[ Read RFA’s coverage of this story in VietnameseOpens in new window ]
High School student Chu Ngoc Quang Vinh has faced a storm of criticism online after saying on Facebook he had lost faith in the Vietnamese political system and wanted to live abroad.
The 17-year-old pupil at Nguyen Tat Thanh High School for the Gifted in Yen Bai province was hoping for the top prize of a scholarship to Australia after winning a monthly round of a game show, The Road to Olympia, in November.
But after failing to get any further in the contest, Quang Vinh wrote: “I want to leave Vietnam. I will probably never see the Party positively again, even though I have tried to at least ignore it. The people in the country I was born in chose the status quo, so if I don’t support it, I will leave.”
He was summoned by police, who said they wanted to raise his awareness of the Communist Party, the state, and history, “to persuade Chu Ngoc Quang Vinh to clarify the issue and to re-understand the content” he had posted online.
Social media accounts close to the government called the teenager ungrateful, one saying “having talent without virtue is useless.”
Other social media users rallied in support of Quang Vinh, with sympathizers telling Radio Free Asia the online attacks were part of a broader campaign to eliminate any ideology, image, or symbol that goes against the interests of the government.
Former contestant sympathizes
Activist Nguyen Viet Dung, who took part in The Road to Olympia about 20 years ago, said he had learned over the years to channel his views in less controversial ways.
“It's not that I don't express my opinions, but I can express my opinions in other areas that can still be painful to society such as education, healthcare, or even the issue of national sovereignty,” he said. “There are many things to express my opinions on without facing immediate repression from the authorities.”
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Former journalist Vo Ngoc Anh, who lives in the United States, said that, as a special student, Quang Vinh should have been encouraged to express his views. He said, even if authorities didn’t agree, they should have advised him in a gentler way without involving the police.
A student in Ho Chi Minh City, who requested anonymity for safety reasons, said internet users criticizing Quang Vinh for being ungrateful were deliberately confusing the concepts of country, nation and party and treating them as a unified set of values.
“The right to freedom of opinion and expression should not be subject to discrimination. Anyone without distinction has this right, so why do we need to follow the standards of the ‘online community’ to talk about history?” the student said. “Is a doctor of law who preaches nonsense more trustworthy than a child who tells the truth?”
“In the history of the nation there is no shortage of people who love their country and people, regardless of age. What is important is that young people are aware of the issues and speak up for them. That is something precious."
In spite of writing an apology on his Facebook page, Quang Vinh has faced heavy criticism from Vietnamese media. On Wednesday, VTC News quoted one angry social media asking:
"Does that apology come from the heart, or is it because of pressure from the online community? Not everyone who studies well becomes a ‘human being.’ Not every apology can be changed to ‘nothing’.”
Online bullying on the rise
This is not the first instance of cyberbullying of those seen to be challenging the interests of the Communist Party.
In May, the online community erupted after a video of singer Ngoc Mai and her husband, Quoc Nghiep, playing with their children in an American home went viral. In the backroad were two small U.S. and South Vietnamese flags, drawing the rage of social media users loyal to the Hanoi government and forcing an apology from the artist.
Last month, Fulbright University Vietnam posted a statement on Facebook, stating that there had been a number of false and inflammatory statements on social media about the college and its students.
They included claims that Fulbright was “a training ground for reactionaries,” and “plotting to carry out a color revolution.”
"We are a Vietnamese university, dedicated to expanding high-quality educational choices for Vietnam's youth, devoted to its prosperity, benefiting from the support of Vietnam's far-sighted leaders, and serving as a symbol of the long but fruitful process of Vietnam-U.S. reconciliation," Fulbright University President Scott Fritzen wrote on the school's website and on Facebook.
“The spread of disinformation online in order to sow mistrust and division is a grand challenge of our age. And it has had real consequences for Fulbright, where our community has been unjustly defamed and distressed.”
A Vietnamese student, who wished to remain anonymous due to the sensitivity of the issue, said the attacks on Fulbright and artists using the old Republic of Vietnam flag were part of an orchestrated campaign on social media.
“In essence, these actions are aimed at dividing the nation, stirring up national hatred and causing diplomatic conflicts between Vietnam and the United States and Taiwan,” the student said.
“Behind the forces carrying out these activities are interest groups with a close interest in dividing the nation and stirring up hatred between Vietnam and the United States, and benefiting from those actions.”
According to former journalist Anh, the government had encouraged the formation of pro-party public opinion groups that were very methodical in their attacks and, while the opinions may be old-fashioned they are shared widely among their network of social media users.
“People use fear to strengthen this society,” he said. “They don’t encourage differences or look for a better, richer way of development. They just want to impose their view. It’s not just Vietnam. All communist societies, all dictatorial societies are like that.”
Translated by RFA Vietnamese. Edited by Mike Firn.