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Vietnam jails dissident Le Quoc Quan for tax evasion

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Vietnam jails dissident Le Quoc Quan for tax evasion

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  • Vietnam jails dissident Le Quoc Quan for tax evasion

    Vietnam jails dissident Le Quoc Quan for tax evasion
    Source: "By Cat Barton | AFP – 16 mins ago - Yahoo! News"

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    Hanoi (AFP) - Vietnam imprisoned a leading critic of the communist regime for tax evasion Wednesday -- a move described by the United States as "disturbing" -- as hundreds of supporters protested in the capital.

    Scores of police formed a ring around the Hanoi court where lawyer and blogger Le Quoc Quan was jailed for two and a half years on charges denounced by rights campaigners as politically motivated.


    A Buddhist nun holds a picture of Vietnamese activist Le Quoc Quan as hundreds of protesters attempt to approach the People's Court in Hanoi, on October 2, 2013 (AFP Photo/Cat Barton)

    "I am the victim of political acts," Le Quoc Quan told the court, flatly denying the accusations and saying he had not been allowed to see the evidence against him.

    "I will continue my fight against corruption, attacking bureaucracy and stagnancy that are undermining our country," he added.

    The 42-year-old, who appeared in the dock looking tense and unhappy, was also given a $59,000 fine after a half-day trial.

    The US Embassy in Hanoi said it was "deeply concerned" by the verdict.

    "The use of tax laws by Vietnamese authorities to imprison government critics for peacefully expressing their political views is disturbing," it said in a statement, calling for the release of all prisoners of conscience.

    When the ruling was announced, Le Quoc Quan shouted "I object" before the television feed into the observation room where an AFP correspondent was sitting was cut off.

    His company's chief accountant, Pham Thi Phuong, 31, was given eight months in jail.

    Le Quoc Quan, who blogged on a range of sensitive topics including civil rights, political pluralism and religious freedom, has been in detention since last December.

    His lawyer Ha Huy Son told the court that there were "no grounds to prosecute" the popular blogger over tax evasion, and said police had ordered tax authorities to cook up the charges.

    Rights groups estimate hundreds of activists are locked up in Vietnam for speaking out against authoritarian communist rule, including at least 46 jailed this year.

    Shouting "Free Le Quoc Quan" and waving signs calling for the Catholic lawyer's release, several hundred people blocked a key intersection in the capital as his trial got under way, causing rush-hour traffic chaos.

    The scale of the protest was unusual in Vietnam, where authorities keep a tight lid on dissent.


    Vietnamese lawyer Le Quoc Quan chants slogans during an anti-China rally in Hanoi, on July 8, 2012 (AFP Photo/)

    Le Quoc Quyet, the lawyer's younger brother, said he and his sister were prevented from marching to court to attend the trial.

    "We request to watch the trial but police stop us," he said.

    There was "some violence, the police hit, they kick some people", he added.

    Hundreds of confused commuters were caught up in the early-morning rally, with police forcing buses to turn back as they closed main roads to keep protesters from getting close to the courtroom.

    An AFP reporter was forced to leave the protest area by plainclothes police.

    Ahead of the hearing, activists said that they were being kept under virtual house arrest in a bid to prevent them from staging protests near the court.

    Vietnam -- where the Communist Party forbids all political debate -- is regularly denounced by rights groups and Western governments for its intolerance of political dissent and systematic violations of freedom of religion.

    US officials said in June that Vietnam was holding more than 120 political prisoners.


    Catholics hold candles during a mass prayer for lawyer Le Quoc Quan at Thai Ha church in Hanoi July 7, 2013. Participants in the mass prayer were calling for justice for Quan, a political dissident and democracy activist, who was arrested in 2012 for tax evasion and will be sent to trial on July 9, 2013, according to Quan's wife Mary Nguyen Thi Thu Hien. The banner reads, "Justice and Trust for lawyer Le Quoc Quan." REUTERS/Kham (VIETNAM - Tags: POLITICS RELIGION)

    In July, Reporters Without Borders said Vietnam was second only to China in the number of bloggers it detained.

    Another prominent Vietnamese blogger, best known by his pen name Dieu Cay, was charged with tax evasion in 2008.

    Dieu Cay, whose real name is Nguyen Van Hai, was given 30 months in jail.

    He was not released after completing the sentence and was later charged with conducting anti-state propaganda and sentenced to 12 years.


Hội Quán Phi Dũng ©
Diễn Đàn Chiến Hữu & Thân Hữu Không Quân VNCH




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