Vietnam dissidents jailed

Pham Doan Trang is currently serving a nine-year prison sentence for conducting “propaganda against the State.”

The fundraising event touched on a number of issues of great sensitivity to Hanoi.

The Martin Ennals Award committee hailed Pham Doan Trang as an "inspirational" example for activists in Vietnam.

Hanoi's strategic importance to the U.S. and its allies has allowed the Communist Party greater leeway in silencing its critics.

Today's conviction and imprisonment of human rights defender Pham Doan Trang is part of a concerted crackdown on dissent.

Proponents of an EU trade pact said it would nudge one-party Vietnam towards greater respect for human rights. The evidence so far points in the other direction.

Nguyen Trong Nghia previously oversaw the creation of a 10,000-strong army cyber unit to combat anti-government sentiment online.

The past five years have seen a sharp increase in both the number of arrests of dissidents, and the severity of the sentences imposed on them.

Leading partners including the United States and European Union can and should do more to discourage Vietnam's fierce crackdown on dissent.

Jitters are setting in as the Vietnamese Communist Party prepares for the country's paramount political event.

The late night arrest of the activist and writer Pham Doan Trang followed an annual human rights dialogue with U.S. officials.