Vietnam urged to release bloggers

Vietnam urged to release bloggers

The Vietnamese government should release three bloggers arrested over the last few weeks and stop physical attacks on critics, Human Rights Watch said Thursday.

In the last month bloggers Truong Duy Nhat, Pham Viet Dao, and Dinh Nhat Uy were arrested on charges of "abusing democratic freedoms."

Other activists have been assaulted by police, the group said, including blogger Nguyen Hoang Vi, 26, who was allegedly beaten unconscious by police.

"The latest arrests and assaults on bloggers show how afraid the government is of open discussion on democracy and human rights," said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch.

With more than a third of Vietnam's 90 million people online, blogs and social media are providing an increasingly popular platform for people to vent their views on issues not covered in the mainstream press.

On the sidelines of a meeting at the National Assembly this week, Minister of Information and Communication Nguyen Bac Son said the internet was a “"store of knowledge" but warned against content which harmed customs and traditions and "sabotaged the country."

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