HR 3122119th CongressIn Committee

Vietnam Human Rights Act

Introduced: Apr 30, 2025

Standard Summary

Comprehensive overview in 1-2 paragraphs

The Vietnam Human Rights Act would codify a U.S. policy that ties the United States’ relations with Vietnam to the protection of internationally recognized human rights and the development of the rule of law. It aims to embed rights concerns in diplomacy, trade, security, and development, while also addressing specific issues such as online censorship, religious freedom, and worker rights. The bill would authorize targeted sanctions on Vietnamese officials and others tied to abuses (including arbitrary detention, torture, censorship, and religious freedom violations), bar certain imports that rely on forced labor from Xinjiang, and require ongoing reporting and briefings to Congress about rights dialogue efforts and related actions. It also pushes for stronger international religious freedom pressure on Vietnam and expands annual reporting on U.S.-Vietnam human rights discussions, internet freedom, and related topics.

Key Points

1Policy framework and trade/workers’ rights
2- The act directs U.S. policy to weave human rights concerns into all interactions with Vietnam, including trade, security, humanitarian aid, and development. It also calls for assessing Vietnam’s progress on workers’ rights and pressuring Vietnam to ratify ILO Conventions 87 and 98 and recognize independent unions.
3Sanctions for rights abuses
4- The bill would authorize sanctions under the Global Magnitsky framework for individuals responsible for arbitrary detention, torture, disappearances, significant corruption, or other serious rights abuses; sanctions under other U.S. laws for online censorship or religious freedom violations; and immigration-based sanctions for related conduct. It requires a congressional report detailing sanctions imposed and the reasons.
5Actions to combat online censorship and surveillance
6- The act finds Vietnam’s internet controls among the world’s most restrictive and authorizes measures to promote open internet access, transparency, and the free flow of information. It requires reporting on censorship requests to U.S. companies, requires companies with U.S. contracts to disclose such requests, and authorizes steps to provide censorship circumvention tools and to safeguard bloggers and journalists.
7International religious freedom
8- The bill urges designation of Vietnam as a "country of particular concern" for religious freedom under IRFA, arguing that such designation would be a powerful tool to push for improvements and that the Secretary of State should pursue it.
9Enhanced reporting and oversight
10- It would amend the annual U.S.-Vietnam human rights dialogue reporting to include topics such as torture and police abuse, property expropriation of religious groups, U.S. citizens’ property claims, implementation of Girls Count Act provisions, and internet freedom protections for bloggers and journalists.

Impact Areas

Primary group/area affected- Vietnamese people, including political activists, union organizers, journalists, bloggers, and religious groups who may be targeted for rights advocacy or online expression; U.S. businesses operating in or with Vietnam; U.S. government agencies involved in foreign policy and engagement with Vietnam.Secondary group/area affected- Vietnamese government officials and state security services (due to sanctions and liability for rights abuses); multinational tech platforms operating in Vietnam (due to censorship requests and reporting requirements); supply chains that include inputs from Vietnam (especially linked to Xinjiang-forced-labor concerns).Additional impacts- U.S.-Vietnam relations and trade policy could be influenced by tying rights improvements to economic and security cooperation; global internet governance and corporate practices regarding censorship and data requests may be affected as a model for rights-based diplomacy; potential diplomatic pushback or escalations if Vietnam views these measures as coercive.Global Magnitsky Act: U.S. law that authorizes targeted sanctions (e.g., freezing assets, visa bans) on individuals responsible for serious human rights abuses.CPC (Country of Particular Concern): A designation under the International Religious Freedom Act signaling severe or ongoing violations of religious freedom.IRFA: International Religious Freedom Act of 1998, the framework used to designate CPC and to shape U.S. religious freedom diplomacy.Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA): U.S. law barring imports that use forced labor from Xinjiang; the bill would apply similar considerations to Vietnamese inputs identified under UFLPA processes.

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