Human Rights Watch Urged the EU to Press Vietnam to Respect Human Rights

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2012-01-11

A memo was released to the EU by the Human Rights Watch (HRW) that puts pressure on a human rights dialogue held in Vietnam today. Bloggers Nguyen Van Hai (a.k.a. Dieu Cay) and Phan Thanh Hai (a.k.a. Anhbasg) had been held without trial since 2010, and Bui Thi Minh Hang for participating in earlier protests.

In the 13-page memo, four key issues were addressed: (1) freedom of speech; (2) freedom of religion; (3) ending police abuse; and (4) ending forced labor.

Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch mentioned that EU should demand the same respect for international trade as with human rights. With the conclusion of a new Partnership and Cooperation Agreement in 2010, the EU and Vietnam agreed to conduct an annual human rights dialogue, with the first round to be hosted at Hanoi tomorrow. Robertson further advocated that the EU should provide a more humane model for Vietnam to follow.

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