Vietnam: Two Christian lawyers have sentences reduced
Dec 11 2007
Postings >> Vietnam

Two Christian lawyers from Hanoi have had their sentences cut on appeal – but failed to win a reprieve.

Nguyen Van Dai and Le Thi Cong Nhan appeared in court on November 27 to appeal a conviction for 'disseminating slanderous and libellous information' against the state. Their original sentences – five and four years respectively, handed down in May – were reduced by one year.

In a statement to the court, Dai's wife Vu Minh Khanh argued that her husband was a 'patriot' – but, she said, he had become the victim of a government smear campaign.

Dai, 38, a church elder, came to prominence when he defended Mennonite pastor Nguyen Hong Quang from Ho Chi Minh City, one of the so-called Mennonite Six. Dai and Le, who work in the same office, have both been involved in advocating for religious liberty.

They are also members of the pro-democracy movement Bloc 8406. In March Thaddeus Nguyen Van Ly, one of Bloc 8406's founder members, was jailed for eight years for 'spreading propaganda' criticising the government. RI sources report that he is being held in solitary confinement and has been denied a Bible and communion wine.

• Pray for the Nguyen Van Dai and Le Thi Cong Nhan and their families, as they come to terms with dashed hopes – but continue to pray for their release.
• Pray for Thaddeus Nguyen Van Ly in solitary confinement. Pray for his immediate release.