A blogger who last year went missing from Thailand and later resurfaced in Vietnamese police custody is expected to stand trial in Vietnam later this month, his mother told Radio Free Asia.
Vietnam has neither confirmed nor denied that he was abducted and taken back to Vietnam, but shortly after his disappearance, authorities announced that they had apprehended him when trying to sneak into the country illegally.
On Friday, his mother Duong Thi Lu, told RFA Vietnamese that she visited him on Thursday and had information regarding his upcoming trial.
“The trial day will be on Oct. 30, but family [members] are not invited to attend,” she said, explaining that her son and the prison guards confirmed the date of the trial.
Thai had fled to Thailand in late 2018 or early 2019, fearing political persecution for his many posts and videos that criticized the Vietnamese government and leaders of the Communist Party on Facebook and YouTube.
He had been granted refugee status by the United Nations refugee agency’s office in Bangkok. He was interviewed to resettle in a third country right before his disappearance near his rental home in central Thailand’s Pathum Thani province.
By mid-2023, the Security Investigation Agency under the Ministry of Public Security announced that Thai was under investigation for anti-state charges under Article 117, a vaguely written law that rights organizations say is used to silence dissent.
The High People’s Court is seen during the appeal trial of another Vietnamese prominent blogger Anh Ba Sam, whose real name is Nguyen Huu Vinh, and his assistant Nguyen Thi Minh Thuy in Hanoi, Sept. 22, 2016. (Kham/Reuters)
If convicted, he could be sentenced to between five and 12 years in prison.
Separated by thick glass
According to Lu, she and her son, separated by two thick layers of glass, spoke through a phone. Neither her son nor the guards could provide any further information regarding the trial.
A source with knowledge of the situation provided RFA with a subpoena from the Hanoi People’s Court, which summoned an individual with ‘related rights and obligations’ in Thai’s case.
Signed and sealed by Judge Tran Nam Ha on Oct. 9, 2024, the document said the trial would begin at 8:30 a.m. on Oct. 30, 2024, at the headquarters of the Hanoi People’s Court.
The family has hired attorneys Le Dinh Viet and Le Van Luan, but they have not yet received the necessary permits to defend Thai. Therefore, they have not been able to access the case file or meet with their client to prepare for the defense.
RFA attempted to contact the Hanoi People’s Court to verify the information, but phone calls went unanswered. (RFA)
Height Insoles: Hi, I do believe this is an excellent site. I stumbledupon …
http://fishinglovers.net: Appreciate you sharing, great post.Thanks Again. Keep writi…
Achilles Pain causes: Every weekend i used to pay a quick visit this site, as i w…
October 16, 2024
Detained Vietnamese blogger expected to stand trial in late October
by Defend the Defenders • [Human Rights]
A blogger who last year went missing from Thailand and later resurfaced in Vietnamese police custody is expected to stand trial in Vietnam later this month, his mother told Radio Free Asia.
Duong Van Thai, 42, was living in Thailand when he disappeared on April 13, 2023, in what many believe was an abduction.
Vietnam has neither confirmed nor denied that he was abducted and taken back to Vietnam, but shortly after his disappearance, authorities announced that they had apprehended him when trying to sneak into the country illegally.
On Friday, his mother Duong Thi Lu, told RFA Vietnamese that she visited him on Thursday and had information regarding his upcoming trial.
“The trial day will be on Oct. 30, but family [members] are not invited to attend,” she said, explaining that her son and the prison guards confirmed the date of the trial.
Thai had fled to Thailand in late 2018 or early 2019, fearing political persecution for his many posts and videos that criticized the Vietnamese government and leaders of the Communist Party on Facebook and YouTube.
He had been granted refugee status by the United Nations refugee agency’s office in Bangkok. He was interviewed to resettle in a third country right before his disappearance near his rental home in central Thailand’s Pathum Thani province.
By mid-2023, the Security Investigation Agency under the Ministry of Public Security announced that Thai was under investigation for anti-state charges under Article 117, a vaguely written law that rights organizations say is used to silence dissent.
If convicted, he could be sentenced to between five and 12 years in prison.
Separated by thick glass
According to Lu, she and her son, separated by two thick layers of glass, spoke through a phone. Neither her son nor the guards could provide any further information regarding the trial.
A source with knowledge of the situation provided RFA with a subpoena from the Hanoi People’s Court, which summoned an individual with ‘related rights and obligations’ in Thai’s case.
Signed and sealed by Judge Tran Nam Ha on Oct. 9, 2024, the document said the trial would begin at 8:30 a.m. on Oct. 30, 2024, at the headquarters of the Hanoi People’s Court.
The family has hired attorneys Le Dinh Viet and Le Van Luan, but they have not yet received the necessary permits to defend Thai. Therefore, they have not been able to access the case file or meet with their client to prepare for the defense.
RFA attempted to contact the Hanoi People’s Court to verify the information, but phone calls went unanswered. (RFA)