December 9, 2021
Legal Initiatives for Vietnam (LIV) was approved to operate a representative office in Taiwan in late November 2021 by the Taiwanese government.
The office is registered under the name 美國法治越南台灣分部 which literally means United States Rule of Law Vietnam Taiwan Branch and is headed by LIV’s Co-Director Trinh Huu Long - a Vietnamese national who has worked abroad since 2013.
LIV is a non-profit organization registered in the United States of America as a 501(c)(3) legal entity. It aims to promote the rule of law, human rights, and democracy in Vietnam through independent journalism, research, and civic education. A duly registered non-profit organization since 2017, LIV’s roots can be traced as far back as 2014, wherein four founding members Trinh Huu Long, Tran Quynh-Vi, Pham Doan Trang, and Truong Tu Minh established a legal magazine, Luat Khoa - an online publication that informs Vietnamese readers on law, politics, human rights, democracy, environment, and the current societal milieu.
To date, Luat Khoa is a core program of LIV. Together with The Vietnamese Magazine, an English publication created to spread awareness on Vietnam's political and legal affairs among the international community, both online magazines are strongholds of independent and quality journalism - free of censorship and self-censorship.
Hence, the opening of the representative office in Taipei - the capital city of Taiwan - is a welcome development for LIV, as it can now support more editorial staff, writers and contributors.
“We had no choice but to register and operate LIV outside of Vietnam”, said Trinh Huu Long, the Co-Director. “The current state of politics under the one-party authoritarian regime in Vietnam gives little room for any independent media outlet or any independent civil society organization to speak truth to power and to provide a medium for meaningful political discussions. We greatly appreciate the opportunity to register LIV in the United States back in 2017 and now in Taiwan - a thriving liberal democracy right next to our door,” added Long.
To find out more about Legal Initiatives for Vietnam and its mission, visit www.liv.ngo. To donate and show support for LIV and its causes, please click here.
Contact: contact@liv.ngo