Relatives of jailed activists Vu Thi Dung and Nguyen Thi Ngoc Suong and their three lawyers stand outside the High Court in Ho Chi Minh City on Sept. 23. (Photo courtesy of Manh Dang’s Facebook)
A court in southern Vietnam has rejected the appeals of two female activists who were convicted of spreading anti-government material and calling for public protests against China.
Their lawyers said the convictions were completely arbitrary and made up to imprison patriots.
The High Court in Ho Chi Minh City on Sept. 23 upheld heavy sentences of six years and five years in jail imposed on Vu Thi Dung and Nguyen Thi Ngoc Suong respectively by a court in Dong Nai province in May.
The two women, who worked at a market in their home province of Dong Nai which is home to one million Catholics, were convicted of “making, storing, distributing or disseminating information, documents and items against the Socialist Republic of Vietnam” under Article 117 of Vietnam’s Criminal Code.
According to the convictions, on Oct. 9, 2018, Dung, 54, wrote material criticizing the Communist Party and its chief Nguyen Phu Trong, calling for public demonstrations against the Chinese government, distorting the country’s situation and introducing foreign Facebook and YouTube accounts opposing the government.
Suong, 51, distributed the material to local people. Both women were arrested four days later.
Lawyer Dang Dinh Manh, one of three attorneys who defended the two activists, said the material did not mention the government. Lawyers pointed out that no rules liken the party and its chief to the government, he added.
Manh said the right to protest is declared by the national constitution and a demonstration law has not been passed by the National Assembly, so there is no legal basis to assess protests as illegal.
The lawyer, who defends victims of social injustice, said Dung was right to call for public protests about a Chinese marine invasion as Chinese troops have gradually been occupying Vietnam’s islands in recent years.
Manh said on Facebook that the activists’ actions did not violate laws as people have rights to do everything that is not banned by law.
He said judges ignored errors in the convictions and questions raised by lawyers while interrupting their arguments many times. The convictions were “completely arbitrary, fabricated, full of wrong judgment and illegal,” he added.
He said the government’s political system “fails to recognize unusual signs from the society.” Housewives and small traders dare to raise their concerns about national issues and accept prison punishment because they see injustice has reached its highest point, he said.
“Our country can only be changed and national dignity restored thanks to the unusual sacrifices of such women,” he said.
He said Dung told him at court that she was ready to accept her sentence.
