human rights defender
Trinh Ba Phuong
Actions and Campaigns
HRD's year of birth
1985
HRD's Gender
Man
Type of HRD
- Other
HRD's thematic area of engagement
- Land rights
HRD's geographical origin
Urban
Current Status
In prison (sentenced)
HRD's bio and work
Trinh Ba Phuong is a human rights defender and land rights activist who - along with his mother, Ms Can Thi Theu, father, Mr Trinh Ba Khiem, and brother, Mr Trinh Ba Tu - has campaigned against land grabbing in the region of Dong Tam, Vietnam, to highlight its impact on small-scale farmers across the country.
Detained since
Jun 24, 2020
Charge(s)
- Anti-government propaganda
Sentence
Sentenced to a total of 21 years in prison
Latitude: 15.889866573790227
Longitude: 107.88200145801456
Geolocation of detention
Country or area of detention
Region of detention
- Asia: South-eastern Asia
Location of detention - City/Town
Quang Nam Province
Location of detention - Facility
An Diem Prison
Allegations / reports of ill-treatment
Trinh Ba Phuong has been subjected to several forms of torture and ill-treatment while in detention. These include physical violence, prolonged solitary confinement while being foot shackled, a forced detention in a psycatric ward for one month, lack of access to his lawyer and family, denial of medical care and detention in a location far away from his family. He has engaged in multiple hunger strikes to denounce these violations.
Recent case update / evolution
On 15 December 2021, the Hanoi People’s Court sentenced Trinh Ba Phuong to 10 years in prison on the charge of “preparing, publishing and disseminating video clips and writing distorted contents that sow confusion among the people in order to oppose the state” (Article 117 of the Criminal Code of Vietnam).
On 27 September 2025, the People’s Court in Danang City sentenced Trinh Ba Phuong to an additional 11 years in prison on charges of “propaganda against the state” related with anti-government slogans that the police had allegedly found in his prison cell.
On 27 December 2025, in an appeal hearing, the Da Nang City People's Court upheld Trinh Ba Phuong's unprecedented 21-year prison sentence (combined) amidst numerous irregularities. According to his wife, Do Thi Thu, despite being officially open to the public, Phuong's family was prevented from attending the trial. Furthermore, according to Phuong's lawyer, Luan Le, the judge frequently interrupted the proceedings, citing the "sensitive" nature of the case to limit discussion. Also according to Le, a police officer physically restrained Phuong during the trial to prevent him from delivering a statement.
Any other relevant documents
Joint communication, UN special procedures, AL VNM 6/2021: https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadPublicCommunicationFile?gId=26765
Joint communication, UN special procedures, AL VNM 6/2022: https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadPublicCommunicationFile?gId=27619
Joint communication, UN special procedures, AL VNM 8/2025: https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadPublicCommunicationFile?gId=30638
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