Vietnamese authorities need to allow more space for the free exchange of ideas and address the recent spate of politically motivated arrests of activists and journalists, United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said yesterday during a visit to the country.

“I … raised concerns about human rights, including the continued detention of activists, lawyers and bloggers, for the peaceful expression of opinions and ideas,” she said at a press conference in Hanoi after meeting her Vietnamese counterpart Pham Binh Minh.

Clinton’s stop in Vietnam was part of a larger tour of the region, including stops in Laos today and Cambodia tomorrow for a meeting of Association of Southeast Asian Nations foreign ministers.

Clinton said she was particularly concerned about restrictions of free expression online and the upcoming trial of the founders of the Free Journalists Club.

The three bloggers who founded the group – Nguyen Van Hai, Phan Thanh Hai and Ta Phong Tan – were arrested in 2008, 2010 and 2011 respectively.

Their trial on charges of posting articles critical of the government has been postponed twice so far this year, with no date set to resume.

A draft Decree on Management, Provision and Use of Internet Services and Information on the Network, issued in April by the Ministry of Information, extends several speech-related crimes to the internet and compels service providers to filter content deemed objectionable by the government.

While newspapers, television and radio broadcasts are strictly controlled by the government, the internet has largely been free of restrictions.

Clinton said that developing countries must not lose sight of the link between economic prosperity and democratic reform.

“Democracy and prosperity go hand in hand. Political reform and economic growth are linked, and the United States wants to support progress in both areas.”

During her third visit to Vietnam as secretary of state, Clinton also met General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and Premier Nguyen Tan Dung.