December 5, 2014

Vietnam President Suspends Execution of Convict after Mass Petition

by • Ho Duy Hai

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In Vietnam, the single ruling communist party controls all executive, procuracy and court while police power abuse is rampant. The role of lawyers of defendants is also weak. According to the state media, a number of people were wrongfully sentenced to death and heavy imprisonments in murder cases during the past decade.
 

By Vu Quoc Ngu | Dec 05, 2014

Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang has ordered authorities in the southern province of Long An to temporarily suspend the execution of one local resident convicted in a murder case after receiving petitions from many civil societies and numerous people, state media reported.
The president’s order came out on Dec 4, one day prior to the planned execution of Ho Duy Hai, who was accused of killing two female staffs in Nhi Thanh commune in Thu Thua district in 2008, and was sentenced to death despite the lack of strong evidence against him.
During the past seven years, Mr. Hai’s mother has sought justice for her son as she sent petition to many state agencies, asking for re-investigation into the case.
Sharing sympathy with Mr. Hai’s family, civil societies and many Vietnamese have voiced online, asking the president to suspend the sentence’s implementation for further investigation to avoid mistake of procuracy, police investigation and unfair trial.
In Vietnam, the single ruling communist party controls all executive, procuracy and court while police power abuse is rampant. The role of lawyers of defendants is also weak.
According to the state media, a number of people were wrongfully sentenced to death and heavy imprisonments in murder cases during the past decade.

Earlier this year, Nguyen Thanh Chan in the northern province of Bac Giang was released after ten years in prison on accusation of killing one local resident. He demanded a compensation of VND10 billion ($500,000) for the wrong sentence and police torture as the real murder confessed his sin in the case.

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