Viet Tan reports possible abduction of two activists in Cambodia — ABC News Australia

The pro-democracy organization Viet Tan said that two of its members may have been abducted in Cambodia — 50-year-old Melbourne resident Hiep Chan and his 52-year-old colleague, Norwegian-Vietnamese Duc Thuan Nguyen. The group claims that representatives of the Vietnamese authorities allegedly took the men to Vietnam. According to ABC News Australia, contact with them was lost on the morning of September 18.

Disappearance after trip to Phnom Penh

Chan and Nguyen flew to Phnom Penh from Bangkok on September 15 to meet with Vietnamese human rights defenders. Until September 18, they were regularly in contact with their families. The following day, the men did not board a 10:30 flight to Bangkok.

Viet Tan said the men were heading to the Kaoh Andaet area in Cambodia when they disappeared. According to the organization, Vietnamese state media later reported that the men had been detained for allegedly entering the country illegally via the Cambodian border. At the same time, Viet Tan rejected this version, stating that the activists had not planned to travel to Vietnam and were allegedly abducted in Cambodia and forcibly taken across the border.

ABC News Australia said it had not seen the Vietnamese state media report and had requested comment from the Vietnamese authorities. The Vietnamese government considers Viet Tan a terrorist organization.

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Calls for access to the men

The organization called on the governments of Australia and Norway to urgently secure direct access to the men in order to verify their condition and safety. Viet Tan also said that Nguyen has diabetes, requires daily insulin injections and access to medical care.

Hiep Chan's wife, Chloe Dang, said she was waiting for him at Bangkok airport, but he and Nguyen did not arrive. She filed a missing persons report in Cambodia and remained in contact with Australian consular officials. Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed that it was providing consular assistance to the family of an Australian citizen reported missing in Cambodia.

Phong Nguyen, a Viet Tan representative in Australia, said Chan had been involved in human rights activities for many years and trained activists in digital security. According to him, both men had supported human rights defenders for more than 20 years.