It’s no secret that Vietnam and the United States have a troubled past. However, since reestablishing political relations in 1995, the two nations have steadily strengthened ties centered on deal, local politics, and, most recently, climate change solutions.
In order to hasten the transition away from coal use in the nation, the G7 nations, including the US, along with the World Bank and other development banks, announced last December that Vietnam would benefit from a US$ 15.5 billion Just Energy Transition Partnership ( JETP ) program.
However, civil society activists who support reform, social pluralism, green, rights-respecting development, and environmental policies have been excluded from the agreement. In addition, & nbsp,
President Joe Biden will travel to Vietnam on September 10 to declare that the relationship between the two governments will change from being” comprehensive” to” strategic.”
Biden and Nguyen Phu Trong, the general secretary of the Vietnam Communist Party, recently spoke on the phone about” expanding the bilateral marriage, while working together to address local challenges such as climate change, ensuring a free and open Indo-Pacific, and the deteriorating economic and security position along the Mekong.”
But there is obviously a problem. Vietnam has pledged to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, but in the process of the nation’s transition from fuel, it is also using false, politically motivated” tax evasion” charges to detain, prosecute, and arrest the most significant civil society figures. & nbsp,
Dang Dinh Bach, who has dedicated his life to preventing waste in communities, phasing out plastic waste, and assisting the Taiwanese government’s switch to clean power, is currently serving a five-year word. Mai Phan Loi and Bach Hung Duong, two additional climate change activists who were found guilty of related offenses, are even detained. & nbsp,
Hoang Thi Minh Hong, another environment champion and one of the 50 most powerful Taiwanese people according to Forbes Vietnam and an Obama Foundation Scholar, is awaiting punishment. Hong was cited by Climate Heroes as a warrior who worked hard to preserve the environment.
Nguy Thi Khanh, the 2018 Goldman Environmental Prize success, was just freed from prison after 16 months in prison for criticizing Vietnam’s rely on coal.
According to reports from the UN and human rights organizations, Vietnam’s ambiguous tax rules are being used as a weapon to intimidate climate activists. This pattern suggests that the remaining troubled environmental organizations may be shut down by the government then.
By severely restricting the participation of civil society organizations and activists, the Vietnamese authorities is repealing this” only” aspect of the Just Energy Transition.
To put it bluntly, economic organizations are currently effectively paralyzed out of concern that they will be the target of the president’s next round of arrests of prominent weather players.
Without considering and responding to the opinions of environmental activists, especially those who criticize current federal laws, Vietnam is unable to maintain a truly” just” energy transition.
By offering separate surveillance of the effects of energy transition from a social and environmental standpoint and assisting communities that promote their freedom, civil society is crucial to ensuring transparency and transparency in such programs.
Repression by the Asian government does not bode well for long-term US ties with Vietnam or the successful implementation of the JETP agreement.
President Biden needs to make a statement about the crucial role climate activists in Vietnam sing in phasing out coal. He may formally urge the government to drop the charges against the four climate change activists who are currently incarcerated and release them all at once.
It is extremely important to strengthen the collaboration between the United States and Vietnam to find climate solutions, but not while the polite society activists who are paving the way are imprisoned.
All of this needs to be considered in the US-Vietnam state relationship upgrade, and human rights concerns shouldn’t be ignored.
At Human Rights Watch, Phil Robertson serves as assistant Asia producer. Follow him on Twitter @ Reaproy( X )