The Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats (CALD) expresses deep concern over the disappearance of Nguyen Duc Thuan, a Vietnamese-Norwegian national, and Tran Hiep, a Vietnamese-Australian national, while traveling in Cambodia. Both are long-time human rights advocates who support grassroots movements in Vietnam, and both are members of Viet Tan, a full member party of CALD.
According to their families, the two activists have been incommunicado since 18 September 2026. They flew into Phnom Penh, Cambodia, from Bangkok on 15 September to meet with Vietnamese human rights activists. Their last known communication took place on the morning of 18 September. They were scheduled to return to Bangkok on 19 September at 10:30 AM aboard Cambodia Airways flight KR701; however, airline records confirm they never boarded the flight.
Nguyen Duc Thuan, 52, resides in Oslo with his wife and two children. Through his work with Viet Tan, he has campaigned for the release of political prisoners in Vietnam, collaborating with Norwegian elected officials, the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and human rights organizations, including the Rafto Foundation for Human Rights. He is also an active member of Norway’s Catholic community, advocating against religious freedom violations in Vietnam.
Tran Hiep (also known as Ho Pham Hiep Huy), 51, resides in Melbourne with his wife. As a Viet Tan member, he trains activists on digital security. He is also a key member of the Em Viet group, through which he supports programs for underprivileged youth. Additionally, he helped launch the Australian Alliance to Combat Human Trafficking (AusACT), organizing fundraising events and advocacy workshops to combat the trafficking of young Vietnamese women and girls to neighboring countries.
CALD appeals to the Cambodian government to provide all necessary assistance to expeditiously locate Nguyen Duc Thuan and Tran Hiep. Furthermore, CALD urges the Norwegian and Australian Foreign Ministries, alongside their respective embassies in Bangkok and Phnom Penh, to coordinate with—and, if necessary, apply pressure on—Cambodian authorities to immediately resolve this case.
As a regional network of liberal and democratic political parties, CALD firmly believes that human rights, by their very nature, transcend territorial boundaries and political ideologies. The work of human rights advocates must neither be treated as a transnational crime nor subjected to transnational repression.
Florencio B. Abad
Chairperson
25 September 2026
Categorised in: Statements
This post was written by CALD
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