USAGM releases statement re conviction of Vietnamese blogger

CEO Amanda Bennett (pictured) released the following statement regarding the conviction of Radio Free Asia contributor Nguyen Lan Thang. 

Nguyen was sentenced to six years in prison by the Hanoi’s People’s Court on charges of spreading anti-state propaganda. The charge against him came under Article 117 of Vietnam’s criminal code, which is often used by authorities to suppress free speech on social media. 

This conviction brings the total number of USAGM network contributors jailed in Vietnam to six. Others held include Nguyen Tuong Thuy, Truong Duy Nhat, and Nguyen Van Hoa from RFA, and Le Anh Jung and Pham Chi Dung from Voice of America.

CEO Bennett statement: 

“The sentencing of Nguyen Lan Thang in Vietnam strikes yet another blow against free speech and freedom of the press in Vietnam.  

For nearly a decade, Nguyen Lan Thang shared timely and prescient perspectives on freedom, democracy, and human rights with the Vietnamese audience of Radio Free Asia.  

I join the chorus of international voices calling on the government of Vietnam to drop all charges and immediately release Nguyen Lan Thang.”

[Source: USAGM press release]