Human rights groups urge Thailand to release Vietnamese activist, saying he faces torture if extradited

BANGKOK — A group of nearly three dozen human rights groups called on Thailand’s prime minister Friday to release a Vietnamese activist who was extradited to his country and faces imprisonment on terrorism charges, saying he risks torture if returned.

Y Quynh Bdap, who has United Nations refugee status in Thailand, was arrested by Thai authorities on a Vietnamese arrest warrant in June while seeking asylum in Canada. He is being held in Bangkok awaiting extradition.

In the letter sent to Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, as well as other Thai officials and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Amnesty International and 32 other rights groups suggest that the Bdap “faces at real risk of torture, prolonged arbitrary detention or other serious human rights abuses. violations” if he is returned to Vietnam.

Paetongtarn spokesman Jirayu Houngsub said the prime minister’s office had not yet received the letter and had no immediate comment.

Bdap is co-founder of the Montagnards Stand for Justice group. He fled to Thailand in 2018 to escape persecution in Vietnam, a country that has long been criticized for the treatment of the country’s predominantly Christian mountain minority.

His group defended the Montagnards’ religious and other rights, training them in international and Vietnamese law and how to document abuses, which NGOs said made him a target of the Vietnamese government.

The 32-year-old was convicted of terrorism in absentia in Vietnam in January and sentenced to 10 years in prison for his involvement in organizing anti-government riots in Dak Lak province in the central highlands of Vietnam. Vietnam, last year.

A Bangkok court ordered his extradition in September. His appeal against this decision is still pending.

Pham Thu Hang, a spokesperson for the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told reporters in Hanoi on Thursday that it was “appropriate” to extradite Bdap “to ensure that all criminals will be punished by law.”

“Vietnam will work with relevant offices in Thailand to handle this matter in accordance with the laws of both countries,” she said.

Bdap hid in Thailand after being alerted that Vietnamese authorities were investigating him earlier this year, and released a video shortly before his arrest saying he had “absolutely nothing to do with this violent incident.”

“I am a human rights activist who fights for religious freedom and defends people’s rights,” he said. “My activities are peaceful and consist solely of collecting and writing reports on human rights violations in Vietnam. »

During the January trial in Vietnam, around 100 other people were also tried for their alleged involvement in riots at two district government offices in which nine people were killed, including four police officers and two government officials. Fifty-three of them were found guilty of “terrorism against the people’s government”, the official Vietnam News reported.

Days after the verdicts, the Foreign Ministry’s Pham Thu Hang rejected criticism that Vietnam had used the trial as an opportunity to suppress ethnic minorities, saying the government must “strictly deal with terrorism in accordance with the law.” international “.

“All ethnic groups living in Vietnamese territory are equal,” she said.

In the joint letter, the NGOs point out that UN human rights experts have expressed concerns that the trial may have been politically motivated – pointing out that Bdap was in Thailand when the alleged crimes in Vietnam were committed – and that it did not meet the guarantees of a fair trial.

They also noted that Thailand was just elected to the UN Human Rights Council for a three-year term starting January 1.

“Being elected to the UN Human Rights Council comes with serious responsibilities in implementing policies and actions aimed at respecting human rights,” said Prakaidao Phurksakasemsuk of the Cross Cultural Foundation, which was one of the groups that sent the letter.

“What is happening to Y Quynh Bdap is a test of this Thai commitment, and the Prime Minister should do the right thing and order that he be allowed to resettle safely with his family in a third country where he can benefit from protection.”

Phil Robertson, director of the group Asia Human Rights and Labor Advocates, who also signed the letter, said Bdap should be released on bail while his appeal is pending to reunite with his wife and three young children.

“There is absolutely no sufficient reason to keep a refugee father in detention, away from his children, and subject him to continued suffering based on false accusations and politically motivated claims made by the authoritarian government of Vietnam,” he said. said Robertson.

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Jintamas Saksornchai contributed to this story.