Land rights activist Trinh Ba Phuong‘s wife, Do Thi Thu, visited him at An Diem Prison in Quang Nam province on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 — a back-to-back two-day visit practiced by those who can’t visit imprisoned family members once a month due to the distance or cost (or both). Things went smoothly on the first day. But when Thu arrived on the morning of the second day, she was told by an official that Phuong could only receive visitors once every two months because he had been disciplined for 10 days in September 2023 (more than a year prior). The official added that it was also because the prison authorities “did not see any improvement in his behavior,” and so his visitation rights were reduced in accordance with the law.

They asked Thu to sign a form acknowledging this. Thu said she would not sign it without her husband’s knowledge and approval. It was only then that prison officers let Phuong come out to talk to her. Phuong told the official that he was “wrong about the law.” Phuong added that, “According to regulations, once a prisoner finishes his disciplinary punishment, he will be monitored for a period of six months for any potential violations. If violations occur, a new disciplinary order shall be issued. Otherwise the prisoner is considered to have made improvements. I have neither violated any rules since that time nor have any new disciplinary orders been issued. In order to save the little amount of time I have with my wife, I will file a complaint about this later.” Thu reported that she later did research on prison regulations regarding this matter (Article 23, Section 1, Order 133/2020/ND-CP) and found that her husband is correct. Thu says she will file a separate complaint against An Diem officials for their arbitrary and illegal application of the law.