Birth date: November 8, 1954
Activity: Merchant, land rights activist
Date of arrest: November 19, 2010
Sentence: Sentenced to 2 years imprisonment followed by 3 years house arrest on May 30, 2011
Charge: Attempting to overthrow the government (Article 79)
Current location: Ben Tre Detention Center, Ben Tre Province
Pham Ngoc Hoa, a merchant by trade, has been a steady presence at sit-ins organized by aggrieved citizens. She helped voice their plight in interviews with international Vietnamese-language radio networks. In 2011, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention ruled that the Hanoi government’s detention and conviction of Pham Ngoc Hoa and 6 other activists is in violation of international law.