~ Le Viêt Nam, aujourd'hui. ~
The Vietnam News

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Vietnam sentences another dissident

HANOI - For the second time in a week, Vietnam has sentenced a cyber-dissident to 19 months in prison, convicting 73-year-old former colonel and historian Pham Que Duong for criticizing the government online.

The Hanoi People's Court found Duong guilty of ``abusing his democratic rights and harming the interests of the state, social organizations and citizens,'' but agreed to release him in two weeks because of time served since his December 2002 arrest. His conviction Wednesday came just five days after Tran Khue, a literature professor and cyber-dissident, was convicted of similar charges and received the same sentence from a Ho Chi Minh City court. Their trials were closed to foreign media and diplomats.

The two men made an unsuccessful attempt to organize an anti-corruption organization in September 2001, when they also called on the National Assembly to make democratic reforms. The former editor of a military-history journal, Duong resigned from the Communist Party and began writing essays supporting greater press and political freedoms. He was arrested in Ho Chi Minh City after meeting with Khue, who was identified erroneously last week as a physician.

According to Amnesty International, much of the evidence against Duong was collected from e-mail and phone records. In recent months, Vietnam has convicted or charged a half-dozen online dissidents with undermining state interests.

By Ben Stocking - The Mercury News - July 15, 2004


Vietnam jails cyber dissident

HANOI - A Vietnamese court has sentenced a 73-year-old former colonel to 19 months in prison for using the Internet to criticise government policies as Hanoi expands a crackdown on cyber dissidents. The court ordered Pham Que Duong's release at the end of this month because of the time spent in jail since his arrest in December 2002.

"Pham Que Duong was sentenced to 19 months in jail for abusing democratic rights harming the interest of the state, rights and interests of organisations and citizens," Foreign Ministry spokesman Le Dung said on Wednesday. The decorated former army officer wrote critically on the Internet about corruption in Vietnam and advocated democratic reforms, human right groups have said.

A fellow cyber-dissident, literature professor Tran Khue, who was arrested with Duong, was sentenced to 19 months in jail on the same charge last week. The pair was arrested while meeting in southern Ho Chi Minh City, the former Saigon. They had previously tried to set up an anti-corruption group, rights groups said.

Trials of defendants such as dissidents are routinely closed to foreign media and diplomats and often last for less than a day. Eight journalists are in prison in Vietnam for dissent, the Committee to Protect Journalists said. Last month, Hanoi granted early release to Le Chi Quang, who had served half of a four-year jail term.

Human rights groups say computer teacher Quang may have been shown leniency because he was in poor health. Vietnam consistently denies charges of human rights abuses. It says it punishes only those who break the law.

Reuters - July 14, 2004