CONTROLS ON SPEECH
The state Vietnam News Agency (VNA) said Trien and his lawyers had argued that he was exercising his right to free speech in the posts, and they did not violate the law.
But the court ruled that while free speech was recognised by the Vietnamese constitution, people must not “take advantage” of this to damage state interests, VNA reported.
“The trial panel determined that Tran Dinh Trien’s actions were very serious, negatively affecting security, order, and social safety,” VNA said.
While Vietnam notionally allows free speech, in practice it is very tightly restricted, and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) ranks the country 74th out of 180 for press freedom, describing it as one of the world’s worst jailers of journalists.
Article 331 of the penal code – the section Trien was charged under – was used to convict and sentence at least 24 people in 2024 alone, according to Human Rights Watch.
Ahead of the verdict in the trial, held over a day and a half under tight security, The 88 Project – which advocates for freedom of expression in Vietnam – said the charges against Trien were a violation of international law.
Last month new rules came into force in Vietnam requiring Facebook and TikTok to verify user identities and hand over data to authorities.
Under “Decree 147”, all tech giants operating in Vietnam must verify user accounts by phone numbers or Vietnamese identification numbers and store that information alongside their full name and date of birth.
Source: CNA
