Persecuted prosecutor attacks reporter in Vietnam

 

HANOI (Jan 26, 2007): It is often said that bad press is better than no press, but a prosecutor in Vietnam apparently violently disagrees.

Police said today they arrested Dang Dinh Liem, a prosecutor in Vietnam's northern Thai Binh province, after he ambushed and pummelled a reporter who had written stories critical of him.

The prosecutor apparently rammed his motorbike into Nguyen TrongThan, a reporter investigating judicial corruption, then beat him severely, breaking Thang's nose and dislocating his jaw.

Articles written by Trang, who reports for several regional newspapers, suggested that the prosecutor was involved in altering criminal case files.

"I have been writing to expose the wrongdoings and dirty works by local officials," Trang said. "The accident is one of their attempts to get rid of me, or deter me from carrying out my job."

Pham Manh Cuong, director of the social crime investigation unit in Thai Binh, said the prosecutor will be jailed for four months while police carry out their investigation into last Saturday's (Jan 20, 2007) attack.

"We will also investigate what the reporter said about him," Cuong added.

All media in Vietnam is state-controlled and reporters have traditionally toed the Communist party line. But in recent years, journalists have started to be more critical of the government.

Last year, media investigations into illegal gambling and corruption in Vietnam's transportation department brought down several senior officials. - dpa

Source: Sn2Surf

 

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