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STATEMENT FROM A NETWORK OF VIETNAMESE BLOGGERS
VIETNAM SHOULD AMEND LAW TO DEMONSTRATE HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL CANDIDACY COMMITMENT
18 July 2013
The United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) is responsible for strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights around the globe and for addressing situations of human rights violations and making recommendations on them.
As a candidate for the HRC for the 2014-2016 tenure, Vietnam must demonstrate its commitment to cooperating with the HRC and upholding “the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights”.
These obligations and responsibilities do not only apply on the international arena, but also inside Vietnam. The Vietnamese government also needs to review the human rights situation in their own country and the Vietnamese people also have a right to freedom of opinion and expression, including on these matters.
In order to improve the protection of human rights in Vietnam, we will take HRC's principles as guidelines for our actions, which also comply with Vietnam’s obligations under international human rights law.
We will:
- Continue to promote and inform the Vietnamese people about their rights by publicly distributing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), organizing public forums to discuss human rights in Vietnam and advocating for necessary improvements of the respect and protection of human rights.
- Continue to monitor, publicly report and comment on improvement, setbacks, or violations of human rights in Vietnam, with a focus on policy and practice by the Vietnamese authorities that affect human rights.
In order to fulfill these responsible actions, we call upon the Vietnamese government and the HRC to review Article 258 of the 1999 Penal Code of Vietnam, amended in 2009 - "crime of abusing democratic freedoms to infringe upon the interests of the State, the legitimate rights and interests of organizations and citizens."
In May 2013, two bloggers were detained right after they distributed the UDHR and police accused them of abusing democratic freedoms to infringe upon the interests of the State. Only weeks later, two other bloggers were detained after participating an outdoor picnic to discuss the content of the UDHR.
Most recently, in May and June 2013, Article 258 was used to arrest blogger Truong Duy Nhat, Pham Viet Dao, and Dinh Nhat Uy forexercising their rights of freedom of expression by peacefully publishing texts on their blogs.
This article is in breach of the Article 19 of the UDHR: "Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers."
It would be a great responsibility to serve as a member state of the Human Rights Council, and an opportunity to promote human rights domestically and abroad. For a successful candidacy, we believe Vietnam must repeal or make amendments to Article 258 to ensure that Vietnamese people are free to educate themselves about and promote human rights.
We hope that Vietnam will consider the abrogation of Article 258 to demonstrate its commitment and contribution to promoting and protecting human rights, and we hope that the General Assembly members will push Vietnam to do so during the campaigning period.
We request Vietnam to present its human rights pledges as a candidate well before the election, to enable members of the General Assembly to assess its human rights commitment. The abrogation of Article 258 should be among the pledges.
As said by Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary-General - “All victims of human rights abuses should be able to look to the Human Rights Council as a forum and a springboard for action.” As advocates for freedom of expression in Vietnam and victims of human rights violations because of our activism, we view Vietnam's candidacy for the HRC as a platform for constructive human rights discussions in our country.
(First 69 Vietnamese bloggers signing the Statement)
Võ Quốc Anh - Nha Trang
Phạm Lê Vương Các - Sài Gòn
Huỳnh Ngọc Chênh - Sài Gòn
Nguyễn Thảo Chi - Sài Gòn
Nguyễn Đắc Hải Di - Oslo, Na-uy
Lê Dũng - Hà Nội
Hoàng Văn Dũng - Sài Gòn
Nguyễn Văn Dũng - Hà Nội
Mai Xuân Dũng - Hà Nội
Trương Văn Dũng - Hà Nội
Ngô Nhật Đăng - Hà Nội
Nguyễn Chí Đức - Hà Nội
Phạm Văn Hải - Nha Trang
Hoàng Thu Hà - Hà Nội
Bùi Thị Minh Hằng - Vũng Tàu
Nguyễn Vũ Hiệp - Hà Nội
Vũ Sỹ Hoàng - Sài Gòn
Nguyễn Thị Hợi - Nam Định
Lê Anh Hùng - Quảng Trị
Trần Văn Huỳnh - Sài Gòn
Nguyễn Việt Hưng - Hà Nội
Đặng Thị Hường - Hà Nội
Nguyễn Xuân Kim - Nghệ An
Đặng Ngọc Lan - Hà Nội
Bùi Tuấn Lâm - Đà Nẵng
Nguyễn Thùy Linh - Hà Nội
Vũ Thị Thùy Linh - Hà Nội
Đào Trang Loan - Hà Nội
Lê Thăng Long - Sài Gòn
Nguyễn Tiến Nam - Yên Bái
Phạm Thanh Nghiên - Hải Phòng
Vũ Quốc Ngữ - Hà Nội
Đào Hữu Nghĩa Nhân - Sài Gòn
Bùi Thị Nhung - Ninh Bình
Lê Hồng Phong - Hà Nội
Nguyễn Ngọc Như Quỳnh - Nha Trang
Trương Minh Tam - Hà Nội
Hồ Đức Thành - Hà Nội
Nguyễn Hồ Nhật Thành - Sài Gòn
Phạm Văn Thành - Pháp
Nguyễn Lân Thắng - Hà Nội
Châu Văn Thi - Sài Gòn
Khổng Hy Thiêm - Nha Trang
Võ Trường Thiện - Nha Trang
Linh mục Giuse Đinh Hữu Thoại - Sài Gòn
Nguyễn Tường Thụy - Hà Nội
Trịnh Kim Tiến - Sài Gòn
Nguyễn Thành Tiến
Phạm Toàn - Hà Nội
Trịnh Văn Toàn - Hà Nội
Lê Thu Trà - Hà Nội
Nghiêm Ngọc Trai - Hà Nội
Phạm Đoan Trang - Hà Nội
Nguyễn Thu Trang - Hà Nội
Hoàng Đức Trọng - Sài Gòn
Phạm Văn Trội - Hà Nội
Hoàng Anh Trung - Hà Nội
Nguyễn Anh Tuấn - Đà Nẵng
Trịnh Anh Tuấn - Buôn Ma Thuột
Vũ Quốc Tú - Sài Gòn
Đặng Vũ Tùng - Zurich, Thụy Sĩ
Nguyễn Chí Tuyến - Hà Nội
Nguyễn Hoàng Vi - Sài Gòn
Nguyễn Văn Viên - Hà Nội
Bùi Quang Viễn - Sài Gòn
Lê Công Vinh - Vũng Tàu
J.B Nguyễn Hữu Vinh - Hà Nội
Đặng Tuấn Vũ - Hà Nội
Huỳnh Thục Vy - Quảng Nam
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