August 10, 2012
Reporters Without Borders firmly condemns the six-year jail sentence that a court in the central province of Dak Nong imposed on the blogger Dinh Dang Dinh two days ago on a charge of anti-government propaganda.
“The same charges keep on being brought against Vietnam’s bloggers,” Reporters Without Borders said. “Article 88 of the criminal code has again been used to silence criticism of the government. The summary nature of these proceedings does not bode well for other bloggers currently being tried. We urge the courts to respect Dinh’s right to due process and to overturn this unjust conviction on appeal.”
Dinh was convicted under article 88-1 (c) of the criminal code at the end of a three-hour trial in which he pleaded not guilty and defended himself because his family could not afford a lawyer. He was accused of writing and posting articles critical of the Communist Party, the government and Ho Chi Minh between late 2007 and October 2011, when he was arrested.
Read more: http://en.rsf.org/vietnamese-blogger-gets-six-years-10-08-2012,43204.html
