Journalism Pakistan
Journalism Pakistan
Freedom of expression shrinks in Pakistan as PECA Amendments take toll: report اظہارِ رائے کی آزادی محدود، پیکا میں ترامیم سے میڈیا کو شدید دھچکا: رپورٹDawn urges Indian media to abandon war rhetoric ڈان کی بھارتی میڈیا سے جنگی بیانیہ ترک کرنے کی اپیلIndia bans 16 Pakistani YouTube channels following Pahalgan attack پہلگام حملے کے بعد بھارت نے پاکستان کے 16 یوٹیوب چینلز پر پابندی لگا دی'In A Different Realm' offers a philosophical take on cricket's greatest innings ان اے ڈیفرنٹ ریلم کرکٹ کی عظیم ترین اننگز پر ایک فکری نقطۂ نظر پیش کرتی ہےCoordinated or coincidence? Identical tweets by Pakistani journalists raise eyebrows ہم آہنگی یا محض اتفاق؟ پاکستانی صحافیوں کے ایک جیسے ٹویٹس نے سوالات اٹھا دیےThe PSL paradox: pageantry or progress? پی ایس ایل کا تضاد: دکھاوا یا ترقی؟Sher Afzal Marwat launches personal attacks on journalists after PTI expulsion پی ٹی آئی سے نکالے جانے کے بعد شیر افضل مروت کے صحافیوں پر ذاتی حملےJournalist Sanaullah Khan alleges FIA blocking accounts of YouTubers and families صحافی ثناء اللہ خان کا انکشاف: ایف آئی اے یوٹیوبرز اور ان کے خاندانوں کے اکاؤنٹس بلاک کر رہی ہےA launch in style: Dr. Nauman Niaz unveils 'In A Different Realm' ان اے ڈفرنٹ ریلم کی رونمائی: ڈاکٹر نعمان نیاز کی کتاب Sindhi journalist AD Shar brutally murdered, PFUJ declares three-day mourning سندھی صحافی اے ڈی شر کا بہیمانہ قتل، پی ایف یو جے نے تین روزہ سوگ کا اعلان کر دیاAJK government registers case against newspaper and staff آزاد کشمیر حکومت کا اخبار اور عملے کے خلاف مقدمہJournalist Arzoo Kazmi alleges FIA threats, possible arrest over reporting صحافی آرزو کاظمی کا دعویٰ: ایف آئی اے کی دھمکیاں، رپورٹنگ پر ممکنہ گرفتاری

Vietnam sentences blogger to 10 years in prison

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published June 29, 2017

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Vietnam sentences blogger to 10 years in prison

HANOI - A prominent Vietnamese blogger was sentenced Thursday to 10 years in prison after being found guilty of distorting government policies and defaming the Communist regime in Facebook posts and in interviews with foreign media, her lawyer said.

Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, also known as "Mother Mushroom," was sentenced at the end of a one-day trial in the south-central province of Khanh Hoa, lawyer Vo An Don said.

Her conviction related to the content of 18 articles on her Facebook page and interviews with foreign news outlets such as Voice of America and Radio Free Asia, Don said.

Quynh, 37, co-founded a network of bloggers and is very popular in Vietnam. She has written about human rights, civilian deaths in police custody and the release of toxic chemicals by a Taiwanese-owned factory that killed thousands of fish in one of Vietnam's worst environmental disasters.

Quynh, the single mother of two young children, maintained her innocence throughout the trial, her lawyer said.

"Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh did not admit that she committed any crime, saying she has a right to freedom of expression," Don said.

Don said the sentence was "too harsh and unjust" and that Quynh plans to appeal the verdict.

Quynh was arrested in October when she was visiting a fellow activist in prison.

International human rights groups including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and Sweden-based Civil Rights Defenders have called for her immediate release.

"The scandal here is not what Mother Mushroom said, but Hanoi's stubborn refusal to repeal draconian, rights-abusing laws that punish peaceful dissent and tarnish Vietnam's international reputation," said Phil Robertson, Human Rights Watch's deputy Asia director.

In a joint statement, Amnesty International and Civil Rights Defenders urged Vietnam "to refrain from criminalizing and prosecuting people for peacefully expressing the right to freedom of expression and to respect and protect the right to a fair trial."

Responding to the calls for the blogger's release, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Le Thi Thu Hang said Quynh's trial was held in accordance with Vietnamese law.

"Like other countries in the world, in Vietnam, all law-violating acts must be strictly dealt with in accordance with the regulations of Vietnamese law," Hang said at a regular news briefing.

In March, Quynh received the International Women of Courage Award from the U.S. State Department. Vietnam said the award "was not appropriate and of no benefit to the development of the relations between the two countries."

In 2015, Quynh was given the Civil Rights Defender of the Year award by the Swedish rights group.

According to Human Rights Watch, there are about 110 known political prisoners in Vietnam.

Vietnam denies it holds any political prisoners, saying only those who break the law are put behind bars. - AP

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