Vietnamese Journalist Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison for Criticising Government
HANOI: A Vietnamese court has sentenced a leading independent journalist to 30 months in prison over Facebook posts that criticised the government, state media said.
Background on Huy Duc
Huy Duc, also known as Truong Huy San, is a former senior army lieutenant who worked for influential state-run newspapers before authoring one of Vietnam’s most popular blogs and Facebook accounts. He is known for criticising the country’s communist leaders on issues such as corruption, media control, and relations with China.
The Trial
The court in Hanoi convicted the 63-year-old of "abusing democratic freedoms to infringe upon the interests of the state" through posting 13 articles on Facebook, according to Vietnam News Agency. The trial lasted just a few hours.
Charges and Evidence
The indictment stated that the articles had a large number of interactions, comments, and shares, causing negative impacts on social order and safety. It is unclear if the charges related to specific posts, including those that targeted the country’s most powerful leader To Lam and his predecessor Nguyen Phu Trong.
Condemnation from Rights Groups
Vietnam, a one-party state, has no free media and clamps down hard on any dissent. It is one of the world’s top jailers of journalists, according to the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) press freedom campaign group. Rights campaigners say the government has in recent years stepped up a crackdown on civil society.
Profile of Huy Duc
Huy Duc, whose real name is Truong Huy San, is a former senior army lieutenant. He was fired from a state news outlet in 2009 for criticising past actions by Vietnam’s former communist ally, the Soviet Union. He spent a year at Harvard University on a Nieman Fellowship in 2012, where he published his account of life in Vietnam after the end of the war with the US, "The Winning Side".
RSF’s View
RSF said previously that his articles were "an invaluable source of information enabling the Vietnamese public to access censored information by the Hanoi regime".
Government Crackdown on Dissent
Rights campaigners point to the recent trend of the government cracking down on civil society. In December, Vietnam enacted new rules requiring Facebook and TikTok to verify user identities and hand over data to authorities. Under "Decree 147", all tech giants operating in Vietnam must verify user accounts by phone numbers or Vietnamese identification numbers and store that information alongside their full name and date of birth.
Conclusion
The sentencing of Huy Duc is the latest in a series of moves by the Vietnamese government to silence independent voices and suppress dissent. The country’s poor record on press freedom and freedom of expression is a concern for rights groups and the international community.
FAQs
- What is the charge against Huy Duc?
The charge is "abusing democratic freedoms to infringe upon the interests of the state" through posting 13 articles on Facebook. - How long was Huy Duc sentenced to prison?
He was sentenced to 30 months in prison. - What is the background of Huy Duc?
Huy Duc is a former senior army lieutenant who worked for influential state-run newspapers before authoring one of Vietnam’s most popular blogs and Facebook accounts. - What is the current state of press freedom in Vietnam?
Vietnam, a one-party state, has no free media and clamps down hard on any dissent. It is one of the world’s top jailers of journalists, according to the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) press freedom campaign group.