In Vietnam, climate arrests spark backlash to green energy plan

(Context, 20 Oct 2023) Two-year crackdown on environmentalists spurs calls for donor countries to pause a project for Vietnam's green energy transition.

A multi-billion dollar climate deal to help Vietnam shift from coal to clean energy should be put on hold until the government stops a crackdown on environmentalists that threatens efforts to support communities hit by the transition, activists said.

Late last year, G7 nations - together with Norway, Denmark and the European Union - agreed to provide $15.5 billion to help Vietnam ditch climate-heating coal, similar to other pacts with South Africa, Indonesia and Senegal that offer emerging economies financing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Vietnam's "just energy transition partnership" (JETP) stressed the importance of regular consultations with media, civil society and NGOs.

But last month Hanoi police detained Ngo Thi To Nhien, executive director of the Vietnam Initiative for Energy Transition, an independent think-tank focused on green energy policy, for "appropriating documents" regarding the state-owned electricity utility, according to media reports.

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Context, 20 Oct 2023: In Vietnam, climate arrests spark backlash to green energy plan