Vietnamese journalist Quỳnh-Vi Trần describes what it's like to get vital information out to the world.

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Getting information out of one of the most repressive countries in the world, Vietnam

Quỳnh-Vi Trần, a Vietnamese editor and journalist based in Taiwan, knew her work could one day be targeted by the Vietnamese authorities. Then, in the midst of the global pandemic, Quỳnh-Vi Trần, better known as Vi, heard the news: her colleague, the prominent publisher and writer Pham Doan Trang ([link removed]) was arrested on trumped-up charges of anti-state propaganda.

Evidence used to prosecute Doan Trang included her reports into a marine disaster in 2016 and the country's human rights record. She had reported on a land dispute that led to the deaths of 3 policemen ([link removed]) and published widely about politics in Vietnam, including a handbook for families of prisoners ([link removed]) .

Pham Doan Trang was held incommunicado for a year before she finally came before the court. She faces 9 years in prison.

In the latest episode of ‘Silenced’, our podcast about journalists who risk it all to report the truth, Nicola Kelly speaks to Vi about the government’s stifling of the media in Vietnam, the difficulties of getting information out, and the rise of transnational repression – as authorities increasingly target Vietnamese activists and journalists based outside the country.

Vietnam now ranks at the bottom of all major global press indexes.Our Global Expression Report 2024 ([link removed].) classifies Vietnam as a country experiencing a freedom expression ‘crisis’, ranking it 138 out of 161 countries. Freedom of expression in Vietnam is considered only slightly better than China and North Korea.

And yet, Vi and her fellow colleagues have not been deterred. Since, as Vi sees it, Doan Trang has ‘sacrificed their liberty’ for the truth, Vietnamese journalists have become more determined to bring the truth to the world and strive for a better future for their country.

‘We write about human rights, about different legal systems around the world for Vietnamese people so they can read about different things … to know that there is a different world out there. We think jouralaism is a tool to deliver that kind of message to more Vietnamese people.’

– Quỳnh-Vi Trần, Vietnamese journalist in exile

Time for the global community to act

Earlier this summer, as European Union leaders were preparing to meet with officials from Vietnam, we, together with partners, called on the EU to take decisive action on Vietnam, and protect journalist and civil society communities there. During the 12th EU-Vietnam Human Rights Dialogue ([link removed]) , we called on the EU to urge Vietnam to repeal repressive laws, drop prosecutions against journalists and activists, and uphold its obligations under international human rights standards.

Remind Pham Doan Trang that the world has not forgotten her. Join the #WritetoTrang ([link removed]) campaign – your words of solidarity will show global support for her cause, provide much-needed encouragement, and pressure the Vietnamese authorities to free her.

Join us in raising awareness about threats to freedom of expression in Vietnam, and highlighting the work that Vi, Pham Doan Trang, and many others are doing. It is their reporting and campaigning that help bring about change.

‘The bottom line is, I am not afraid of the work I do.’ – Quỳnh-Vi Trần
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