FRENCH JOURNALIST STILL HELD IN VIETNAM OVER TERRORISM CHARGES
December 13th 2007 00:00
Reporters Without Borders has repeated its call for the release of French journalist and activist Nguyen Thi Thanh Van after the Vietnamese authorities yesterday freed three US citizens who, like her, had been accused of terrorism, a charge refuted by the US ambassador to Vietnam.
"The release of the US dissident of Vietnamese origin, Leon Truong, is good news that allows us to hope that Nguyen Thi Thanh Van will also soon be freed," the Thanh Van family, their lawyer, Serge Lewisch, and Reporters Without Borders said in a joint statement.
Former French government minister Francoise Hostalier, a parliamentary representative of Nord department, is among those who have signed a petition issued by the Thanh Van support committee. The signatories include many leading Vietnamese dissidents such as Catholic priests Chan Tin and Phan Van Loi, and intellectuals Do Nam Hai, Nguyen Chinh Ket and Bui Tin. The hundreds of French signatories include some residents of L'Hay-Les-Roses, where Thanh Van lives.
Truong, who was put on a flight back to the US after his release yesterday, was arrested at the same time as Thanh Van and, like her, accused of terrorism because of his support for the unrecognised opposition party Viet Tan.
An American couple accused of supporting their so-called terrorist plot by bringing a firearm from the US were also freed yesterday and allowed to fly home. A fourth American, Nguyen Quoc Quan, is still held.
Several hours before their release, the US ambassador to Vietnam, Michael Michalak, told the press his embassy had still not received any formal notification of the charges against them.
On November 30, Thanh Van was shown on VTV4, a Vietnamese TV station targeted at overseas viewers. She was seen being forced to simulate clandestine activity, including the transport of leaflets.
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