BBC Journalist Blocked from Leaving Vietnam
A BBC journalist has been prevented from leaving Vietnam for several months, with authorities holding onto her passport and subjecting her to intense interrogation. This comes to light as Tô Lâm, the leader of Vietnam's ruling Communist Party, is in the UK for meetings with British officials, including Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer.
The journalist, a Vietnamese national who lives and works in Thailand, had returned to Vietnam in August to renew her passport and visit family. However, after her passport was reissued, it was withheld by Vietnamese authorities. Over the course of several days, she was questioned extensively by the Ministry of Public Security about her journalistic work, according to sources close to the situation. These interrogations lasted for hours, with one session reportedly running from afternoon to the early hours of the following day.
The BBC expressed "deep concern" over the well-being of its journalist and urged the Vietnamese authorities to return her renewed passport so she could leave the country and resume her work. "We are deeply concerned about our journalist’s well-being and urge the authorities to allow them to leave immediately, providing them with their renewed passport so they can return to work," the BBC said in a statement.
Vietnam's strict control over the media is well-documented, with the Communist Party maintaining a tight grip on what can be reported. The country ranks as one of the worst in the world for press freedom, sitting at 173rd out of 180 countries in the Reporters sans Frontières press freedom index. Journalists and media outlets in Vietnam face severe consequences for challenging the government or covering sensitive topics, often risking arrest or having their movement restricted.
The BBC’s journalist is the latest example of a broader trend in the country, where the authorities frequently target critics of the government. In 2022, Human Rights Watch documented the systematic lockdown of over 170 rights activists and bloggers, preventing them from traveling both domestically and internationally.
As the situation continues, human rights organizations and advocates are calling on the UK government to press Vietnam for the immediate release of the journalist’s passport and her safe return to her work in Thailand.
