THURSDAY, JANUARY 30, 2003
4 jailed in Vietnam for abusing democracy
AFP
HANOI: Four people have been jailed in Vietnam for "abusing democracy" after refusing to leave their homes in the capital to make the way for the construction of a road and schools, court officials said on Wednesday. The three men and one woman were handed sentences ranging from two to three-and-a-half years in prison by the People's Court in Hanoi's Thanh Tri district.
"A total of 132 months in jail was given to four people, convicted of abusing democracy and freedom with the intent of harming the state, its agencies and other citizens," a court official said. State media accused the four of "disseminating documents that distort, slander, insult and smear the reputations of the Communist Party and state leaders at both local and central level" and inciting others to do so. Between early 2000 and November last year, Do Van My, the 62-year-old "ringleader" sent letters denouncing the local government's land-clearance policies to all 61 provincial and city authorities, as well as to members of Vietnam's Parliament
"His accomplices helped him to print and disseminate those letters to other agencies and organisations in the country," said the Quan Doi Nhan Dan, the mouthpiece of Vietnam's armed forces. The defendants all admitted their guilt during the one-day trial, it said. Land clearance is a sensitive subject in the communist nation and in recent years has generated frequent protests by farmers and residents complaining of inadequate compensation and corruption among local officials.
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