Huỳnh Thục Vy - Translated by Jasmine Tran (Danlambao) - Last December, my father Huynh Ngoc Tuan, went to Hanoi to visit some like-minded friends.
On the morning of 31 December 2013, my father Tuan, with former prisoners of conscience Pham Ba Hai and lawyer Le Thi Cong Nhan, with her husband and their toddler daughter, all visited Pham Van Troi’s family. They were having lunch together when commune police and plain clothes security officers broke into the house, and forced them all to the office of Chuong Duong People’s Committee for a “working session”.
There, they were bullied, beaten, and nastily cursed at. My father was beaten the most; four police officers took turns to punch and kick his head, abdomen, and his chest. That evening, he was taken to a hospital for a check-up and medical treatment. On arrival, police were already waiting there and disguised as hospital guards (one of Tuan’s group recognized a police officer they had encountered earlier), and the doctor told my father he had no injuries.
Afterwards, my father returned to Da Nang, where he went to Hoan My hospital for another check up. Here the doctor casually checked him and said there were no grave problems.
After another week in his home in Quang Nam, on 7 January 2014, my father felt very dizzy and suffered acute pain in his chest. He went secretly to a trustworthy medical clinic in Tam Ky for an x-ray, as he was worried that police had influenced his medical report. The clinic doctor quickly had him x-rayed and discovered that his sternum was broken, causing such pain. To confirm this, my father went to Saigon for another medical check.
At the moment, my father’s health is very poor. He has suffered from diabetes for nearly 20 years, and, with the added stresses of 10 years imprisonment, his health is deteriorating fast.
I am reporting this to you in the hope that everyone will raise their voice to condemn the grave human rights abuses committed by the Vietnamese government. Your voice will be protection for my family and the many others fighting for freedom and democracy. We are all suffering an increase in physical and mental intimidation of the Vietnamese government.
Huỳnh Thục Vy - Translated by Jasmine Tran
