Speaking Out in Vietnam

Since 1990 public political criticism has evolved into a prominent feature of Vietnam's political landscape. So argues Benedict Kerkvliet in his analysis of Communist Party–ruled Vietnam. Speaking Out in Vietnam assesses the rise and diversity of these public displays of disagreement, showing that it has morphed from family whispers to large-scale use of electronic media.

In discussing how such criticism has become widespread over the last three decades, Kerkvliet focuses on four clusters of critics: factory workers demanding better wages and living standards; villagers demonstrating and petitioning against corruption and land confiscations; citizens opposing China's encroachment into Vietnam and criticizing China-Vietnam relations; and dissidents objecting to the party-state regime and pressing for democratization. He finds that public political criticism ranges from lambasting corrupt authorities to condemning repression of bloggers to protesting about working conditions. Speaking Out in Vietnam shows that although we may think that the party-state represses public criticism, in fact Vietnamese authorities often tolerate and respond positively to such public and open protests.

Benedict J. Tria Kerkvliet is Emeritus Professor in the Department of Political and Social Change at the Australian National University and an Affiliate Graduate Faculty member at the University of Hawaii. He is author of several books, including, most recently, The Power of Everyday Politics.

Speaking Out in Vietnam applies recent social science perspectives to a detailed investigation of primary sources to bring new light on important issues in Vietnamese studies. Scholars of diverse fields and interests will read it with pleasure and profit.

Speaking Out is an important piece of scholarship that deserves a place on the bookshelves of every student of Vietnamese politics.

Speaking Out in Vietnam is a welcome contribution and an eye-opening read for anyone familiar with Vietnam as well as those less so. It not only conveys the voices of citizens protesting state policies but also invites reflection on the pairing of consent and repression as instruments of rule.

This book is indispensable when it comes to talking about contemporary Vietnam, covering the entire North and South, looking at the period from the Nhan Van Giai Pham incident in the 1950s to the present, and depicting the evolution of the relationship between the Vietnamese people and the authorities.

Joe Buckley:

Speaking Out in Vietnam, written in lively and engaging prose, is the first to bring together an analysis of different types of political criticism and public protest in Vietnam.

Speaking Out in Vietnam addresses an important phenomenon in Vietnamese politics and deserves to be widely read.

Kerkvliet offers an interesting and valuable analysis of how Vietnam has handled the growing criticism of Communist Party–state leadership.

Kerkvliet's pulled it all together in Speaking Out in Vietnam, a very readable book. Kerkvliet's book provides a robust framework for analysis going forward of the party-people dialogue. It is destined to be a basic reference for Vietnam-watchers.

This book is a decisive cornerstone for the growing literature on resistance and collective action in Vietnam.... essential reading for many future projects that aim to focus on the landscape of resistance in non-democratic and repressive contexts.

Hy Van Luong, University of Toronto, and author of Tradition, Revolution, and Market Economy in a North Vietnamese Village, 1925-2006:

Speaking Out in Vietnam provides convincing explanations for the party-state's reactions, when and why repressing, when and why tolerating, and when and why being responsive.

Andrew Wells-Dang, Senior Governance Advisor, Oxfam in Vietnam:

Benedict J. Tria Kerkvliet clearly knows Vietnamese society deeply and thoroughly, and gives a lively, realistic portrait of the present-day life there.