BANGKOK (UCAN): Prisoners detained on national security charges in Vietnam have to endure harsh jail conditions, physical torture, extended pre-trial detention and denial of fair trials and medical treatment, according to the United States-based 88 Project, a rights group that works for free speech in Vietnam.
Jailed dissenters and political activists “are often deprived of legal safeguards against torture and inhumane treatment and suffer physical and psychological pain inflicted to coerce them into admitting guilt,” the group said.
88 Project said political prisoners are often kept in prolonged detention and not allowed to meet their families or lawyers, or in solitary confinement. Seven people arrested in 2018 and 2019 were still in pre-trial detention as of September 2020, and several others arrested before 2018 have faced prolonged incommunicado detention as well.
The laws state that the time limit for detention for investigation is four months and can be extended four times or even until the investigation is completed.
The rights group said they suffer from harsh conditions in jail and administrative policies that destroy their health and crush their spirit. They are typically denied adequate medical care and visits from their families if they continue to insist on their innocence.
88 Project said political prisoners are often denied legal representation, not only during the investigation period, but also at trials. It recorded that at least nine men and four women were denied legal representation in 2018 and 2019. They were often less aware of their rights and lacked a critical communication channel to their families and the outside world. Their families were not told their trial dates in advance.
Catholic activist and member of the Brotherhood for Democracy, Tran Thi Xuan, was tried in 2018 without lawyer or the knowledged of the public and her own family.
Rah Lan Hip, an ethnic villager from Gia Lai province, was sentenced to seven years in prison for “undermining the unity policy” in a mobile trial without a lawyer in 2019.
The group said political prisoners often receive long jail sentences after speedy trials, as in the case of Le Dinh Luong, a Catholic environmental activist who was sentenced to 20 years on subversion charges after a very short trial in 2018.
“Prisoners are supposed to have access to basic health care, but many times they are denied medical treatment, which is especially dangerous for people who have pre-existing medical conditions,” the group said in its latest report, Vietnam’s Inhumane Treatments in Prison issued on November 5.
“Prisoners are supposed to have access to basic health care, but many times they are denied medical treatment, which is especially dangerous for people who have pre-existing medical conditions,” the group said in its latest report, Vietnam’s Inhumane Treatments in Prison issued on November 5.
The report, highlighting cases from 24 prison camps throughout the country, said in many instances authorities prevented relatives from providing medication to prisoners. Those who experienced health problems claimed that inadequate medical treatment resulted in greater long-term health complications.
Ailing pastor, Nguyen Trung Ton, who was sentenced to 12 years in 2018, was prevented from receiving medicine from his family. He was suffering from a leg injury following an attack in 2017 by unknown, armed thugs.
The report said many political prisoners who enter prison in good health, or with only minor illnesses, leave with serious illnesses or even die while incarcerated. At least two died of serious illnesses in 2019.
As of September 4, the group said 257 political prisoners were behind bars, including lawyers, religious leaders and practitioners, bloggers, reporters, environmental activists, land rights petitioners, social media users, and human rights and pro-democracy activists.
88 Project’s report called upon Western countries “to take concrete actions to hold Vietnam accountable before international law, starting with implementing the necessary legislative amendments and improvements in detention conditions, and push for Vietnam’s acceptance of a visit by the Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment in the near future.”
It said, “We urge that respective EU (European Union) countries’ consular officers request to visit prisons to conduct independent investigations of prison conditions in multiple localities in Vietnam.”
On October 30, Human Rights Watch called on Japan to cancel its plans to provide financial assistance for Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security, which is responsible for serious human rights violations.
Japan previously announced a 300-million-yen ($22.02 million) grant for the Public Security Ministry to purchase unspecified equipment for “counterterrorism” and the “maintenance of public order.” It claimed the grant would “contribute” to the “strengthening of counterterrorism measures and the maintenance of public order” and would “stabilise society” in Vietnam.
