About IFEX:

News by region:

IFEX Campaigns and Advocacy:

IFEX Email Products:

Opportunities and assistance:

Articles - Vietnam

---

Vietnam

Three bloggers face 20 years in jail for spreading anti-state propaganda

Three well-known Vietnamese bloggers who are already being held in open-ended detentions have been charged with spreading anti-government propaganda and face up to 20 more years in jail, report the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Human Rights Watch.

Vietnam

In state-owned publishing industry, censorship reigns, says IPA

Publishing books and other materials in Vietnam is "a complex, opaque, at times irrational, and highly bureaucratic process," says the International Publishers Association (IPA) following a mission to the country.

Vietnam

Amnesty for two imprisoned writers but unjust sentences for many more

In Vietnam's annual tradition of giving amnesty to prisoners in recognition of independence day, the government passed over many of those most deserving of amnesty - prisoners of conscience, report Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC) of PEN International, Reporters Without Borders (RSF), Human Rights Watch and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Vietnam

Award-winning publisher arrested

Vietnamese underground publisher Bui Chat was in Buenos Aires last week to pick up an International Press Association (IPA) award for his "courage in upholding the freedom to publish." When he returned home, the Vietnamese authorities celebrated his prize by confiscating it, searching his home and arresting him, report IPA and Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

Vietnam

Reporter dies following brutal attack

A Vietnamese journalist who was brutally attacked last week has died from his wounds, report the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Le Hoang Hung, a reporter with the "Nguoi Lao Dong" (Labourer) newspaper, succumbed to severe burns in a Ho Chi Minh City hospital over the weekend.

Vietnam

Authorities rein in dissent ahead of Party Congress

Days before the opening of the Communist Party Congress, Vietnam issued a new executive decree that gives the authorities greater powers to penalise journalists, editors and bloggers who report on issues deemed sensitive to national security, reports the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). IFEX members say it's just the latest of the many controls on dissent put in place before the week-long congress, which kicked off on 12 January.

Vietnam

Crackdown on bloggers in run-up to Communist Party Congress

Police in Vietnam have been arresting bloggers in recent weeks in an apparent crackdown on dissent before a crucial Communist Party Congress, report Reporters Without Borders (RSF), Human Rights Watch and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). With a total of 17 cyber-dissidents in jail, Vietnam is the world's second biggest prison for cyber-dissidents after China, says RSF.

Vietnam

Authorities crush online dissent; activists detained incommunicado

In a two-pronged attack, Vietnamese authorities have detained, interrogated and at times physically abused at least seven independent bloggers in the past two months, simultaneously carrying out a series of insidious cyber attacks on websites critical of the government, reports Human Rights Watch. Meanwhile, rights defenders continue to face sham trials and severe prison sentences for organising for the rights of workers or supporting opposition political groups.

Vietnam

Dissidents hit with severe prison terms

Four Vietnamese bloggers, cyber-dissidents and human rights activists were sentenced to a total of 33 years in prison on 20 January, report the Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA), Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and ARTICLE 19. The mock trial of dissidents occurred against a backdrop of relentless press freedom and free expression violations.

Vietnam

Bloggers and writers sentenced to long prison terms

Dozens of dissidents have been arrested in Vietnam since September 2008 and, last week, nine Vietnamese bloggers and writers were charged with anti-government propaganda and sentenced to severe prison terms, reports Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC) of International PEN.

Vietnam

Bloggers face severe repression due to policies on China

Bloggers and journalists in Vietnam continue to be arrested for writing critically about Vietnam's policies toward China, report the Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA), the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF). China and Vietnam, where flourishing blogging cultures have encountered severe monitoring and restriction, are among Asia's worst nations for persecuting bloggers, reports CPJ.

Vietnam

Government arresting activists one by one

A young blogger and a seasoned pro-democracy activist are the most recent victims of Vietnam's clampdown on journalists and dissidents, report Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

Vietnam

DEMANDEZ LA LIBÉRATION DE DEUX DISSIDENTS VIETNAMIENS

Vietnam

PEDIDO DE LIBERACIÓN DE DOS DISIDENTES VIETNAMITAS

Vietnam

CALL FOR THE RELEASE OF TWO VIETNAMESE DISSIDENTS

This month, writer and Buddhist leader Thich Huyen Quang died at the age of 87 after spending the last 30 years of his life in prison or house arrest for campaigning for religious freedom and human rights. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) continues to call for the release of those currently detained in Vietnam for exercising their right to free expression, including two Vietnamese lawyers and cyber-dissidents who have been in jail for the past 16 months on charges of spreading propaganda against their country. Sign the RSF petition demanding their release.

Vietnam

MEDIOS DEL PAÍS CONDENAN ARRESTOS DE PERIODISTAS

Vietnam

LES MÉDIAS DU PAYS DÉNONCENT LES ARRESTATIONS DE JOURNALISTES

Vietnam

COUNTRY'S MEDIA CONDEMN JOURNALISTS' ARRESTS

The arrests of two local reporters last week for "abusing their power" by allegedly misreporting a major corruption scandal have led to an unusual confrontation between Vietnam's government and the country's state-controlled newspapers, says the Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA).

Vietnam

CIBERDISIDENTE LIBERADO ANTES DE VISITA PRESIDENCIAL A ESTADOS UNIDOS

Vietnam

UN CYBERDISSIDENT EST REMIS EN LIBERTÉ À LA VEILLE DE LA VISITE PRÉSIDENTIELLE AUX ÉTATS-UNIS

Vietnam

CYBER-DISSIDENT FREED BEFORE PRESIDENTIAL VISIT TO U.S.

Vietnam has released one of its best known cyber-dissidents from prison under a presidential amnesty, two weeks before its president visits the United States, reports Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF).

Vietnam

SEMAINE NOIRE POUR LES CYBERDISSIDENTS

Vietnam

SEMANA OSCURA PARA CIBERDISIDENTES

Vietnam

DARK WEEK FOR CYBER-DISSIDENTS

Six cyber-dissidents were sentenced to harsh prison sentences in the past week in what Reporters Without Borders (Reporters Sans Frontières, RSF) is calling the worst crackdown since 2002.

Vietnam

UN PRÊTRE MILITANT EST CONDAMNÉ À HUIT ANS DE PRISON POUR AVOIR RÉPANDU DE LA « PROPAGANDE »

Vietnam

SACERDOTE ACTIVISTA RECIBE OCHO AÑOS DE CÁRCEL POR DIFUNDIR "PROPAGANDA"

Vietnam

ACTIVIST PRIEST GETS EIGHT YEARS FOR DISSEMINATING "PROPAGANDA"

A priest in Vietnam has been jailed for eight years on charges of distributing "propaganda" against the country, reports International PEN and Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF).

Vietnam

CRECE CENSURA DE INTERNET

Vietnam

LA CENSURE DE L'INTERNET S'APPESANTIT

Vietnam

INTERNET CENSORSHIP GROWING

Internet censorship in Vietnam is increasing, with authorities using more sophisticated filtering technologies to deny citizens in the country access to websites that contain information deemed politically sensitive, warns the Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA).

Vietnam

DE NOUVELLES RÈGLES QUI VISENT À CONTRER UNE PRESSE DEVENUE IMPATIENTE

Vietnam

NUEVAS REGLAS BUSCAN OBSTACULIZAR PRENSA ENTUSIASTA

Vietnam

NEW RULES AIM TO STYMIE EAGER PRESS

Vietnam's ruling Communist Party will introduce new press regulations in July 2006 that stiffen penalties for journalists who report on sensitive issues, including corruption, says the Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA). The move is apparently aimed at stemming the rise of more aggressive reporting following the party's move in recent years to show more openness and transparency.

Vietnam

MIEMBROS DE IFEX PLANTEAN INQUIETUDES POR LIBRE EXPRESIÓN

Vietnam

IFEX MEMBERS RAISE FREE EXPRESSION CONCERNS

As Vietnam's prime minister, Phan Van Khai, met in Washington, D.C. on 21 June 2005 for an historic state visit with US President George W. Bush, Human Rights Watch, Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) used the occasion to highlight concerns about censorship and other human rights abuses in Vietnam.

Vietnam

TROIS CYBERDISSIDENTS CONDAMNÉS

Vietnam

TRES CIBERDISIDENTES SENTENCIADOS

Vietnam

THREE CYBER-DISSIDENTS SENTENCED

July has been a busy month for Vietnam's censors. Three writers have been convicted for advocating freedom of expression and political reform, report Human Rights Watch, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontiers, RSF) and the Writers in Prison Committee of International PEN (WiPC).

Vietnam

LIBERAN A CIBERDISIDENTE ENFERMO; OTROS SEIS SIGUEN EN PRISIÓN

Vietnam

AILING CYBER-DISSIDENT FREED; SIX OTHERS STILL IN PRISON

Lê Chi Quang, arrested in February 2002 for posting online essays critical of the Vietnamese government, was released from prison on 14 June 2004. Reporters sans frontières (RSF) says that the cyber-dissident's severe kidney problems, untreated in prison, appear to have been the reason for his release.

Vietnam

PEN INTERNACIONAL INICIA CAMPAÑA DE LIBRE EXPRESIÓN

Vietnam

LE PEN LANCE UNE CAMPAGNE DE DÉFENSE DE LA LIBRE EXPRESSION

Vietnam

PEN LAUNCHES FREE-EXPRESSION CAMPAIGN

The Writers in Prison Committee of International PEN (WiPC) has kicked off a month-long campaign to draw attention to free expression violations in Vietnam, focusing on 10 writers currently in prison or under house arrest.

Vietnam

CONDAMNÉ À 12 ANS DE PRISON DANS LE CADRE D?UNE NOUVELLE CAMPAGNE DE RÉPRESSION

Vietnam

"CYBER-DISSIDENT" JAILED 12 YEARS AMIDST FRESH CRACKDOWN

The Vietnamese government has imposed the heaviest prison term ever on an individual for internet activities, sentencing Nguyen Khac Toan to 12 years in prison, Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) says. The heavy sentence comes amidst a recent wave of arrests and trials of pro-democracy advocates who are simply exercising their freedom of speech, Human Rights Watch (HRW) notes.

Vietnam

NUEVOS CONTROLES A INFORMACIÓN EN MEDIO DE ESCÁNDALO DE CORRUPCIÓN

Vietnam

CONTRÔLES SUR L?INFORMATION AU MOMENT OÙ ÉCLATE UN SCANDALE DE CORRUPTION

Vietnam

NEW CONTROLS ON INFORMATION AMID CORRUPTION SCANDAL

The Vietnamese government has renewed its efforts to control information and curtail free expression, report the Committee to Protect Journalists, Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF), and the World Association of Newspapers (WAN).

Vietnam

PARTIDO COMUNISTA INCREMENTA ACOSO A DISIDENTES

Vietnam

LE PARTI COMMUNISTE INTENSIFIE SES MESURES DE HARCÈLEMENT CONTRE LES DISSIDENTS

Vietnam

COMMUNIST PARTY STEPS UP HARASSMENT OF DISSIDENTS

Amidst an "escalation in the harassment of Vietnamese dissidents," the Vietnamese government has recently signed a decree ordering police to "confiscate and destroy publications that do not have official approval," reports the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Signed on 8 January, the decree targets various publications for confiscation, including the memoirs of Vietnam's most well-known dissident, Tran Do, and hard-copy editions of an Internet forum containing articles supportive of political reform. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) notes that Tran Do is a retired general and former senior Communist Party official who has been advocating reform.

Vietnam

"CIBERDISIDENTE" CONDENADO A 12 AÑOS EN MEDIO DE NUEVOS ATAQUES

Vietnam

HRW DICE QUE LA LIBERTAD DE PRENSA SUFRE

Vietnam

HRW ISSUES REPORT ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND PRESS FREEDOM

On 15 December, Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued a report on the state of human rights and freedom of expression in Vietnam. According to the report, the twenty-fifth anniversary of Vietnam's reunification saw the government maintaining tight control over freedom of expression and other basic rights. The restrictions on free expression include the following: authorities continued to take strong action against those who criticized the ruling Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) or spoke out in favour of democratic change; a wide range of political subjects remained off-limits to the media; peaceful critics of the government continued to have few outlets for independent expression; the domestic media remained under strict state control and published scarcely any criticism of the government; foreign journalists were warned against contacting dissidents and foreign publications were occasionally censored; and Internet access remained tightly controlled. Furthermore, provisions in the 1999 Press Law, which allowed media outlets to be sued for defamation whether the information they publish is accurate or not, were applied for the first time in September 2000.

Vietnam

À LA VEILLE DE LA VISITE DE CLINTON, LES LIBERTÉS SONT TOUJOURS ABSENT

Vietnam

LIBERTADES SIGUEN AUSENTES EN VÍSPERAS DE VISITA ESTADOUNIDENSE

Vietnam

FREEDOMS STILL ABSENT ON EVE OF U.S. VISIT

As President Bill Clinton prepares to visit Vietnam on 16 November, Human Rights Watch (HRW) urges him to prioritise human rights and free expression issues in his discussions with authorities. While Vietnam has recently made some progressive moves towards greater freedoms with its release of many political detainees, the government "continues to seriously curtail fundamental freedoms - particularly freedom of expression by dissidents and freedom of association by independent religious groups and trade unions," says HRW. Among its other recommendations, HRW urges the US government to demand that Vietnam immediately release all political and religious prisoners, and "end its censorship and control over the domestic media, including the Internet and electronic communications, recognizing that a free press is essential in promoting civil and political rights." In particular, HRW suggests that the Vietnamese government amend or repeal its 1999 Press Law and its 1993 Law on Publications, both of which "limit the right of the domestic and foreign press to report independently and accurately without penalties or censorship."

Vietnam

ACTIVISTAS PIDEN LIBERACIÓN DEL DISIDENTE HA SY PHU

Vietnam

DES MILITANTS DEMANDENT LA REMISE EN LIBERTÉ DU DISSIDENT HA SY PHU

Vietnam

ACTIVISTS APPEAL FOR RELEASE OF DISSIDENT HA SY PHU

The continued persecution of biologist and Vietnamese dissident Ha Sy Phu has been met with outcry from members of the international community, Vietnamese activists in exile and Vietnamese activists within the country. Put under house arrest on 12 May, Ha faces from seven years' imprisonment to the death penalty under the charge of treason for his participation in drafting an open appeal for greater democracy, report Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE). A biologist, former vice-director of the Vietnamese Institute of Science, and a member of a group of intellectual dissidents, Ha has long been the target of government attack. He is most known for his work promoting democracy and critiquing the government. Ha was first arrested and imprisoned without trial in December 1995 for "revealing state secrets," when he was found "in possession of a letter from then-Prime Minister Vo Van Kiet to the Politburo, calling for political and economic reforms," says HRW. He was sentenced for one year in prison in August 1996. Since his release in 1997, he has been living under house arrest, has been subjected to several raids on his house and has had his computer and other belongings confiscated by authorities.

Vietnam

HISTORIAL DE DERECHOS HUMANOS SIGUE INCUMPLIENDO

Vietnam

LES DROITS DE LA PERSONNE SONT TOUJOURS EN PANNE

Vietnam

HUMAN RIGHTS RECORD CONTINUES TO FALL SHORT

Vietnam's human rights performance continues to fall far short of international standards despite economic and social changes since the late 1980's, says Human Rights Watch (HRW) in a recently released report entitled "Vietnam: Silencing of Dissent". While the report notes some of the positive changes that have taken place in recent years in Vietnam as the country has opened up more to the international community, it stipulates that significant human rights problems remain. Freedom of expression, free association, and other basic rights continue to be seriously constrained and Vietnam's domestic media remains under strict state control, says the report.

Vietnam

LEY ESTRECHA CONTROL DEL ESTADO SOBRE MEDIOS; ESCRITOR LIBERADO

Vietnam

UN ÉCRIVAIN EST REMIS EN LIBERTÉ

Vietnam

LAW TIGHTENS STATE CONTROL OF THE MEDIA; WRITER RELEASED

The Vietnamese government has passed a new law tightening state control of the media, including the Internet, reports the World Association of Newspapers (WAN). Vietnam's National Assembly recently passed a new press law giving the Ministry of Culture and Information sole responsibility for all media outlets, including the Internet, says WAN. Under one provision, compensation is reportedly to be paid "to anyone hurt by a report, even if it was accurate." WAN notes that the government controls all publications, as well as radio and television broadcasts. Timothy Balding, Director General of WAN, says, "By tightening its already tight control over the media, Vietnam is moving in the opposite direction of countries which recognize that establishing free media is a good investment for political, economic and social stability."

Vietnam

L'ARRESTATION D'UN ÉCRIVAIN DISSIDENT SUSCITE LA PEUR

Vietnam

DISSIDENT WRITER'S ARREST PROVOKES FEARS OF CRACKDOWN

The arrest and detention of dissident writer Nguyen Thanh Giang in Vietnam has provoked fears of a widespread crackdown on dissidents, report the Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC) of International PEN, Human Rights Watch (HRW) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Giang, a prominent geologist whose articles on corruption within the Communist Party have frequently been published on the Internet and in newspapers published by Vietnamese living in exile, was arrested by police on 4 March in Hanoi. HRW says Giang may be sentenced for "crimes against national security" under Article 82 of the Criminal Code, reportedly for possessing "anti-socialist propaganda," which could incur a long prison term. His whereabouts remain unknown and there is concern for his safety. Giang, whose writings include "Human Rights, the Thousand Year Aspiration" (1996), was forced to resign from his job in 1995, summoned for questioning repeatedly by the police and was detained for three days in March 1998.

Vietnam

ARRESTO DE ESCRITOR PROVOCA TEMORES DE OFENSIVA CONTRA DISIDENTES

Vietnam

PLUS DE LIBERTÉ POUR LES JOURNALISTES, MAIS LA CRAINTE DES LOIS DEMEURE

Vietnam

JOURNALISTS FREER BUT STILL COWED BY LAWS

Most journalists in Vietnam refuse to challenge the government's tight grip on the media, reports the International Press Institute in "IPI Report" (Third Quarter 1998), despite the move towards a free-market economy that started in 1989.

Vietnam

PERIODISTAS MÁS LIBRES PERO TODAVÍA INTIMIDADOS POR LEYES