Vietnam mulls fate of 37 anti-communist "terrorists"
HO CHI MINH CITY - The fate of 37 "terrorists" -- including foreign nationals -- whose alleged crimes range from sabotage to
opposing the communist state will be announced this week.
Each faces a possible death sentence. However, prosecutors have indicated they will settle for tough jail terms
including a life sentence for Le Kim Hung who apparently led his gang in a series of attacks and plots.
Authorities here claim the raids were mounted from Cambodia and Thailand. These include the planting of
explosives, weapons and "reactionary documents" between 1999 and 2000.
Charges also include a grenade attack on the Hao Hoa Buddhist sect near the Cambodian border in March
2000.
A series of strikes were also allegedly planned to mark the 25th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War, a
month later.
Court sources here have confirmed the 37 include "at least some" foreign nationals, however, who, how many,
and what country they belong to remains a tightly guarded secret.
"Only the judge knows this and this will be made public on Tuesday morning," one source told AFP.
Initially 38 people were charged but one has since died in custody from the HIV virus. Final hearings adjourned
last Wednesday and information regarding the defence and prosection cases are scant.
But the prospect of foreign nationals being jailed, or executed, has further raised the profile of what appears to
be the largest act anti-communist sabotage since full independence in 1975.
Communist Vietnam has consistently accused outsiders of meddling in this country's internal affairs and
incidents involving Vietnamese with foreign citizenship have proved a thorny issue in Hanoi's efforts to
normalise relations with the West.
In April 2000, Vietnam executed Nguyen Thi Hiep. A Canadian national from Toronto she was found guilty of
drug smuggling and shot, despite pleas for clemency from the Canadian government.
Ottowa responded with sanctions.
In Bangkok a Vietnamese-American who hijacked a Thai plane to drop anti-communist leaflets over Vietnam
on the eve of former US president Bill Clinton's landmark visit is currently before the courts.
Ly Tong, who was granted US citizenship after the Vietnam war due to his service in the South Vietnamese air
force, forced the pilot to buzz Ho Chi Minh City so he could dump leaflets urging Vietnamese people to rise up
against their communist leaders.
Authorities here claim the group of 37 "terrorists" currently before the courts was formed and is controlled by
Nguyen Huu Chanh, an American of Vietnamese origin who lives in the United States.
And last week deputy prime minister Nguyen Tan Dung told the opening of the country's National Assembly
that Vietnam must be on guard and against "evil elements" and "hostile forces."
In demanding a life sentence for Hung and six others, the municipal public prosecutor's offfice has also urged
jail terms of between three and 18 years for the other 29.
If found guilty, the court will announce sentencing on Wednesday.
Agence France Presse - May 27, 2001.
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