ietnam Court Gives 15 month suspended prison sentence for “abusing democratic freedoms” through Facebook posts October 29, 2013 Hanoi — A Vietnamese activist received a 15 month suspended prison sentence Tuesday for “abusing democratic freedoms” through his Facebook posts — part of an escalating crackdown on dissent by the communist regime. Dinh Nhat Uy, 30, was convicted at the end of a one-day trial in the southern province of Long An on charges related to an Internet campaign against his brother’s imprisonment for spreading anti-government propaganda, his lawyer said. Uy’s case was apparently the first time a Vietnamese activist has gone on trial only for comments made on social media. Image taken on May 16, 2013 shows Dinh Nguyen Kha (C), brother of Dinh Nhat Uy, and Nguyen Phuong Uyen (2nd R) standing trial at a court in Long An, Vietnam (Vietnam News Agency/AFP/File, Vietnam News Agency) In Vietnam, convicts serving suspended sentences are effectively placed under house arrest, with severe restrictions on their movements and a requirement to check in regularly with police. “Uy was given a 15 month suspended sentence,” his lawyer Ha Huy Son told AFP, adding that he would have to serve an additional year of house arrest after completing his probation. “I told the court that Uy was innocent, that the charges against him were not objective,” he said, adding that he had called for Uy’s immediate release. “He is the victim of an injustice,” he added. Uy was sentenced for violations of article 258 of the penal code, which covers “abusing democratic freedoms against the interests of the state”. The charges, regularly used by authoritarian Vietnam to silence dissidents and activists, carry a maximum sentence of seven years in prison. A handful of supporters, wearing printed t-shirts and waving signs calling for his release, gathered near the Long An court but were met with a heavy security presence, photos posted online showed. Vietnam, branded an “enemy of the Internet” by Reporters Without Borders, is a one-party state that bans private media and controls all newspapers and television channels. According to Uy’s indictment — a copy of which was posted online on the banned but popular blog Dan Lam Bao — he was charged solely for Facebook postings. Usually charges for dissidents and activists relate to blog postings. In June Uy’s brother Dinh Nguyen Kha, a computer technician, was sentenced to eight years in prison — reduced to four years on appeal — for anti-government propaganda. His co-defendant, Nguyen Phuong Uyen, was sentenced to six years in jail but freed on appeal after widespread public disapproval over the harsh sentence for the 21-year-old, who was shown hugging a teddy bear in photographs posted online. After his brother’s trial Uy began campaigning online for his release. The indictment said Uy “posted bad and false information about the state, organisations and individuals”. “Those above-mentioned images and articles were seen and read by many people. Many people shared, pressed ‘like’, and gave comments, of which many comments smeared and insulted the state, organisations and citizens,” it added. New York-based Human Rights Watch — which had called for Uy’s immediate release — noted that at least 61 activists and dissidents have been jailed this year — up from roughly 40 in 2012. ?Vietnam has significantly intensified its repressive tactics against peaceful activists, pursuing what is essentially a scorched earth policy against prominent public dissidents,? HRW’s deputy Asia director Phil Robertson said. Vietnam recently introduced a sweeping new Internet law that bans bloggers and social media users from sharing news stories online, in a move seen as a further crackdown on online freedom. However, Uy has not been charged under the new legislation and it remains unclear how it will be implemented. Vietnam: Drop Charges Against Internet Activist — Revoke Penal Code Article 258 October 29, 2013 Dinh Nhat Uy Committed No Crime by Protesting Brother’s Imprisonment (Bangkok) – Vietnam’s government should unconditionally release the social campaigner Dinh Nhat Uy, Human Rights Watch said today. He is scheduled for trial in Long An provincial court on October 29, 2013, for “abuse of democratic freedoms.” Vietnam should revoke penal code article 258, under which he was charged, and stop prosecuting people for peacefully exercising their civil and political rights. FROM HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH “Vietnam’s escalating use of rights-abusing laws to suppress public criticisms and peaceful protests makes a mockery of its claims to be a rights-respecting state,” said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director. “Convicting Dinh Nhat Uy for demanding the release of his imprisoned brother and criticizing the government is an outrage, especially since the government is seeking a seat on the UN’s highest human rights body.” Authorities arrested Dinh Nhat Uy, 30, in Long An province on June 15, after he began a campaign on his Facebook account calling for the release of his brother younger brother, Dinh Nguyen Kha. Dinh Nhat Uy also used social media to post other political commentary. Dinh Nhat Uy’s arrest was the culmination of a wave of police harassment targeting the Dinh family. Dinh Nhat Uy is charged with violating penal code article 258, which Vietnam’s politically controlled courts routinely use to imprison people deemed under its provisions to “abuse the rights to freedom of speech, freedom of press, freedom of belief, religion, assembly, association, and other democratic freedoms,” to oppose the interests of the state. Dinh Nguyen Kha, 26, was arrested on October 11, 2012, for “conducting propaganda against the state” by handing out leaflets criticizing “the party and the state’s policies related to religion and land” and government policies on border disputes between Vietnam and China, state media reported. Other charges against Dinh Nguyen Kha remain pending. On May 16, the Long An provincial people’s court sentenced him to eight years for his leafleting, which was reduced to four years by an appeal court judgment on August 16. The government’s indictment against Dinh Nhat Uy, dated September 6, alleges that he violated article 258 via Facebook a month after his brother’s arrest. Thereafter, the indictment alleges, he posted “bad and false information,” such as negative evaluations of Vietnam’s leaders, reports on activities by an “anti-state organization,” and a criticism of a government attack on a human rights award. If convicted, Dinh Nhat Uy faces a prison sentence of up to three years. Dinh Nhat Uy’s trial is the latest in a crescendo of proceedings in Vietnam’s courts against political activists and dissidents so far in 2013, at least 61 of whom are known to have been convicted and sentenced to prison. This is a significant increase over the some 40 such convictions during 2012. “Vietnam has significantly intensified its repressive tactics against peaceful activists, pursuing what is essentially a scorched earth policy against prominent public dissidents,” Robertson said. “For Vietnamese activists asserting their rights, 2013 has been the year of living dangerously. The international community needs to step up and tell Vietnam that enough is enough, stop these abuses.” The increase in these cases shows that Vietnam’s authorities are trying to squelch rising civil society discontent at the Communist Party of Vietnam’s one-party rule, and to intimidate critics of rampant corruption, land seizures, severe socio-economic inequalities, economic problems, and laws that violate human rights. One manifestation of this wider social discontent is the recent formation of a network of bloggers dedicated to abolishing article 258. Despite its repressive turn, Vietnam is running for a seat on the United Nations Human Rights Council in elections scheduled for November 12. Council members are supposed to “uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights.” Vietnam’s campaign platform proclaims that human rights in the country have recently been “respected and ensured in an increasingly effective and full manner,” and in particular that the right to freedom of opinion expressed via the internet has been “enhanced.” It also pledges to adopt policies and measures to better ensure all “human rights in line with internationally recognized norms.” “Civil society activists and bloggers in Vietnam see Dinh Nhat Uy’s trial as a government effort to show it can violate human rights at will, even while it seeks a place in the UN’s highest human rights body,” Robertson said. “Foreign governments should publicly demand immediate freedom for Dinh Nhat Uy and others imprisoned in Vietnam for exercising their internationally-recognized freedoms, or expect to face difficulties during the Human Rights Council elections.” hrw.org/news/2013/10/28/vietnam -drop-charges-against-internet-activist ************ Vietnam convicts Facebook user for thinking, saying what he believes October 29, 2013 HANOI, Vietnam (AP) A Vietnamese court on Tuesday convicted a dissident of using Facebook to spread criticism of the government but suspended the 15-month prison sentence it imposed. The verdict in southern Vietnam meant Dinh Nhat Uy was released from detention. The charge sheet against Uy was the first to mention Facebook by name. The social network is frequently used by dissidents to spread news, video and photos supporting their campaign for multiparty democracy, alarming Communist rulers who used to have a monopoly on information. In a measure of the difficulties facing the government, news of the verdict spread quickly across Facebook, with many people using the opportunity to post critical commentary. Activists seeking to get close to the heavily guarded courtroom in Long An province reported several people were detained, according to accounts on Facebook. Uy’s lawyer Ha Huy Son said he was convicted of “abusing democratic freedoms” by posting criticism of the government and state-owned companies. The crime carried a maximum sentence of three years. Vietnamese courts have convicted and imprisoned at least 46 bloggers or democracy activists this year on national securing charges, more than twice the number in 2012. Foreign governments, led by the United States, and international rights groups have criticized the crackdown and called for the activists’ release. A law that took effect in September banning the sharing of news and content critical of the government on social media networks. No one has yet been charged under that law, which given the volume of content carried on Facebook would appear to be hard to enforce. The government attempts to block some websites, but interference is rare on Facebook. We could be wrong but it seems that every government that tried to restrict the free flow of news and ideas had a lot of criminal activity to hide — and was always hiding ugly human rights abuses and corruption. John Francis Carey Peace and Freedom
Posted on: Tue, 29 Oct 2013 18:47:03 +0000
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