Conviction of Vietnamese blogger condemned by USAGM

April 13, 2023

Washington, D.C. — CEO Amanda Bennett released the following statement regarding the conviction of Radio Free Asia contributor Nguyen Lan Thang.

Nguyen was sentenced to six years in prison by the Hanoi’s People’s Court on charges of spreading anti-state propaganda. The charge against him came under Article 117 of Vietnam’s criminal code, which is often used by authorities to suppress free speech on social media.

This conviction brings the total number of USAGM network contributors jailed in Vietnam to six. Others held include Nguyen Tuong Thuy, Truong Duy Nhat, and Nguyen Van Hoa from RFA, and Le Anh Hung and Pham Chi Dung from Voice of America.

CEO Bennett statement:

“The sentencing of Nguyen Lan Thang in Vietnam strikes yet another blow against free speech and freedom of the press in Vietnam.

For nearly a decade, Nguyen Lan Thang shared timely and prescient perspectives on freedom, democracy, and human rights with the Vietnamese audience of Radio Free Asia.

I join the chorus of international voices calling on the government of Vietnam to drop all charges and immediately release Nguyen Lan Thang.”

Find out more

Contact Office of Public Affairs

publicaffairs@usagm.gov
(202) 920-2380

Amanda Bennett

Chief Executive Officer

Amanda Bennett is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, investigative journalist and editor. She was named Director of Voice of America in March 2016, serving until June 2020. Previously she was Executive Editor of Bloomberg News, where she created and ran a global team of investigative reporters and editors; Editor of The Philadelphia Inquirer; Editor of the Herald-Leader in Lexington, Kentucky; and a managing editor at The Oregonian in Portland, Oregon. Bennett served as a Wall Street Journal reporter for 23 years, including stints in Toronto and Beijing. She has also been a contributing columnist for The Washington Post.

United States Agency for Global Media