Tran Quang Trung/ Ly Quang Son
Trần Quang Trung/ Lý Quang Sơn
Current Status: Pre-trial detention
Date of Birth: October 20, 1991
Gender: M
Citizen: Y
Human Rights Defender: Y
Activist Focus:
- Political change
- Policy
- Environment
- Sovereignty
Details
Tran Quang Trung is a pro-democracy activist from Ninh Binh province known for his diligence, academic exellence, and enthusiasm, and commitment to serving underprivileged communities and participating in protests ro protect the environment. According to Hoang Dung, Trung graduated with a Bachelor's in Law and was a doctoral student studying law and human rights prior to his arrest.
Trung has been a vocal voice in land rights and sovereignty issues since he was a college student in the 2010s. He participated in multiple anti-China protests in 2013 and 2014 and protests against pollution and deforestation organized by GreenTrees. This non-profit environmental group, originally known as 'Vì Một Hà Nội Xanh' (For a Green Hanoi), focused on 2015 urban tree preservation in Hanoi, monitoring effects of the 2016 Formosa toxic waste spill, and promoting policy transparency.
In addition, Trung and his friends have organized various charity efforts. For example, since 2014, he has volunteered for ''Cơm Dân Oan' (Food for Those Wronged), an organization that regularly provides support and meals to land petitioners who travel to Hanoi to file complaints.
Trung has faced years of harassment and surveillance from the Vietnamese government in retaliation for his peaceful activism. On March 28, 2015, police took Trung from his rental house in Hanoi and detained him without official documentation at the Nam Dinh Provincial Police Department until the following day.
Ha Tinh provincial police arrested Tran Quang Trung under unspecified charges on Sept. 6, 2025. On Sept. 10, he was transferred to the B34 Detention Center of the Ministry of Public Security in Cu Chi, Ho Chi Minh city.
August 29, 2025: Arrested on unknown charges
August 29, 2025
District
Nam Dinh province
Activist Tran Quang Trung was arrested on Sept. 6, 2026, according to dissident Hoang Dung. The following day, the official Facebook page of the Loc Ha commune police in Ha Tinh province posted a photo of Trung, confirming that he had been detained on Sept. 6. Tran Quang Trung, also known as Ly Quang Son, is known for his outspoken criticism of the Vietnamese government and its officials.
According to Hoang Dung, Trung was arrested near the border between An Giang province and Cambodia. The Loc Ha commune police accused Trung of attempting to illegally exit Vietnam, being a member of Viet Tan (a U.S.-based pro-democracy group labeled a terrorist organization by the Vietnamese authorities), and then trying to re-enter Vietnam via an unofficial border crossing from Cambodia, where he was ultimately detained by security forces.
On Sept. 22, Trung’s family received Sept. 17 notice of temporary detention, ordering that Trung be detained from Sept. 10 until Dec. 29, but it did not specify any charges against him. Trung is currently being held at B34 Detention Center of the Ministry of Public Security in Cu Chi, the same facility as Ho Sy Quyet, a tireless activist known for his popular education activities to promote human rights. Quyet was arrested on August 28 and is charged with "spreading propaganda against the state".
Sources told Project88 that four others—Tran Quang Nam, Nguyen Van Tu, Nguyen Tuan Nghia, and a person identified only as Khanh—were detained at the same time as Tran Quang Trung and Ho Sy Quyet. While Project88 can confirm that Tran Quang Nam and Nguyen Van Tu are being held at B34, the same facility as Trung and Quyet, it remains unclear exactly when Tu, Nghia, and Khanh were arrested or what charges they face.
Resources
Hoang Dung’s Facebook post announcing the arrest of Ly Quang Son/ Tran Quang Trung.
Official Facebook fanpage of the Loc Ha commune police in Ha Tinh province confirming the arrest of Ly Quang Son/ Tran Quang Trung.
Công an tùy tiện bắt giữ sinh viên Trần Quang Trung, Việt Nam Thời Báo, March 30, 2015. Archived version.
Profile last updated: 2026-07-06 04:49:45