A third web dissident arrested

29.04.2002 On 29 April, we learned that Son Hong Pham is being detained at Prison B14, near Hanoi. His wife, Ha Thuy Vu, has not been allowed to visit him since his arrest on 27 March 2002. As a result of pressure and threats, she has been forced to leave their home, together with their two sons. According to The Democracy Club for Vietnam Club, the government has issued a statement in which the dissident is accused of "spying" and "dissemination of anti-state and anti-Vietnam Communist Party documents ". ______________________________________________________________ 17.04.2002 In a letter addressed to the Vietnamese Minister for Public Security, Lieutenant General Le Minh Huong, Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières – RSF) calls for the release of Vietnamese dissident Son Hong Pham, arrested by police for having written, translated and published on the Internet texts promoting democracy. "This new arrest of a web dissident, the third in just over a month, is a callous confirmation of the Vietnamese authorities' intention to censure freedom of expression on the Internet", states Robert Ménard, General Secretary of the organisation. RSF renewed its call for the release of the dissident Le Chi Quang and the ending of the house arrest of the dissident Tran Khue.   According to information obtained by RSF, Son Hong Pham, a doctor and sales representative for a pharmaceutical company, was arrested in Hanoi on 29 March 2002. His arrest apparently followed the translation and publication on the Internet of an article entitled "What is democracy?", which previously appeared on the web site of the United States embassy in Vietnam. On 25 March 2002, Colonel Le Van, a member of the special police unit P4-A25, called at Son Hong Pham's house and ordered him to report to the special unit. There, the dissident was questioned about his translations of articles from the American embassy's web site. Shortly afterwards, Son Hong Pham's home in Hanoi was searched by eight members of the special unit, who confiscated computer equipment and personal papers. On 26 March, Son Hong Pham returned to the police station to claim his personal belongings, but without success. The following day, he published an open letter on the Internet protesting against the illegal search of his home and the confiscation of his personal belongings. Two days later, his family announced that he had "disappeared". A member of the family confirmed by telephone on 15 April that Son Hong Pham was still being detained. His mother had been allowed to visit him in prison. Son Hong Pham is also the author of a number of articles, including "Democracy promotion: a key focus in a new world order" and "Sovereignty and human rights: the search for reconciliation", published on the Internet forums Danchu.net and Ykien.net, both dedicated to promoting democracy. On 6 March 2002 he sent one of his articles, entitled "Promising signals for democracy in Vietnam", to the Secretary-General of the Vietnamese Community Party, General Nong Duc Manh. RSF reminds readers that web dissidents Le Chi Quang and Tran Khue are still being detained after publishing articles criticising the Vietnamese authorities on the Internet. Le Chi Quang, a computer science lecturer who also holds a degree in law, was arrested at a Hanoi Internet café on 21 February 2002 and is being held in camp B14 in the Ha Dong province (in the north of the country). Tran Khue has been under house arrest since 10 March 2002 by virtue of the administrative directive 31/CP. This decision follows the publication on the Internet of a letter addressed to the Chinese leader Jiang Zemin, on the eve of an official visit to Vietnam.