Exile the price of freedom for Vietnamese blogger Ta Phong Tan
Nearly two months after her early release from a decade-long prison sentence, Vietnamese blogger Ta Phong Tan is settling into life in exile in the U.S. Hers was the latest in a series of U.S. State Department-negotiated releases of political prisoners held on anti-state charges on condition they promptly leave Vietnam, removed from their families,…
Poor trade-off: Jailed journalists released into exile as Vietnam pushes for weapons deal
In September, Vietnamese blogger Ta Phong Tan was released after serving three years of a 10-year prison term and was immediately flown to Los Angeles. In October 2014 Tan’s colleague Nguyen Van Hai, whom she co-founded the Free Journalists Club with in 2007 and who was also imprisoned for his work, followed the same route.
US-Vietnam strategic partnership must be contingent on press freedom
Secretary of State John Kerry’s recent visit to Vietnam was made to celebrate the 20th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the former adversaries. While Kerry’s speech during his three-day tour emphasized the need for Hanoi to improve its rights record to deepen bilateral ties, it is time Washington dispensed with vaulted rhetoric and predicated future…
Q&A: Ta Phong Tan’s sister calls for release of ailing and jailed Vietnamese blogger
As an independent blogger, Ta Phong Tan often highlighted abuses in Vietnam’s justice system. Now as a prisoner of conscience serving a 10-year sentence for “propagandizing against the state,” an anti-state offense under Article 88 of Vietnam’s criminal code, she is suffering under the same abusive system she once critiqued and exposed.
Dieu Cay on solitary confinement, hunger strikes, and his fight for press freedom
EDITOR’S NOTE: Held in solitary confinement and stripped of his human rights, Vietnamese blogger Nguyen Van Hai suffered greatly during his six and a half years in prison. The 63-year-old outspoken critic of the repressive Vietnamese government was granted early release from a 12-year sentence last year, thanks in part to campaigning by CPJ. Hai,…
Jailed Vietnamese blogger Ta Phong Tan on hunger strike over mistreatment
Incarcerated blogger Ta Phong Tan has been on hunger strike since May 13 to protest the mistreatment of political prisoners at the prison where she is being held in Vietnam’s central Thanh Hoa province, according to news reports. It is believed to be the third time Tan has fasted in protest at poor prison conditions…
In Vietnam, arrests dash hopes that crackdown on bloggers will end
What one hand gives, the other takes in Vietnam. Last October’s early release of jailed blogger Nguyen Van Hai, more commonly known as Dieu Cay, has proven to be an anomaly as authorities have subsequently ramped up their repression of other independent bloggers.
Undercover in Vietnam: Room for debate frees up but bloggers remain imprisoned
In the final part of CPJ’s “Undercover in Vietnam” series on press freedom in Vietnam, Southeast Asia Representative Shawn Crispin reveals how prominent blogger Nguyen Van Hai remains behind bars for his critical writing despite the margin for debate opening. The series concludes with recommendations for the Vietnamese government and international bodies. Incarcerated for the…
Undercover in Vietnam: Exile is high price reporters pay for press freedom
In the third of CPJ’s four-part “Undercover in Vietnam” series on press freedom in Vietnam, CPJ Southeast Asia Representative Shawn Crispin interviews a reporter living in exile after challenging the censorship imposed in newsrooms. The final part, to be published Tuesday, reveals how prominent bloggers remain behind bars despite the margin for critical debate opening.…
Undercover in Vietnam: Reporters become martyrs for their paper’s cause
In the second of CPJ’s four-part “Undercover in Vietnam” series on press freedom in Vietnam, CPJ Southeast Asia Representative Shawn Crispin reveals the persecution faced by Redemptorist News journalists, who have been jailed, harassed, and had their passports revoked for reporting on human rights. In part three, due to be published Monday, Crispin interviews a…