1-12-2025 (HANOI) Thailand handed over Vietnamese activist and lawyer Y Quynh Bdap to Vietnamese authorities on Friday, November 28, following an appeals court approval for his extradition despite international warnings. Bdap, 45, founder of the US-based Montagnards Stand for Justice, had lived in exile since 2018, advocating for religious freedoms and land rights among Vietnam’s Central Highlands ethnic minorities, known as Montagnards.
Arrested in Bangkok in December 2024 for lacking valid travel documents—despite UN refugee status—he spent nearly a year in an immigration detention center. Thai officials proceeded with the transfer after the court rejected his final appeals, coordinating through the corrections department and police, as confirmed by his lawyer Nadthasiri Bergman.
Vietnam convicted Bdap in absentia in January 2024 on terrorism charges, alleging he orchestrated 2023 gun attacks on police posts in the Central Highlands that killed nine officers. He faces up to 10 years in prison and has denied involvement. The case ties to long-standing tensions over Montagnard autonomy demands, rooted in their historical alliance with US forces during the Vietnam War. Human rights advocates decried the move, with Human Rights Watch’s Sunai Phasuk noting opposition from the UN,
Thailand’s National Human Rights Commission, and Western governments over risks of torture and unfair trials. Bergman’s team reported no updates on his condition post-handover.
