Birth date: 1949
Activity: Retired military officer
Date of arrest: July 7, 2009
Sentence: Sentenced to 5.5 years imprisonment followed by 3 years house arrest on December 28, 2009
Charge: Attempting to overthrow the government (Article 79)
Current location: Prison Camp 6, Nghe An Province
A former army colonel, Tran Anh Kim is a member of the Democratic Party of Vietnam and pro-democracy Bloc 8406. Authorities accused him of working with “reactionary Vietnamese and hostile forces in exile” by publishing articles on the Internet with contents opposing the government. This initial charge of anti-state propaganda (Article 88) was changed to the more serious offense of subversion (Article 79) at Kim’s trial.
