15 October 2008

Vietnam Journalist Jailed

Nguyen Viet Chien, a Vietnamese journalist who investigating and reported on a corruption case within the Ministry of Transport, has been sentenced to two years in jail.

In many cases, journalists are the first and hardest hit in countries with poor human rights records and little freedom among citizens. A journalist's job is to report the news to people outside of the government or parties involved, and as a result they are often punished by the government they are investigating. They know there's a chance of arrest, or in some extreme cases torture or death, but yet these brave people still soldier on and continue to report on their leaders' wrongdoing.

So here's a huge thank you for every journalist who is brave enough to stand up for what is right and provide a much needed veil of transparency to people who would otherwise be clueless. THANK YOU!

UPDATE: According to the BBC News, the US has condemned the Vietnamese sentences.

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