Vietnam jails three critics ahead of major party congress
Vietnam yesterday jailed three pro-democracy bloggers on anti-state charges, one of their lawyers said, weeks ahead of the communist government's party congress.
The run-up to a leadership transition later this month is a particularly tense period for the state as candidates jostle for power behind closed doors.
In recent months, the authoritarian regime has stepped up its crackdown on dissent and has arrested numerous critics.
At a quick trial in Ho Chi Minh City, three critics of the state who belong to the outlawed Independent Journalists Association of Vietnam (IJAV) were sentenced to jail for "making and disseminating information against" Vietnam.
High-profile writer Pham Chi Dung, 54, founding member and president of IJAV, was jailed for 15 years, while military veteran Nguyen Tuong Thuy, 69, was sentenced to 11 years.
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