Nghe An: Man provoking social disturbances gets jail terms

Nghe An (VNA) –The People’s Court of Dien Chau district, the central province of Nghe An, on February 6 sentenced 35-year-old Hoang Duc Binh to seven years in prison on the charge of “resisting on-duty officials” and another seven years for “abusing the rights to democracy and freedom to infringe on the interests of the State and rights and interests of organisations and citizens.”

During a trial on February 6, Binh’s accomplice, Nguyen Nam Phong, 38, from Son Hai commune, Quynh Luu district, Nghe An province received a two-year prison term on the charge of “resisting on-duty officials.”

Binh, residing in Hung Trung commune, Hung Nguyen district, Nghe An province, joined a number of organisations, associations and groups which oppose politics such as “NoU Saigon” and “Phong trao Lao dong Viet” (Vietnam Workers’ Movement).

He was arrested to serve investigations into his delivery of leaflets to incite people to join “Nghiep doan doc lap” (independence league), and received administrative punishment for his violation of regulations on keeping and distributing illegal publications and printed materials that are not publications. However, he refused to pay the fine and fled to Nghe An.

After returning to Nghe An, Binh regularly posted and shared information and documents slandering the administration and advocating pluralism and multi-party movements via his Facebook account.

After the environmental incident caused by Taiwanese Hung Nghiep Formosa Ha Tinh Steel Co Ltd in four central localities, Binh, as the vice president of the “Phong trao Lao dong Viet”, formed the so-called “association of fishermen in the central region,” aiming to incite parishioners and fishermen to participate in the association, and select “seeds” to trigger demonstrations and security disturbances.

On the morning of February 14, 2017, Binh, Phong and about 300 people departed from Song Ngoc Parish in Quynh Luu district to Ky Anh district of Ha Tinh central province on the pretext of lodging a complaint about Formosa Company.

With banners, the crowd travelled by different means of vehicles, causing traffic jams. However, Binh requested Phong, the driver, to ignore instructions of traffic policemen who were working to ensure traffic order. Their car then stopped on National Highway 1A, seriously blocking the traffic for several kilometers. Binh incited Phong to “resist on-duty officials.”

At the investigation agency and the court, Binh admitted that he used his mobile phone to live stream what happened as well as post comments on his Facebook account. He abused the right to the freedom of speech to slander and distort the fact and defame the police force.

He also called on Facebook users to keep track of, publish and share the comments to defame the administration and defame the police force. His acts have seriously affected the prestige, honour and interests of Nghe An police in particular and the people’s police in general, stirring bad opinions both at home and abroad.-VNA