Phạm Chí Dũng, a former reporter and blogger for the Voice of America Vietnamese Service, is serving a 15-year prison sentence after being convicted of “dangerous actions” against the state. On January 5, 2021, a court in Vietnam sentenced him to prison under Article 117 of Vietnam’s Penal Code. He is currently imprisoned at Xuan Loc Prison in Dong Nai Provience.
An economist, writer and independent political analyst, Dũng has written extensively about corruption, government accountability, political reform, labor rights, civil society, prisoners of conscience and restrictions on freedom of expression. Before his arrest, he was one of VOA Vietnamese’s most widely read contributors and helped establish the Independent Association of Vietnam (IJAVN), where he served as president.
Dũng was arrested and detained in Ho Chi Minh City on November 21, 2019. He was later indicted along with IJAVN members Nguyen Tuong Thuy and Le Huu Minh Tuan for “making, storing, and disseminating documents and materials for anti-state purposes” under Article 117 of Vietnam’s Penal Code. Thuy and Tuan both received 11–year sentences.
Following the sentencing, then-USAGM CEO Michael Pack said: “These brave individuals dared to report the truth about the Communist Party of Vietnam. They should not be imprisoned, but heralded.”
At their trial, the three defendants said they had founded the Independent Journalists Association to promote freedom of expression, democracy, and human rights only in accordance with permitted regulations, defense attorney Dang Dinh Manh wrote on his Facebook page after the trial, RFA reported.
In 2024, a human rights attorney based in Turkey petitioned the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention on Phạm’s behalf. The Working Group issued a 13-page opinion stating that Phạm’s arrest and imprisonment lacked a legal basis and resulted from his exercise of freedom of opinion and expression. The opinion called for his immediate release and an independent investigation into the circumstances of his detention. It also highlighted concerns about his deteriorating health.
Dũng’s refusal to consume prison meat and fish resulted in an inadequate diet while he protested insufficient medical and dental treatment available to prisoners. In January 2023, he was taken to the prison infirmary after repeatedly spitting or coughing up blood. Prison medical personnel reportedly attributed the bleeding to damage to the lining of his throat.
PEN America reported that Dũng was also denied regular outdoor time. The combination of restricted movement, poor sleep, hypertension and the lack of independent medical care raised continuing concerns about his physical and psychological well-being.
Shawn Crispin of the Committee to Protect Journalists said that “Vietnam’s outrageous sentencing of journalists Phạm Chí Dũng, Nguyen Tuong Thuy, and Le Huu Minh to more than a decade in prison each shows that the country’s government has no intention of allowing even the most basic elements of a free press.”
Dũng is one of two former VOA Vietnamese contributors imprisoned in Vietnam. Le Anh Hung, arrested in March 2026, is currently in pre-trial detention and faces charges of “dangerous actions” against the state. Four additional Radio Free Asia Vietnamese journalists are also currently imprisoned.