VietNamNet Bridge – Four defendants in central Nghe An Province were sentenced at a trial of the provincial People's Court yesterday on the charge of "conducting propaganda against the State of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam".

The jury announced that Dau Van Duong, 24, was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison and another one-and-a-half years probation after serving his jail term.

Meanwhile, Tran Huu Duc, 24, received a 39-month prison term and Chu Manh Son, 23, received a three-year term of imprisonment, both with an additional one year of probation after release.

The last defendant Hoang Phong, 25, received a two-year term of suspended sentence.

According to the verdict of the Nghe An People's Procuracy, Duong, Duc and Nguyen Xuan Kim met Nguyen Van Ly, a former priest who was imprisoned for compiling and distributing documents opposing the Party and the State, at a house on Phan Dinh Phung Street in Hue City in March of 2011. Ly suggested they distribute leaflets calling for boycotting the elections of the 13th National Assembly and the People's Councils at all levels in Nghe An province.

With the leaflet design and expenditure provided by Nguyen Van Ly, Duong and his accomplices printed and distributed thousands of leaflets with contents against the State in Nam Dan, Nghi Loc, Dien Chau and Yen Thanh districts on May 20 and 21, 2011.

During the investigation, the agency arrested Hoang Phong. Nghe An police also issued warrants for the arrest of Nguyen Xuan Kim, Dang Xuan Tuong, Trinh Van Thuong and Hoang Duc Ai.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News