Hanoi-based Activist Suppressed by Local Authorities after He Commemorates Victims of Hydrodam-born Floods

By Defend the Defenders, December 27, 2016

Authorities in Vinh Tuy ward, Hai Ba Trung district in Vietnam’s capital city of Hanoi have harassed Nguyen Anh Tuan, a local human rights and environmental activist after he commemorates the victims of floods in the central provinces which were caused by torrential rains and water discharges from hydroelectric dams.

On December 25, when Mr. Tuan held the national flag at half-staff in front of his private residence to pay respect and to mourn over 200 deaths due to floods in the central provinces earlier this year, the local authorities sent dozens of police officers, local militia, communist party’s members and thugs to demand him to take the flag down.

Some of them threw stones and brick at his house and threatened other members of his family.

At that time, he was away and only his wife and their second baby were present at the residence.

At the end, they stole the flag despite strong protest from Tuan’s wife.

When Tuan returned, he tried to contact a local policeman believed to be present at this incident but the officer did not answer his call.

Last week, activists from all corners of the country have called for a national mourning period for the victims of these floods. The activists said they will launch a week-long, nationwide memorial period from December 25 to commemorate the flood victims since the Vietnamese government does not take any action.

Many activists have criticized the Vietnamese government for not dedicating a national mourning period to commemorate the people who have lost their lives due to water discharge from hydroelectric dams in the central provinces amid torrential rains.

In late November, the communist government in Hanoi launched a state-sponsored national day of mourning for the deceased Cuban leader Fidel Castro. This move was criticized by many activists who contend that the Cuban dictator only contributed to the communism cause, not to the whole Vietnam nation per se.

Vietnam has numerous hydroelectric power plants in its northern and central provinces. When these power plants discharge water from their dams during the rainy season, they cause devastating, untold damages, losses and hardship to the local populations – lives, people livelihoods, material possessions, and many others.