May 24, 2010

My 9-Day Detention at B34 Prison in Ho Chi Minh City

During the interrogation and detainment at the Ministry of Public Security in Ho Chi Minh City
in July 2009, I was brought under pressure and threatened. I was arrested without any court
warrant and was forced to write many statements admitting my guilt. I was accused of violating
Article 88 of the Criminal Code.
I was questioned over twelve hours after the arrest and was completely isolated. There were
always at least three or four officers during the questioning session. My request to contact the
U.S. Consulate representative in Ho Chi Minh City was rejected. All of my belonging were
opened and searched without my consent or court warrant (an arrest warrant was later announced
after 8 hours of detention). During the course of the interrogation, security agents often used
psychological tactics to press charges against me and threatened to imprison me indefinitely
without any trial. Other times I was questioned until midnight. I often had to remind the officers
to respect international covenants regarding human and political right as well as the Vietnamese
constitution. I was forced to declared false statements and to ask for state’s clemency while not
having committed any crime. I was also forced to admit that the purpose of my trip was to
“gather public opinions concerning the arrest of Le Cong Dinh and Nguyen Tien Trung.”
The condition of the prison cell at B34 was approximately 2.5m2 that held two people, including
a bathroom and a small window. I was provided a small mosquito net and had to sleep on the
floor. Food was provided twice a day at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., each meal worth approximately
$0.25 (5,000 VND). Many times after returning from interrogation session, my food was
contaminated with ants and bugs. One liter of hot water was only provided at 7 a.m., and I had to
purchase bottled water during lunch and dinner.
I was asked to return all documents before my release from B34, including an urgent arrest order,
2 detainment extension forms (each form requested to extend the detainment 3 days) and 2
customs seal certificates from the security department. The security agents erased all data from
my laptop computer and mobile phone even though these belongings were already signed and
sealed at the time of my arrest. I was also asked to return the deportation order by an
immigration officer, in which case I refused.
It is clearly from the actions taken by the security agency that they have violated the Constitution
of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights &
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, both of which Vietnam is a signatory.

Kevin H. Vo