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Dissident lawyer freed from Vietnam jail, now in Germany
BERLIN, June 8, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Vietnamese lawyer and pro-democracy
activist Nguyen Van Dai has been released from jail and arrived in Germany
Friday along with his wife and assistant, the foreign ministry in Berlin
said.
Dai and his assistant Le Thu Ha were released from prison late Thursday
and put on an overnight flight to Germany, along with Dai’s wife Vu Minh
Khanh.
Dai, a leading member of the Brotherhood for Democracy (BFD) activist
group, was sentenced to 15 years in jail in April, while Ha got nine years.
Four others were also convicted in the case that drew international
condemnation for Vietnam’s harsh treatment of critics.
The group has called for multi-party democracy in communist-ruled Vietnam,
where political parties and independent press are banned.
Germany greeted their release as “a remarkable humanitarian step and a
good signal to the international community” after months of diplomatic
tensions between Berlin and Hanoi.
Relations have been icy since last July’s Cold War-style kidnapping by
Vietnamese agents of a fugitive Vietnamese executive from a Berlin park,
which Hanoi has denied.
“Germany should be highly commended for giving asylum to Nguyen Van Dai,
his wife and his assistant,” said Phil Robertson, Deputy Asia Director of
Human Rights Watch.
“Vietnam’s rights abusing behaviour to punish people who dare use their
voices and their actions to demand real reform is outrageous and
unconscionable.”
Dai’s lawyer said his client had chosen not to appeal his prison verdict
in April because he had been planning to leave Vietnam since his arrest in
2015.
“After Dai was arrested, representatives from many embassies met him and
gave him some options of countries where he could move,” lawyer Nguyen Van
Mieng told AFP Friday.
“He needed to consult with his wife but later he picked Germany,” he
added.
The European Union, the United States and the United Nations had all
issued harsh rebukes after the April trial.
The four others sentenced to between seven and 12 years lost their appeal
bid this week and remain in prison.
Dai served four years in prison on 2007 for anti-state activity, and has
long been a problem for Vietnamese authorities.
He was one of the founders of BFD, a nationwide pro-democracy network
which has seen several members jailed in recent months.
The one-party state has long jailed its critics, but rights groups say a
conservative leadership in place since 2016 is tightening its grip and
handing out heavier sentences.
Amnesty International says at least 97 prisoners of conscience are behind
bars.
BSS/AFP/RY/1741 hrs