Hanoi arrests a monk and two Khmer Krom activists

Arrested in the province of Tra Vinh on charges of ‘abusing democratic freedoms’. Almost 1.3 million Khmer Krom live in a part of Vietnam that was once south-eastern Cambodia. Activists tell Radio Free Asia: ‘The Vietnamese government wants to prevent the expression of our cultural identity’.

Hanoi (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Vietnamese authorities yesterday arrested a Khmer Krom monk and two activists on charges of ‘abusing democratic freedoms to infringe upon the interests of the state, the legitimate rights and interests of organisations and/or citizens’, a charge often used to silence dissent.

The venerable Kim Som Rinh, a respected spiritual leader who has long fought for the rights of the Khmer Krom people by peaceful means, denounced the Khmers Kampuchea-Krom Federation to Radio Free Asia. The other two activists are Thach Nga and Thach Xuan Dong.

Almost 1.3 million Khmer Krom live in a part of Vietnam that was once south-eastern Cambodia. They have faced severe restrictions on freedom of expression, assembly and movement. The three were arrested in Preah Trapeang, known in Vietnamese as Tra Vinh province.

A year ago, on 25 March 2024, the state-controlled Buddhist Sangha of Vietnam had already stripped Kim Som Rinh of his monk status. ‘This arbitrary decision to de-consecrate and arrest him was part of a broader effort to suppress the religious freedoms of the Khmer Krom community and prevent the expression of their cultural identity,’ said the Khmers Kampuchea-Krom Federation. Calling on the United Nations and the international community to act. Vietnam, the activists add, as a member of the Human Rights Council, must be ‘called to account for its blatant disregard of international human rights standards’.