Human rights & labor activist, mostly focused on SE Asia. FCCT Board member. Boston sports fan, rock & roll lover, fisherman. SAIS. Cape Cod. Thai/Lao speaker
Bangkok
Joined May 2010
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Phil Robertson retweeted
#SaveMyanmar #WhatsHappeningInMyanmar
Aung San Suu Kyi’s son: My mother is being used for junta propaganda thetimes.com/world/asia/arti…
Phil Robertson retweeted
October 22 is Ahmed Mansour’s birthday. He is unlawfully detained since 2017 by the UAE. He is a prisoner of conscience.
In 2015, he was awarded the prestigiousMartin Ennals Award for human rights defenders.
In the sinister UAE, freedom of expression is silenced, detained, buried.
Phil Robertson retweeted
The corruption that is putting money in Trump's pockets is costing all of us.
Phil Robertson retweeted
📢 Every vote counts! 🗳️ Make sure YOURS does. Mailed your ballot in? Check your ballot status and cure your ballot if needed ASAP—your action could help flip the House & Senate! 🏛️
USExpats…Visit votefromabroad.org or your local election website for help. #Midterms2026
Phil Robertson retweeted
Activists believed abducted in Cambodia and now detained in Vietnam – Serious case of transnational repression raised with the UN, OSCE and Council of Europe
On 18 September 2026, Norwegian citizen Thuan Duc Nguyen and Australian citizen Tran Hiep disappeared in Cambodia. The two men, activists with the pro-democracy organisation Viet Tan, are strongly believed to have been abducted on Cambodian soil and rendered to Vietnam. They are now in Vietnamese custody facing allegations of terrorism for their association with Viet Tan.
Details are set out in Thuan’s Norwegian lawyers’ statement announcing a criminal complaint in Norway, which has jurisdiction to prosecute on the basis of Thuan’s Norwegian nationality.
Since that complaint, Hiep reported to Australian officials during a consular visit that ‘I never crossed the border’ and that he was ‘terrified and traumatized from being attacked and kidnapped in Cambodia’.
Numerous organizations have expressed concern, including Freedom House, Article 19 and Human Rights Watch, the latter observing that ‘the apparent abduction … raises many questions about the roles of both the Vietnamese and Cambodian governments’.
Alex Tinsley of Doughty Street, international counsel instructed by the families, has raised this case within United Nations, including the Special Procedures, and European institutions which have key roles in framing the international responses to transnational repression (TNR).
Counsel’s most recent letter, carried on the Free Thuan and Hiep site, explains why this case represents an escalation of TNR and why Norway and Australia must be encouraged to respond strongly to it at both law enforcement and political levels.
Alex is instructed public access for international advocacy together with Michael Polak (Justice Abroad). In Norway, Thuan’s family are represented by Maria Hessen Jacobsen and Aleksander Hatlem. In Australia, Hiep’s family are represented by Alison Battison.
doughtystreet.co.uk/news/act…
#BringThuanHiepHome
#TNR #transnationalrepression
#ToLam #Vietnam
Once again, China exercising transnational repression in the form of attempted censorship in #Thailand.
UPDATE: China Complains to Thai Foreign Ministry Over People’s Party Leader Meeting with Taiwan Office Representative
A Thai Foreign Ministry memo that I saw reportedly says the Chinese Embassy believes People’s Party leader Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut, as opposition leader, had an agenda when he met a representative of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in Thailand for a meal.
The Chinese embassy also sent a separate letter to the People’s Party (on top of the one sent to the Thai Foreign Ministry telling the Thai government to ensure it doesn't happen again) and contacted the opposition party by phone. The party subsequently wrote to the Thai Foreign Ministry, asking it to “reprimand” the Chinese Embassy over the matter.
I give the People’s Party credit for raising the issue through official channels, even though it has not publicly protested. China, meanwhile, is applying pressure behind the scenes.
I am making this information public so Thai society can better understand and scrutinise the actions of the Chinese Embassy, the Thai government and the People’s Party.
#Thailand #ThailandNews #China #Taiwan #PeoplesParty
#ป #ไทย #จีน #ไทยจีน #ไต้หวัน #ปชน
Phil Robertson retweeted
UPDATE: China Complains to Thai Foreign Ministry Over People’s Party Leader Meeting with Taiwan Office Representative
A Thai Foreign Ministry memo that I saw reportedly says the Chinese Embassy believes People’s Party leader Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut, as opposition leader, had an agenda when he met a representative of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in Thailand for a meal.
The Chinese embassy also sent a separate letter to the People’s Party (on top of the one sent to the Thai Foreign Ministry telling the Thai government to ensure it doesn't happen again) and contacted the opposition party by phone. The party subsequently wrote to the Thai Foreign Ministry, asking it to “reprimand” the Chinese Embassy over the matter.
I give the People’s Party credit for raising the issue through official channels, even though it has not publicly protested. China, meanwhile, is applying pressure behind the scenes.
I am making this information public so Thai society can better understand and scrutinise the actions of the Chinese Embassy, the Thai government and the People’s Party.
#Thailand #ThailandNews #China #Taiwan #PeoplesParty
#ป #ไทย #จีน #ไทยจีน #ไต้หวัน #ปชน
ABC News #Australia is reporting on Vietnam's transnational repression in the abduction of Hiep Tran & his two colleagues in #Cambodia, and pointing out this has become standard operating procedure -- very good, must watch report, link below.
youtube.com/watch?v=cL_xnLwb…
@MOFAVietNam @PressDept_MoFA @VNGovtPortal @EUDelegationVN @OHCHRAsia
Phil Robertson retweeted
Kim Aris is right: a phone call is not freedom. It is also not a meaningful concession from a regime that holds thousands of political prisoners, launched an illegal coup, and conducts air strikes on civilians.
Min Aung Hlaing and his gang are attempting to do just enough cosmetic gestures--whether its phone calls to ASSK or phony, performative law enforcement cooperation on scam centers or illegal drugs--to convince the international community to normalize relations with his regime. But as long as he continues to wage a violent armed conflict against the people of Myanmar and illegitimately hold onto power, nobody should be fooled by these token gestures.
#WhatsHappeningInMyanmar
Kim Aris said hearing his mother’s voice after more than five years meant more than words could express, but stressed that one conversation does not amount to freedom.
#WhatsHappeningInMyanmar
irrawaddy.com/news/burma/son…
Phil Robertson retweeted
The EU had months to identify solutions and implement them. Instead they sought to appease the predator-in-chief. And guess what? The only response was escalation.
The era of the predators is also the era of the cowards.
So now what?
Continue to appease? “Negotiate”?
Or take resolute actions, providing the ICC with the support it needs to continue its operations, such as alternative, Euro-only banking and payment systems that operate strictly in Euros and via European servers that would allow the EU to safeguard funding to the ICC, NGOs and all those cooperating with the Court?
It has never been enough to simply declare, however emphatically, one’s commitment to international law and justice.
One cannot compromise with or appease a predator, because either way we all end up on his menu.
EU Member States are serious about protecting the @IntlCrimCourt and a world governed by international law.
In The Hague, I met ICC President Tomoko Akane to convey the EU’s strong support for the Court, its judges, and their work.
The European Council has expressed its deep regret over the U.S. announcement to impose sanctions against the ICC and has urged to reverse them.
The EU will use the next six months for dialogue, to find a solution and explore what more we can do to help the Court.
The Sakharov Prize recognises the ICC’s vital work in giving victims of the gravest crimes a voice. The Court must remain able to pursue justice independently, free from pressure or intimidation.
For those who are tracking the transnational repression abduction of Thuan Duc Nguyen & Hiep Tran in #Cambodia, and their unjust, rights abusing detention in #Vietnam, there is a new website set up to report updates on their cases -- see here: freethuanhiep.net/en
#Vietnam #FreeThuanHiep #Hanoi #VietTan
My take on King Charles gift to Aung San Suu Kyi:
Phil Robertson, the director of Asia Human Rights and Labour Advocates, told The Telegraph the regime was using Ms Suu Kyi – who remains beloved in #Myanmar, formerly the British colony of #Burma – as a “propaganda tool in its quest for global legitimacy.”
“Is sending a book on soil composting supposed to be a message to Aung San Suu Kyi that she should take up gardening, instead of leading the country she was legitimately elected to represent? Whatever the intent, it’s not likely to go down well with the Burmese people.”
telegraph.co.uk/gift/4b903bf…
Phil Robertson retweeted
🇻🇳#Vietnam: The state of #civicspace remains 'closed'.
In recent months, the government abducted #humanrights activists - Nguyen Duc Thuan and Tran Hiep - from Cambodia.
Critics have been targeted and there are concerns over increasing controls of the media and online #censorship. Police have also tried to silence residents from criticising development protests.
More here: web.civicus.org/VietnamOct20…
30 laureates of the @rightlivelihood award have issued an open statement supporting the Mother Nature Cambodia 5, and calling for the Royal Cambodian Government to release them before the @OIFrancophonie Summit in mid-November. Read the full statement here: 👇👇
rightlivelihood.org/news/rel…
@CanadaCambodia @BelgiumThailand @LUinBangkok
Phil Robertson retweeted
Bad men gain power when we don't fight back.
Vivek Ramaswamy is everything wrong with politics: arrogance, cruelty, dishonesty, and a willingness to do ANYTHING for power.
Ohio deserves better.
I'm proud that my wife, MK, is supporting Dr. Amy Acton today.
ALT Statement from First Lady MK Pritzker discussing a $500,000 investment to support Amy Acton for Ohio Governor. The statement criticizes certain political behaviors and expresses endorsement for Amy Acton, emphasizing the importance of standing against divisive and extremist actions.
Coming to the @FCCThai on 16 November, 7 pm - the situation on the frontline of local journalism across Southeast Asia, facing repression & censorship, and fighting back with international solidarity. With Free Press Unlimited, Exile Hub & the FCCT - free and open to all.
Phil Robertson retweeted
Leaders of the European Union, Belgium & Denmark should urge Vietnam to make concrete progress in improving its human rights record during Vietnamese President To Lam’s visit to Copenhagen & Brussels the week of October 19-24. More from @hrw 👇
hrw.org/news/2026/10/19/eu-b…
Phil Robertson retweeted
Peace cannot be achieved while civilian suffering is overlooked and those responsible for violence face no accountability. ASEAN must prioritize the protection of civilians, humanitarian assistance, and meaningful action to address the crisis in Burma.
irrawaddy.com/opinion/guest-…
