media.

He had been serving an eight-year sentence for “activities to topple the government.” The charge was related to protests that erupted across Vietnam in June 2018 in opposition to two bills, one regarding special economic zones and the other about cybersecurity.

Several other men were also convicted in Phi’s case, including U.S. citizen Michael Nguyen, who was sentenced to 12 years but was released in 2020 following pressure from then-U.S. Rep. Alan Lowenthal, a California Democrat, and several other U.S. lawmakers.

Phi was handed over to the authorities from Dong Nai province’s Bien Hoa city on Tuesday, and was later allowed to travel to his aunt’s home in the area.

“Right after receiving the decision, they immediately told me to leave [the prison],” he told Radio Free Asia on Thursday. “I was not informed beforehand. They explained this was because I had not caused trouble or broken any prison rules.”

In August, Lam was elected the general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, the country’s most powerful post.

He met with U.S. President Joe Biden and France’s Emmanuel Macron during the trip. In his address to the General Assembly, he spoke of a new era for Vietnam with the government promoting and protecting human rights.

Activists living in Vietnam and abroad wrote to To Lam on Oct. 20 to urge the government to release all political prisoners, protect fundamental freedoms of speech and carry out legal reforms to protect people’s rights.

“This is an opportunity for Vietnam to have a transition under the leadership of General Secretary To Lam,” U.S.-based engineer Nguyen Dai Ngu, one of the letter’s initiators, told RFA.

Translated by Anna Vu. Edited by Matt Reed.