One More Detainee Dies Due to Injuries in Vietnam Police Custody

Hai's mother is shocked when she learned that his son died in unclear circumstance

Hai’s mother is shocked when she learned that his son died in unclear circumstance

Hai, 22, is the latest victim of Vietnam’s police torture. So far this year, around two dozens of Vietnamese detainees have been beaten to death or severe injuries during police’s custody, according to the state media.

by Vu Quoc Ngu, Dec 15, 2015

Le Van Hai, who suffered from severe injuries in police custody in Vietnam’s Central Highlands province of Dak Nong, died in the province’s General Hospital on Dec 14, state media has reported.

Hai, 22, is the latest victim of Vietnam’s police torture. So far this year, around two dozens of Vietnamese detainees have been beaten to death or severe injuries during police’s custody, according to the state media.

Hai, a resident from Dak R’la commune in Dak Mil district, was arrested by the district police five months ago on allegation of throwing stones to buses. His parents affirmed that his health was good when he was detained.

Mr. Le Van Duc, father of Hai, said there are a number of severe injuries on his son’s body.

Colonel Luong Ngoc Lep, deputy chief of the province’s police said the preliminary test showed that Hai died from heart attack. The exact cause for his death will be unveiled after the autopsy of his body, Lep said.

Vietnam ratified the UN Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment in 2014, however, many people were found dead or with severe injuries when they were detained in police station nationwide.

Torture for coerced confession is systemic in Vietnam which is ruled by communists for decades, according to the New York-based Human Rights Watch.

Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security reported 226 deaths of detainees in police’s custody between September 2011 and October 2015. Police said most of the deaths were caused by illness and suicides, however, families of the victims believe that the real causes are police abuse of power.