Le Viêt Nam, aujourd'hui

The detention of an American citizen in Vietnam, arrested while participating in a protest in Ho Chi Minh City, has again drawn international media attention to social unrest in this fast-growing nation of close to 100 million.

Vietnam boasts one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, optimistic citizens and a stable government. But below the surface of positive data points lies discontent that spilled over during recent protests across the country.

Five years ago, lawyer Nguyen Van Dai became co-founder of a pro-democracy group in Vietnam called Brotherhood for Democracy, which was intended to underscore a fresh approach to activism.

The country benefits from political stability and vibrant social networks, but technology and research spending are limited.

Concerns about the longevity of elderly leaders and youthful demographic change weigh heavy on the long-ruling Communist Party

A court in Vietnam sentenced one former official from state oil and gas group PetroVietnam to life in prison and another to 13 years on Monday for embezzlement and violating state rules amid a widespread corruption crackdown, state media said.

The Communist Party is reasserting central command in a reversal of the doi moi reforms that allowed for free markets and limited local democracy

As early as 2006, the Communist Party of Vietnam considered corruption as "one of the biggest threats to the existence of our party and regime."

The communist party chief of one of Vietnam's largest cities was fired on Friday (Oct 6) for violating party rules, the government said, part of the country's massive anti-corruption sweep targeting political heavyweights and executives.

When we think back to the signal events of the antiwar movement in 1967, we recall the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s powerful April 4 speech denouncing the war, the thousands of returned registration cards during the “Stop the Draft” week, and the March on the Pentagon that brought record numbers of demonstrators to the nation’s capital.

A lack of democracy has an economic cost.

Vietnam fired a vice trade minister on Wednesday for wrongdoings at electricity firm Dien Quang Lamp, the government and state media said, amid a wider crackdown on corruption.

The Vietnamese singer and activist Mai Khoi is an outspoken advocate for human rights and freedom of expression in Vietnam. After her performance at the Global Media Forum she spoke with DW about her political activism.

The Communist party does not know how to handle them

This May, in a visit to Vietnam, President Obama announced he was lifting the embargo on selling lethal arms to Hanoi as part of an effort to normalize relations long after the Vietnam War.