NEW DELHI: Two well-known Vietnamese Facebook users, ex-reporter Truong Huy San, 62, and lawyer Tran Dinh Trien, 65, have been arrested by the police in Vietnam on charges of “abusing democratic freedoms to infringe upon the interests of the state”, according to a government statement released on Saturday.
The arrests come as a major leadership reshuffle in the Communist-ruled country is settling down.
Although Vietnam has undergone extensive economic reform and has become increasingly open to social change, the ruling Communist Party maintains strict control over the media and tolerates little criticism.
The government’s statement indicated that San and Trien had posted articles on Facebook that infringed upon the interests of the state and the lawful rights and interests of organizations and individuals, without providing further details.
San and Trien’s Facebook accounts, which had hundreds of thousands of followers, disappeared from the platform less than a week ago, leading to speculation about their arrest. Their posts often criticized the administration and law enforcement authorities.
The announcement of their arrests follows the National Assembly’s approval of a new police minister and the naming of a new state president and parliament speaker more than two weeks ago amidst heightened political turbulence.
The government’s statement also mentioned that the police had searched the homes of San and Trien and that further investigation was ongoing.