Rights group: Aussie activist abducted in Cambodia

A pro‑democracy organisation has accused Vietnamese authorities of abducting two men in Cambodia and forcibly taking them across the border. Viet Tan, a group banned in Vietnam, says Australian citizen Hiep Tran, 50, and Norwegian‑Vietnamese colleague Duc Thuan Nguyen, 52, vanished in Phnom Penh on 18 September after travelling from Bangkok to meet human rights activists.

The pair failed to board their return flight the next day. Vietnamese state media later reported they had been detained after “illegally entering Vietnam”, claiming they carried false documents and confessed to being members of Viet Tan. The group rejects this account, calling it a fabrication designed to mask a cross‑border kidnapping that violates Cambodia’s sovereignty.

Tran’s wife, Chloe Dang, said she was waiting at Bangkok airport when her husband did not arrive. “He always knew there was a risk doing human rights work, but we never thought this would happen,” she said. Nguyen, who is diabetic, requires daily insulin, raising urgent concerns about his health.

The Australian government has confirmed it is providing consular support to Tran’s family, while Viet Tan has urged Canberra and Oslo to demand immediate access to the men. Rights groups including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have long documented Vietnam’s crackdown on dissent, with activists frequently jailed for online posts or peaceful advocacy.

Phong Nguyen, Viet Tan’s representative in Australia, said the case highlights a rise in “transnational repression”, where governments target critics abroad. He described Tran as a long‑time advocate who trained activists in digital security, warning that his disappearance was “not a normal tourist vanishing while travelling”.

The incident has sparked calls for international pressure on Hanoi to release the men unconditionally. For Cambodia, the allegations raise uncomfortable questions about its role in regional security and whether its territory is being used for cross‑border crackdowns.

-2026-09-29