taz Talk with documentary film screening : Vietnam in the Age of Tô Lâm

Re-elected General Secretary of the Communist Party in January 2026, Tô Lâm now stands at the apex of the regime – his reign only just beginning.

His ascent has gone hand in hand with the global expansion of Vietnam’s security state. As Minister of Public Security, Tô Lâm was implicated by German authorities in the 2017 abduction of Trịnh Xuân Thanh in Berlin, an operation that exposed a regime willing to pursue its enemies far beyond its borders.

Today, that apparatus follows dissidents wherever they flee. Asylum seekers, activists, and former insiders describe a system of surveillance, intimidation, and enforced silence that crosses continents.

Through investigative reporting and firsthand testimony, the film confronts a central question: what is the true cost of prosperity when economic growth is built on repression?

In reviewing the film, human rights lawyer Đặng Đình Mạnh – who sought asylum in the United States in 2023 after facing political repression in Vietnam—writes:

“I owe documentary filmmaker Laura Brickman my gratitude for telling the story of our country – an anguished cry from within, conveyed with honesty and depth.”

Many of the human rights defenders featured in the film were among his former clients.

Guests:

🐾 Laura Brickman is an award-winning journalist with over a decade of experience in digital media, broadcast, and print. She has worked for Politico, BBC, 60 Seconds Docs, Insider, and other media outlets. The General: Vietnam in the Age of To Lam is her directorial debut.

🐾 Nguyễn Văn Đài is a Vietnamese human rights activist and lawyer living in exile in Germany. Founder of the Brotherhood for Democracy, he was imprisoned for years for peaceful advocacy and, in December 2025, sentenced in absentia to 17 years in prison. He continues to campaign internationally for civil liberties in Vietnam.

🐾 Lê Trung Khoa is a Vietnamese journalist based in Germany and founder of the independent outlet Thoibao.de. A long-time critic of the Vietnamese authorities, he was sentenced in absentia in December 2025. He now lives under round-the-clock police protection following serious security threats linked to his reporting.

Moderator:

🐾 Wiebke Hangst is a legal expert with the international NGO Media Defence, which supports journalists facing legal threats worldwide. She works to strengthen press freedom and protect independent media, particularly in high-risk and repressive environments.

Timetable:

18h00: Welcome

18h30: Film Screening

19h30: Round table with Laura Brickman, Le Trung Khoa, Nguyen Van Dai, moderated by Wiebke Hangst

20h30: Light catering

21h30: End of event

Das Gespräch findet auf Englisch statt. Es gibt keine Übersetzung.