BRIEFING NOTES: (1) Viet Nam; (2) Republic Of Korea

Spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: Ravina Shamdasani

Location: Geneva

Date: 17 December 2021

Subject: (1) Viet Nam, (2) Republic of Korea

1) Viet Nam

We are deeply troubled by the harsh sentencing of human rights and land rights defenders convicted of spreading anti-State propaganda in Viet Nam.

In the span of three days this week, four prominent human rights defenders – Trinh Ba Phoung, Nguyen Thi Tam, Do Nam Trung and independent author Pham Doan Trang were sentenced to up to 10 years in jail and 5 years on probation under articles 88 and 117 of Viet Nam's Criminal Code, all following prolonged pre-trial detention. Trinh was sentenced to 10 years in prison and five on probation; Nguyen to six in prison and three on probation; Do to 10 years in jail and four on probation; and Pham to nine years’ imprisonment.

Journalist Le Trong Hung, who had announced his intention to run for political office as an independent, is facing trial on 31 December on similar charges. He has been held since March 2021, without access to a lawyer and without being allowed to meet his family.

The charges against these five people, who were reporting on human rights and land rights and who were arrested in 2020 and 2021, appear to be part of a campaign to silence and intimidate those who raise their voices in defence of human rights. All the cases follow similar worrying patterns that raise serious issues concerning the presumption of innocence, the legality of their detention, and the fairness of their trial. There is prolonged incommunicado pre-trial detention, prosecution under the vaguely worded offence of “spreading anti-State propaganda”, denial of access to legal counsel and closed trials that do not respect international fair trial standards.

We urge the authorities in Viet Nam to immediately release all these individuals as well as the many others arbitrarily detained for exercising their rights to freedom of opinion and expression.

We also call on the Government to repeal all legal provisions that violate fundamental freedoms. The articles of the criminal code under which these charges were brought are vague and overly broad and thereby inconsistent with international human rights norms.

Cases of this kind contribute to a climate of self-censorship in the country and have a chilling effect on media freedom. They also prevent people from exercising their fundamental rights and engaging in public debate on issues of importance.

2) Republic of Korea

In the Republic of Korea, there has been increased momentum in recent months in advocacy for a comprehensive equality bill that will address and help prevent all forms of discrimination, and provide effective remedies for victims. A petition was submitted in June this year with 100,000 signatures, calling on the National Assembly to enact such a law – a recommendation that many UN human rights mechanisms and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights have made over the years. Various bills have been tabled since 2007, but over these past 14 years, the National Assembly has consistently failed to take decisive action to enact a law.

We understand that the Legislation and Judiciary Committee of the National Assembly has postponed the deadline for responding to the petition until the end of this parliamentary cycle – May 2024. The adoption of the comprehensive equality bill is urgent and already long overdue. The Committee and the National Assembly should use this momentum to enact a robust and inclusive Equality Bill that would encompass the diverse grounds protected under international human rights law. These include discrimination based on race, colour, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, sex characteristics, language, religion or conviction, political or other opinion, national, ethnic or social origin, nationality, property, economic position, marital or other family status, birth, age, disability, health, migrant status, or any other status.

Such a law should provide legal protection and means of redress to all those suffering discrimination and hate crimes on these grounds. We have seen around the world, including in the Republic of Korea, that COVID-19 has exacerbated discrimination and hate speech against vulnerable groups, so it is more important than ever to ensure comprehensive legal protection and access to effective remedy for members of these groups.

The Office stands ready to assist the Republic of Korea in these essential efforts to ensure the equality and rights of all its people.

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