May 23, 2012
Today, the People’s Court of Nghe An in Vietnam sentenced Dau Van Duong, Tran Huu Duc, Chu Manh Son, and Hoang Phong to terms of imprisonment ranging from two to three and a half years on charges of conducting propaganda against the State.
They were convicted for conducting anti-state propaganda.
The four were arrested last year in Vinh city, Vietnam, during the Vietnamese government’s widespread crackdown on activists and citizen journalists. MLDI, with eight other human rights organizations, has called for the release of five Vietnamese bloggers, apprehended during the same string of arrests, who remain detained without formal charge.
Messrs. Duong, Duc, Son and Phong were denied access to legal counsel until just before the trial and their families were allowed into the court room only after sustained protest by them and their supporters. The possibility of an appeal is being looked into.
Source: Media Legal Defence Initiative
