Rights group calls for release of sick Vietnamese journalist

By RFA Vietnamese2024.11.03

Read more on this topic in Vietnamese

An international rights group has added its voice to those of relatives of Vietnamese political prisoner Le Huu Minh Tuan, who say his health has seriously deteriorated since his arrest nearly four years ago. They want him freed immediately so he can receive urgent medical attention.

Tuan, 35, is a member of the Vietnam Independent Journalists’ Association. He is serving an 11-year prison sentence for “making, storing, spreading information, materials, items for the purpose of opposing the State of Socialist Republic of Vietnam,” under article 117 of the criminal code.

PEN America said on Thursday it was “deeply concerned about the health and welfare” of Tuan.

“Tuan’s health has deteriorated significantly since his arrest and detention in January 2021,” it said.

“PEN America urgently calls on the Vietnamese government to release Tuan immediately, drop all charges, and provide the essential medical care he desperately needs.”

Tuan has been unable to eat solid food in recent months, leading to severe weight loss, stomach pain, digestive problems and numbness in his legs, said the group, which campaigns for freedom of expression.

On Friday, Tuan’s sister, Le Na, told Radio Free Asia her brother had called saying he was in terrible pain.

“The person in charge of Tuan’s health, Tran Van Thanh, only gave him a cursory examination. The doctor said that he was fine, he just had a digestive disorder.”

According to PEN America, Tuan was taken to hospital in April where a doctor performed a colonoscopy. Tuan said the procedure was very short, and he was not convinced about the reliability of the test and the accuracy of the results.

PEN America also expressed concern about Tuan’s treatment in prison. Under Vietnamese law, he is allowed to send two letters to his family a month, but his family said they only received four letters in the past five months.

“This disruption raises serious concerns about the possibility of censorship and possibly unlawful interference with Mr. Tuan’s communications,” PEN America said.

‘Contrary to government policies’

Two years into his sentence at Xuyen Moc Prison, Tuan was diagnosed with colitis and hepatitis, and had scabies all over his body.

Since late 2023, he has had bloody stools, abdominal pain, and symptoms which lead his family to fear colon cancer.

In early November 2023, Tuan was admitted to Vung Tau Hospital and diagnosed with a number of gastrointestinal disorders. He was prescribed medicine but he said it made his condition worse.

Tuan’s sister told RFA that her family found it hard to get him the medicine he needs.

“If the medicine we send in is not accompanied by a doctor’s prescription, they won’t accept it. If the prison warden goes to buy it, the price will be high, and sometimes the medicine won’t be available.”

This is not the first time the international community has spoken out about Tuan’s health.

In March, five U.N. human rights experts sent a joint letter to the Vietnamese government.

“We express our grave concern relating to the sharp deterioration of Mr. Tuan’s health while he serves a lengthy 11-year prison sentence. We fear that Mr. Tuan’s poor health appears to be exacerbated by insufficient medical attention and treatment while in detention,” they wrote.

“Furthermore, we reiterate our previous concern that Mr. Tuan’s detention is directly related to his work as an independent journalist and human rights defender and for freely expressing his opinions contrary to government policies.”

Vietnam was the world’s third-greatest jailer of writers, following China and Iran and tied with Saudi Arabia, according to PEN America’s Freedom to Write Index 2023,

Translated by RFA Vietnamese. Edited by Mike Firn.