CPJ concerned about media crackdown
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is gravely concerned by your government’s recent efforts to curtail free expression in Vietnam. This renewed attempt to control information comes amid a high-profile corruption scandal, which has spurred speculation in Vietnam and abroad that the Central Committee may institute government leadership changes at its meeting later this month. During the last few weeks, the government has banned reporting on a major corruption scandal, tightened restrictions over television broadcasts and Internet access, and prevented prominent intellectuals and writers from communicating with the outside world.
Dissident jailed for posting pro-democracy essays online
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) condemns the continued incarceration of Pham Hong Son, who was detained in late March for publishing an online article about democracy. Son is the third person to be apprehended in Vietnam since February for writing or distributing content on the Internet.
Attacks on the Press 2001: Asia Analysis
Journalists across Asia faced extraordinary pressures in 2001. Risks included reporting on war and insurgency, covering crime and corruption, or simply expressing a dissenting view in an authoritarian state. CPJ’s two most striking indices of press freedom are the annual toll of journalists killed around the world and our list of journalists imprisoned at the…
Attacks on the Press 2001: Vietnam
During 2001, Vietnam forged closer ties with the international community. In July, the country hosted the Association of Southeast Asian Nations conference, and in November, the national assembly signed a long-awaited trade agreement with the United States. Spurred by China’s admission, the Vietnamese government moved ahead with efforts to enter the World Trade Organization. Yet…
Attacks on the Press 2001: Journalists in Prison
There were 118 journalists in prison around the world at the end of 2001 who were jailed for practicing their profession. The number is up significantly from the previous year, when 81 journalists were in jail, and represents a return to the level of 1998, when 118 were also imprisoned.
Dissident writers detained for criticizing Vietnam-China agreements
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is deeply concerned that writer Tran Khue has been detained following a police search of his home. Tran Khue is the third Vietnamese intellectual to face reprisals in the past few months for criticizing bilateral negotiations between China and Vietnam.
Elderly writer held incommunicado
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is gravely concerned about the safety of 73-year-old Tran Dung Tien, who was arrested on January 22, 2003, after writing an open letter calling for the release of imprisoned activists Pham Que Duong and Tran Khue. His current whereabouts are unknown, and given his advanced age, we…