Nguyen Hoang Quoc Hung
Detained: February 24, 2010.
Charges: Disrupting Security.
Sentence: Nine years in prison.
Biography: Nguyen Hoang Quoc Hung is a labor activist who was charged with disrupting national security and sentenced to nine years in prison for organizing workers at a Vietnamese shoe factory in 2010. Government authorities arrested Nguyen in early 2010 shortly after he helped organize workers at the My Phong shoe factory in Vietnam, where he distributed a leaflet outlining the striking workers' demands. Authorities held him for eight months before charging him with threatening national security. On October 28, 2010, 10 days after his indictment, the People's Court of Tra Vinh convicted and sentenced him to nine years in prison. The organizers were not permitted legal counsel or the opportunity to speak in their own defense. Although he was allowed a lawyer on appeal, the sentence was affirmed by the same court after another closed proceeding.
Throughout his detentions, Nguyen has been subjected to serious mistreatment. After arresting him, the government held him in solitary confinement for months. He has been the victims of repeated beatings, which often occur after one of their frequent prison transfers.
Nguyen Hoang Quoc Hung was RELEASED from prison in late February 2019 after completing his nine-year sentence.
Advocate: Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)
Advocacy Partner: Freedom Now