Vietnam’s Dissidents: Political Dissonance in the Age of Global Capitalism and Coloniality
Susann Pham
Palgrave Macmillan: 2023
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Vietnam has arrived at an interesting place. It was the only country in 2023 to host the leaders of both the US and China, and in pretty quick succession to boot. It self-identifies as a communist state, and is ideologically joined at the hip to China, yet it also wants to be classified as a market economy by the US. The country has attracted considerable sums of foreign capital from manufacturers seeking to dodge the vexatious vortex that exists between Washington and Beijing, and CEOs of multinational companies like Nvidia have all made pilgrimages to Hanoi in recent years. Hanoi and its ‘bamboo diplomacy’ are attracting plaudits. Distinguished members of the global elite: please form an orderly queue, and the Communist Party of Vietnam will be with you shortly.

There are two flies in the ointment. The first is endemic corruption, which makes for poor optics and is a drag on economic growth. The second is a small number of dissidents who, despite considerable efforts to silence them, are able to embarrass the leadership every now and again, across a range of issues, from the aforementioned levels of corruption through to blatant social injustices and environmental calamities.

• Tags: Issue 35, Nick J. Freeman, Susann Pham, Vietnam