Vietnam Human Rights Act
Vietnam Human Rights Act
This bill requires actions related to human rights in Vietnam and addresses related issues.
The Department of State must assist eligible individuals and entities working to secure the release of political and religious prisoners in Vietnam.
The Office of Internet Freedom within the U.S. Agency for Global Media and the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor within the State Department shall prioritize (1) the immediate distribution of censorship circumvention tools for computers and smartphones in Vietnam; and (2) projects to ensure the safety and privacy of bloggers, journalists, and human rights defenders in Vietnam.
Foreign assistance may not be used to assist any unit of the Vietnamese government engaged in cyber espionage activities.
The State Department may establish programs to (1) monitor and halt sex trafficking of women from Vietnam and other Asian countries, and (2) address Vietnam's growing sex-ratio disparity.
The bill also requires various reports to Congress, including reports on (1) persons subject to U.S. sanctions for human rights violations in Vietnam, (2) a strategy to promote freedom in Vietnam, and (3) cyber espionage activities sanctioned by the Vietnamese government targeting Vietnamese dissidents and human rights advocates living outside of Vietnam.
Referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.