Briton in Kafka-esque Vietnam ordeal
British consular officials in Vietnam have written to the Vietnamese government to protest about the treatment of a British businessman who is being forced to endure a Kafka-esque ordeal after his trial on fraud charges was postponed last month for the fourth time in three years.
Peter Laking, 59, originally from West Sussex, has been charged with defrauding two former business partners of $285,000 (£143,000) and could face a jail sentence of ten years or more if convicted.
Mr Laking, who moved to Vietnam in 1993 to set up a quarrying business, has insisted he has done nothing wrong and is determined to clear his name.
But friends say Mr Laking, who suffered a stroke nine months ago, is growing increasingly frustrated at his inability to defend himself in open court.
Now the British consulate in Ho Chi Minh City has taken the unusual step of writing to the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, calling for a speedy resolution to the case and pointing out that the prosecution is yet to produce any evidence against Mr Laking.
A Foreign Office spokesman confirmed that consular officials were "continuing to make representations" to the Vietnamese authorities with regards to Mr Laking's case.
The fourth attempt to try Mr Laking began on June 12, but the trial came to a halt after just an hour when the prosecutor said that he had insufficient evidence to prosecute at this stage and was granted an extension to carry out further investigation by the judge.
Fair Trials Abroad, the campaign group, says that the ongoing delays are unacceptable.
It is also unhappy with a number of other aspects of the trial, which it believes show that the prosecution is struggling to make a case against Mr Laking.
The campaign group, which has been providing Mr Laking with legal assistance, says that when Mr Laking was first arrested in 2004, he was held without access to a lawyer for four months.
It also alleges that his accusers were allowed to visit him in jail, during the 13-month period in which he was imprisoned; that papers vital for his defence were confiscated and that he was forced to sign over assets.
Catherine Wolthuizen, chief executive of Fair Trials Abroad, said: "He has little prospect of having a trial at all let alone a fair trial. It is very disturbing that his ordeal has dragged on for so long with little resolution in sight. There are supposed to be restrictions on the number of times a trial can be postponed in Vietnam."
At present, Mr Laking is out on bail but his passport has been confiscated and, as a result, he is unable to leave Ho Chi Minh City, where he is living with Vietnamese friends.
Although he has no income and has lost all of his assets, friends say he sees his future in Vietnam and cannot imagine living in the UK again.
A lawyer for Fair Trials Abroad says that, under the Vietnamese legal code, unless Mr Laking's trial at the Dong Nai Province People's Court in south-eastern Vietnam recommences within the next three months, the charges against him must be dropped.
But it remains to be seen whether this will actually prove to be the case.
Caroline Lucas, Mr Laking's MEP, called on the government to put more pressure on the Vietnamese authorities.
"We know that the Foreign Office has been more helpful than usual but I think this needs to be taken up at a diplomatic level as well," she said.
A spokesman for Vietnam's Ministry of Foreign Affairs told The Daily Telegraph that Mr Laking's investigation, prosecution and trial have been and continue to be conducted "in full conformity with Vietnamese laws".
He explained that Mr Laking was arrested by the Vietnamese authorities in April 2004 and is being prosecuted on suspicion of "abusing trust to appropriate citizen's property under Article 158 of the Penal Code".
He insisted that Mr Laking's case was "serious and complicated" and that "the investigation for trial is prolonged in order to ensure justice for the defendants".
He added: "Peter Laking and the Embassy of the United Kingdom in Hanoi are frequently provided with information about the case."
By Ben Bland - The Telegraph - July 31, 2007.
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