Prominent Vietnamese lawyer goes on trial for allegedly criticizing top judge on Facebook

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — A prominent Vietnamese lawyer went on trial Thursday for allegedly criticizing the country’s former top judge on Facebook, in a case that human rights groups say could have a chilling effect on freedom of expression in the country.

Tran Dinh Trien was arrested last June over three Facebook posts that allegedly criticized the actions of then-Chief Justice Nguyen Hoa Binh, according to Human Rights Watch and the human rights organization Project 88. Project 88 said Trien is charged with “abusing democratic freedoms to infringe upon the interests of the state” under Article 331 of the penal code.

Trien, 65, a former deputy director of the Hanoi Bar Association, has been involved in many high-profile legal cases. The trial is expected to last two days, with 12 lawyers defending him, according to Vietnamese state media. If convicted, he faces up to seven years in prison.

Human Rights Watch said that in his posts, Trien wrote about courts preventing defendants’ families from attending trials, barring journalists and lawyers from recording public trials, and criticized then-Chief Justice Nguyen Hoa Binh for ruling against death row inmate Ho Duy Hai despite an investigation that showed irregularities. The Supreme Court accused Trien of fabricating and disseminating false information that damaged the reputation of Nguyen Hoa Binh and the legal system.

Trien’s arrest came the same day as the arrest of prominent journalist and historian [Truong Huy San](https://apnews.com/article/press-freedom-hanoi-huy-duc-b448814aaf680670294732b5537e089d). It also came a week after Public Security Minister To Lam became the communist nation’s new president. Two months after Trien’s arrest, Nguyen Hoa Binh was appointed the country’s deputy prime minister.

Project 88 said the prosecution of Trien violates international law, which protects the right to open political debate and to criticize public officials. “If Trien is found guilty, it will set a dangerous precedent for other lawyers in Vietnam,” the group said. “It will also have a chilling effect on ordinary citizens who will be less likely to express criticism of unelected leaders and government officials on social media.”

Human Rights Watch said Trien is the latest in a line of prominent lawyers to be targeted for social media posts. The group said that at least four Vietnamese lawyers have sought political asylum in the U.S. in the past two years out of fear of arrest. Vietnamese authorities are also increasingly using Article 331 to suppress government critics, with at least 24 people convicted and sentenced under the article last year alone. “The government should immediately drop all charges against Trien and release him and all those prosecuted for peacefully expressing their political views,” the group added.

Reporters Without Borders’ 2024 World Press Freedom Index ranked Vietnam 174th out of 180 countries and territories. The Committee to Protect Journalists calls Vietnam the “fifth-worst jailer of journalists globally,” with at least 19 journalists imprisoned as of December.