Hoàng Thị Minh Hồng

In this Vietnamese name, the surname is Hoàng. In accordance with Vietnamese custom, this person should be referred to by the given name, Hồng.

Hoàng Thị Minh Hồng is a Vietnamese environmental human rights defender who founded and directed an environmental rights organization.^[1] She is in prison convicted of tax evasion,^[2][3] by a trial which has been criticized by the United Nations and others.^[4][5]

Hoàng Thị Minh Hồng
Known for	Environmental protection
Criminal charges	tax evasion
Criminal penalty	3 years imprisonment
Website	vn.linkedin.com/in/hong-hoang-7b44bb3

Activities

Hồng worked for the World Wildlife Fund. Later she founded "Change" (styled CHANGE VN and an acronym for Centre of Hands-on Actions and Networking for Growth and Environment^[6]) which worked on environmental issues in Vietnam from 2013 to 2022. It was a national non-profit organization with the mission of raising awareness and inspiring the community to protect nature, the environment and wildlife; combat climate change; and promote sustainable development. Hồng's decision in 2022 to close down the organization was partly because several environmental activists were arrested that year and in 2021. In 2023, she started an environmental consultancy called CHOICE.^[4]

In 2019, Forbes magazine voted Hồng as one of the 50 most influential women in Vietnam.^[7] In 1997, she was the first Vietnamese person to set foot on Antarctica^[8][9] and became a UNESCO Young Envoy. In 2018, former US President Barack Obama wrote that Hồng was one of the young people who inspired him during the year;^[10] she was the first Vietnamese person to win an Obama Foundation scholarship at Columbia University.^[11] In 2019, she was one of five recipients of the Inspirational Ambassador award at the 2019 WeChoice Awards^[12] and won the title Green Warrior of the Year at the Elle Style Awards.^[13] In 2015, Climate Heroes listed her as an environmental hero.^[6][2]

Conviction for tax evasion

In June 2023, Hồng was detained on charges of tax evasion. Hồng was the fifth environmental activist arrested on this charge, after Phan Mai Loi, Dang Dinh Bach, Nguy Thi Khanh and Bach Hung Duong.^[14] Previously, when four other environmental activists were arrested, in October 2022, Hồng announced the dissolution of the Change organization after 10 years of operation.^[15]

Ben Swanton, co-director of Project 88 working for human rights in Vietnam, said that immediately after the four environmental activists were arrested for tax evasion in 2021–2022, Hồng asked for an official ruling from the City Tax Department on the tax status of the Change organization. The tax department's response, according to Swanton, "is evidence of Change's tax-exempt status. Therefore, it is completely illegal for the police to now charge Hồng with tax evasion."^[16]

On 28 September 2023, Hồng was tried at Ho Chi Minh City's Peoples Court, found guilty of evading about US$280,000 of tax,^[17] and fined 100 million dong and sentenced to 3 years in prison.^[4]

Reactions

More than one foreign government said that the Just Energy Transition Partnership (international funding for phasing out coal power in Vietnam) needs the participation of civil society activists.^[18][1]

United Nations and foreign countries

• The United Nations human rights agency noted that Hồng was the 5th environmental activist arrested for tax evasion in Vietnam in 2 years. The United Nations believes that the arrests are part of a broader trend of the Vietnamese government suppressing freedom of expression.^[19][15] In July 2023 the United Nations special rapporteur on Human Rights and UN experts wrote to the government - however after 60 days the government had not replied and the rapporteur published the letter.^[4]

• The United States also believes that the arrests are part of a broader trend of the Vietnamese government suppressing freedom of expression.^[19] US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in June 2023, “The United States is concerned about the detention of leadership and staff of the CHANGE organization, including the ongoing detention of its founder Hoàng Thị Minh Hồng,”^[20]
• In June 2023, the British Foreign Ministry said "The UK calls on the Vietnamese government to respect all human rights, including freedom of expression and association. We recognize the importance of civil society organizations like CHANGE in ensuring sustainable and inclusive development for all.” ^[21]

Human rights organizations

• Phil Robertson, deputy director of the Asia Division of Human Rights Watch (HRW), said: “The Vietnamese authorities are using the vaguely worded tax code as a weapon to punish environmental leaders whom the ruling Communist Party deems a threat to their power ...".^[22]
• Ben Swanton, co-director of Project 88 working for Vietnamese human rights, said the trial was “a total sham.” which was “the law being weaponized for the purpose of political persecution ...”.^[17]
• In June 2023, sixty-five human rights and environmental organizations published an open letter to former US President Barack Obama, asking him to publicly call on the Vietnamese government to release Hồng unconditionally. They said that her arrest was one in a series of politically motivated prosecutions that used false accusations of tax evasion to criminalize climate protection activities.^[23]

References

1. "On the Conviction and Sentencing of Vietnamese NGO Leader Hoang Thi Minh Hong". United States Department of State. Retrieved 2023-10-07.
2. "Vietnam jails leading climate activist Hoang Thi Minh Hong for tax evasion". The Guardian. 2023-09-28. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
3. "Vietnam jails fifth climate activist on tax charges". BBC News. 2023-09-28. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
4. Dussart, Jade (2023-10-04). "Viet Nam: detention and criminal charge against environmental WHRD Hoang Thi Minh Hong for alleged tax evasion". UN SR Human Rights Defenders. Retrieved 2023-10-12.
5. PHILIPSON, Alice (2023-10-25). "Vietnam's detentions of climate activists slow clean energy shift". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
6. "Hong Hoang: Environmental activism, influence and CHANGE in Vietnam". Climate Heroes. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
7. "Forbes Việt Nam công bố danh sách 50 phụ nữ ảnh hưởng nhất Việt Nam". baochinhphu.vn (in Vietnamese). 2019-03-05. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
8. Người phụ nữ Việt Nam thám hiểm Nam Cực, VnExpress.
9. "'They challenged the Communist monopoly': Vietnam regime turns on its climate champions". The Guardian. 2023-10-17. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-10-18.
10. "Vietnam sentences climate activist to 3 years in prison for tax evasion". AP News. 2023-09-28. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
11. "'Anh hùng khí hậu' Việt Nam nhận học bổng của Quỹ Obama". TUOI TRE ONLINE (in Vietnamese). 2018-09-14. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
12. "Công bố 5 Đại sứ truyền cảm hứng WeChoice Awards 2019 do Hội đồng thẩm định bình chọn, họ là ai? - WeChoice Awards 2019". wechoice.vn. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
13. "Chiến Binh Xanh của ELLE Style Awards 2019 vinh danh Selena Le, Tom Trandt và Hoàng Thị Minh Hồng". Elle (Vietnam) (in Vietnamese). 2019-08-22. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
14. "Việt Nam lên tiếng về vụ bắt nhà hoạt động môi trường Hoàng Thị Minh Hồng". VOA (in Vietnamese). 1 June 2023.
15. "HRW nói vụ bắt Hoàng Thị Minh Hồng 'có động cơ chính trị'". nguoi-viet (in Vietnamese). 2 June 2023.
16. "Mỹ, LHQ quan ngại việc bắt giam nhà hoạt động môi trường Hoàng Thị Minh Hồng". BBC (in Vietnamese). 2 June 2023.
17. Heather, Chen; Sharma, Akanksha (2023-09-29). "US condemns Vietnam's jailing of prominent climate activist on tax charges". CNN. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
18. "Đức quan ngại về vụ bắt giữ nhà hoạt động Hoàng Thị Minh Hồng". VOA (in Vietnamese). 8 June 2023.
19. "Mỹ và Liên Hiệp Quốc chỉ trích Việt Nam bắt giữ nhà hoạt động môi trường Hoàng Thị Minh Hồng". RFI (in Vietnamese). 3 June 2023.
20. "Công văn Cục thuế TPHCM hé lộ điều gì quanh chuyện thuế của bà Minh Hồng?". BBC (in Vietnamese). 2 June 2023.
21. "Anh bày tỏ quan ngại về vụ bắt giữ nhà hoạt động môi trường Hoàng Thị Minh Hồng". VOA (in Vietnamese). 15 June 2023.
22. "Vietnam: Drop Charges Against Climate Activist". Human Rights Watch. 2023-09-27. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
23. "Hơn 60 tổ chức nhân quyền kêu gọi Obama thúc giục VN trả tự do cho bà Minh Hồng". BBC (in Vietnamese). 21 June 2023.