The 88 Project
Vietnam Free Expression Newsletter No. 19/2018 – Week of May 7-13
” . . . blogger Bui Hieu Vo was sentenced to four and a half years in prison under Article 88 (‘propaganda against the state’) for Facebook posts deemed to have ‘distorted the political situation’ and ‘incited public disorder . . . ‘”
Vietnam Free Expression Newsletter No. 18/2018 – Week of April 30-May 6
” . . . pro-democracy activist Tran Anh Kim is in failing health in prison. He is serving a thirteen-year sentence for his peaceful activities . . . ”
Vietnam Free Expression Newsletter No. 17/2018 – Week of April 22-29
“. . . Environmental activist Hoang Duc Binh‘s appeal of his 14-year sentence was denied . . . The appeal trial has been criticized for its brevity and the lack of evidence . . . [Binh had] covered news on the environmental disaster caused by Formosa . . . ”
Radio Free Asia
Vietnamese Catholics Petition Police Over ‘Cover Up’ For Officials Who Ordered Attack
“Catholic parishioners . . . have petitioned provincial police to take action against local officials they say ordered thugs to beat them as they tried to make improvements on disputed land . . . ”
Vietnamese Students, Parents Protest ‘Illegal’ School Fees in Nghe An
“Around 300 schoolchildren and their parents marched . . . to protest what they called the collection of illegal school fees in north-central Vietnam . . . ”
Hundreds of Villagers Hold Officials Hostage Over Vietnam Power Plant Plans
“Hundreds of villagers . . . held five local officials hostage for a day before releasing them late on Friday to demand that authorities free more than a dozen people detained for holding an environmental protest . . . ”
Criticized by Activists, Facebook Denies Favoring Vietnam Government in Content Policies
“Facebook rebutted criticism from Vietnamese activists and journalists that the social media giant favored Hanoi’s communist government in its content removal practices . . .”
UCANEWS
Vietnam jails Catholic social activist for 9 years
“. . . [Teresa Tran Thi Xuan]’s sentence was harsh and that she was being punished for helping elderly and poor people and opposing a social injustice created by the authorities . . .”