Defend Freedom of Internet in Vietnam

On June 12, 2018, the Vietnamese Communist Party passed its contentious "Cybersecurity Law" despite many objections from the Vietnamese elites and its own people . Observers found that the law does not focus on helping the public secure their data and confidential information. On the contrary, it grants the Vietnamese Communist Party more control over Vietnamese users of the internet, as well as companies who serve them . Under this new law, all cyber activities in Vietnam will be controlled by the Ministry of Public Security .

The law requires business such as Google and Facebook to store data of Vietnamese users inside the country, to remove content within 24hrs upon requested from the Vietnamese Communist Party, and to cooperate with the Vietnamese Communist Party in providing data of the users .

Amnesty International said this is a "devastating blow to freedom of expression".

Human Rights Watch called for Vietnam to "withdraw problematic cybersecurity law", Brad Adams, Asia director of Human Rights Watch said: “The goal of Vietnam’s proposed cyber security law appears as much to protect the party’s monopoly on power as to protect network security,” Adams explained: “This bill, which squarely targets free expression and access to information, will provide yet one more weapon for the government against dissenting voices. It is no coincidence that it was drafted by the country’s Ministry of Public Security, notorious for human rights violations.”

Reporters Without Borders noted that "the new law is largely a copy-and-paste version of the cybersecurity law that took effect in China in June 2017." Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF's Asia-Pacific desk calls for the law to be repealed:
“We urge Vietnam’s legislators to quickly repeal this draconian new law, which reinforces government control over access to information,”

In an overt attempt to control its people, Vietnam has ignored its many commitments as a member of the International Community. Most significant among those are the United Nations with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The resolution of the United Nations Human Rights Council states that all persons, regardless of class, religion, sex, age, ethnicity, have the right to free access to the Internet and freedom of expression,

By passing the new Cybersecurity Law, the Vietnamese Communist Party also has violated commitments it made to the World Trade Organization, The Vietnam - EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), as well as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) . These unintended economic consequences no doubt will hinder the future growth of Vietnam .

"These provisions will result in severe limitations on Vietnam's digital economy, dampening the foreign investment climate and hurting opportunities for local businesses and [small and medium enterprises] to flourish inside and beyond Vietnam," Jeff Paine, managing director at the Asia Internet Coalition, told Nikkei Asian Review . The Asia Internet Coalition is an industry association which seeks to promote the understanding of internet policy in the Asia-Pacific region whose members include Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Apple, Twitter, LINE and Rakuten,

Vietnam is a country with 65% population under the age of 35. As of today, about 53 millions of Vietnamese are frequent facebook users. On December 25, 2017, at the national conference deploying tasks in 2018 held in Ho Chi Minh City, the struggle against "wrong views, allegations distort on cyberspace". was mentioned several times" Tuoi Tre Online reported. "Lieutenant General Nguyen Trong Nghia - deputy director of the General Political Department of the People's Army of Vietnam - affirmed that there were more than 10,000 cyberspace police in the force called 47 (under instruction 47) to spy on Vietnamese using internet . "The Central Military Commission is very interested in building up a standing force to counter the wrong viewpoints. The military security and defense forces have also developed and there will be dedicated forces on duty. cyber warfare", stated Mr. Nguyen Trong Nghia .
(https://tuoitre.vn/hon-10-000-nguoi-trong-luc-luong-47-dau-tranh-tren-mang-20171225150602912.htm)

Vietnam 's Cybersecurity Law must have been passed in a hurry as a tool for the Vietnamese Communist Party to control its people, violating freedom of expression and internet access to information .

Voice of Vietnamese Americans stands in solidarity with all Vietnamese to condemn and protest this law.
Please join us to defend freedom of internet, freedom of expression for the people inside Vietnam .