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The Vietnam News

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Vietnam denies mistreatment of jailed internet activist

The Vietnamese government has denied that a doctor jailed for posting pro-democracy essays on the internet has been refused medical treatment for a serious illness. Pham Hong Son's wife, Vu Thuy Ha, says she fears her husband has a hernia, and says he was having difficulty walking when she last visited him in prison in August. She says Son has not received medical treatment.

However, a Vietnamese Foreign Ministry spokesman says reports of Son's poor health are "totally fabricated". The spokesman has also denied that Son has been held in solitary confinement, as claimed by human rights groups. Son was convicted of espionage in June and sentenced to 13 years in prison but the term was later reduced to five years plus three years' house arrest. His case has drawn condemnation from Western governments and human rights groups.

ABC Radio Australia News - September 23, 2004