On May 14, 2025, Trịnh Hữu Long, the Interim Executive Director of Legal Initiatives for Vietnam (LIV) and Editor-in-Chief of Luật Khoa Magazine, returned to his alma mater, National Chengchi University (NCCU), to deliver a presentation titled “Vietnam: Economic Growth Without Democratization.”
The event was hosted by Professor Wei Mei-chuan as part of the International Master’s Program in Asia-Pacific Studies (IMAS), where Long earned his master’s degree in 2024. His thesis focused on Non-state media in Leninist regimes: The case of Vietnam.
In his presentation, Long examined how the Vietnamese Communist Party has maintained its monopoly on power despite decades of market-oriented economic growth. He argued that the state’s resilience lies in its Leninist system, which exerts tight control over all aspects of society—even as that control has been selectively loosened since the Đổi Mới reforms of 1986.
Long emphasized that although democratization has not yet occurred in Vietnam, four decades of modernization have laid the groundwork for potential democratic change. He noted that significant political shifts have been quietly unfolding—particularly in the way citizens perceive and engage with the government.
He also cited Taiwan as the most relevant model of democratization for Vietnam and introduced the audience to the emerging political theory of “conceding to thrive” developed by Dan Slater and Joseph Wong.
The lecture sparked active discussion among students and faculty about the dynamics of authoritarian stability in East and Southeast Asia, the limitations of modernization theory, and the crucial role of independent media and civil society.
LIV continues to engage with academic institutions to foster dialogue on democracy, human rights, and press freedom in Vietnam.
Photo credits: Jason.
