Group says Vietnam has detained former communist magazine reporter
HANOI, Vietnam - An international journalists' group Tuesday demanded that
communist Vietnam release a reporter detained after he signed a letter calling
for political reforms and the release of political prisoners.
The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists said Nguyen Vu Binh, a
former reporter for Tap Chi Cong San, or Communist Journal magazine, was
initially detained, interrogated and released Saturday.
But he was re-arrested Sunday and his current whereabouts were unknown, the
CPJ said. Police searched his computer, read his e-mails and printed out
personal documents, the group added.
"Nguyen Vu Binh's arrest violates both Vietnam's own constitution and
international law," CPJ executive director Ann Cooper said in a statement. "We
demand his immediate and unconditional release."
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Phan Thuy Thanh said Binh had not been
formally arrested.
"According to competent agencies, as of this moment, it is not true that Mr.
Nguyen Vu Binh has been arrested and detained," she said. "Mr. Nguyen Vu
Binh has committed actions which endangered security and public order. He
was therefore summoned by local police to explain and clarify his actions."
The government has said in the past that it holds no political prisoners and that
the constitution guarantees freedom of speech and the press.
Binh worked for nearly a decade at the political magazine, an official publication
of the Communist Party, before being fired in January 2001 after he applied to
form an independent opposition party.
Since then, he has written several articles critical of government policy and
called for political reforms.
In an interview with the British Broadcasting Corp. last month, Binh said he was
prepared for government reprisals.
"I understand that while I'm fighting for freedom and democracy, I will have to
pay a certain price," he said. "Perhaps, I might have to pay with my life."
Earlier this month, Binh joined 16 other writers and leading dissidents in
sending an open letter to Vietnam's leaders calling for political reform as well as
the release of political prisoners.
Vietnam's newly elected National Assembly began its first session last Friday.
The country maintains very tight control over information, and recently enacted
new regulations governing Internet access and satellite TV.
The Associated Press - July 23, 2002.
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