Vietnamese blogger Huy Đức gets 30 months in jail for ‘abusing democratic freedoms’
The environment and the anti-corruption campaign led by the current secretary general Tô Lâm are among the “sensitive” issues that landed him in jail on 7 June of last year. It is not known whether he plans to appeal. International human rights groups are calling for his release.
Hanoi (AsiaNews) – A Vietnamese court today sentenced 64-year-old blogger and journalist Trương Huy San, better known by his pen name Huy Đức and author of “The Winning Side”, to two and a half years in prison for “abusing democratic freedoms” in relation to some of his social media posts, Radio Free Asia (RFA) reports, citing sources close to the family.
The activist's run-in with the law ostensibly stems from his coverage of “sensitive” issues touching current affairs, including the environment and corruption.
Police arrested him on 7 June last year under an article of the Criminal Code whose vague wording allows the courts and the government to go after dissidents and critical voices.
In recent months, appeals from abroad for his release have fallen on deaf years, confirmation of the iron fist adopted by Tô Lâm, general secretary of the Communist Party and the country’s supreme leader.
Between 2015 and 2024, Huy Đức “gathered information and documents, drafted, and posted numerous articles on his personal Facebook page - Trương Huy San (Osin Huy Đức),” his indictment reads.
“Thirteen of these articles allegedly infringed upon State interests and the rights and legitimate interests of organisations and individuals,” it goes on to say, attracting “significant interaction, comments, and shares, negatively impacting public security and social order.”
During the courtroom hearing, the blogger and activist said that he did not intend to oppose the party or state when he posted the articles, state media reported, adding that he took responsibility for his actions and apologised to affected agencies, organisations and individuals.
In his final statement, he admitted breaking the law and asked the trial council to reduce his sentence “so that he could participate in social activities.”
An anonymous source told RFA that it is not known if he plans to appeal his sentence.
Trương Huy San joined the North Vietnamese Volunteer Army Aa 18, serving in Cambodia during Vietnam’s occupation of that country in the 1980s.
He later joined Tuổi Trẻ, the newspaper of the youth wing of the Communist Party, and also wrote for other media outlets, including Thanh Niên, Diễn đàn Doanh nghiệp, Nông thôn Ngày nay, and Sài Gòn Tiếp Thị.
After falling out of favour with the authorities, he turned to social activism and book writing, publishing "The Winning Side" in 2021, centred on the Vietnam War (1954 -1975), which is no longer available in the country.
His Facebook page had more than 350,000 followers before it was shut down.
In recent years he wrote about environmental issues and the anti-corruption campaign "blazing furnace" promoted by the late Communist Party General Secretary Nguyễn Phú Trọng, which concealed a power struggle and house cleaning promoted by the then Minister of Public Security Tô Lâm, who is now the party’s general secretary.
International human rights organisations, including Human Rights Watch and Reporters Without Borders, have appealed – in vain – to Vietnamese authorities for his release.
His conviction confirms how Vietnamese authorities use and abuse two articles of the Penal Code to silence journalists and other critics.
Article 331 covers people accused of “abusing democratic freedoms to infringe upon the interests of the state, lawful rights, and interests of organizations and/or citizens.”
Article 117 relates to “making, storing, spreading information, materials, items for the purpose of opposing the State of Socialist Republic of Vietnam.”
If found guilty, and critical voices invariably are, offenders can be jailed for up to 20 years.
“When an author and journalist like Trương Huy San is silenced, it is not only his voice that is silenced, but also the right of the entire society to seek truth and accountability,” said Anh-Thư Võ, research and advocacy manager at the writers’ rights group PEN America ahead of his trial.
“Criticism is not a crime. Vietnam needs to use the law as a weapon against those who dare to speak the truth,” she added.
According to the group's 2023 Freedom to Write report, Vietnam ranks third in the world for the incarceration of writers, after China and Iran. Reporters Without Borders said in a December study that Vietnam is holding at least 38 journalists.
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