Freelance Journalist Truong Minh Duc 

Houston (TX), Feb. 24, 2008 (VPP) — Freelance Journalist Truong Minh Duc has been experiencing hardships with his broken arm and illness because of improper treatments. According to information obtained by his family members in mid-February, Mr. Duc did inform that because of the pains, he could not sleep well and his health is worsens. The lack of sleep also causes complication to his blood pressure. Therefore, Mr. Duc is demanding for a proper treatment for his broken arm.

Mr. Duc broke his arm in mid-January 2008 while in custody and the jail authority did not allow any immediately treatment for him. After a week of repeatedly complaints of severe pains, the authority sent him to a local medical facility for a simple check up and arm casting. However, the improper treatment did not relieve his pain and cure the broken arm. After the casting removed in February, Mr. Duc’s arm still swollen and continues caused severe pain.

Journalist Truong Minh Duc was born in 1960. He is a member of Bloc 8406 as well as the Vietnam Populist Party.  The Vietnam authority accused him violated section 258th of the Criminal Law and arrested him on May 5, 2007. After a chain of interrogations at B-34 Detention Center in Hochiminh City, the authority transferred him back to Jail Facility in Kien-Giang province awaiting a formal trial.

Since 1994, Mr. Truong Minh Duc has been well known in several southern provinces for his dedication to assisting several victims of government’s corruption and power abuses. He had authored several articles against corruptions and power abuses. His articles published in several newspapers in Vietnam such as Tien Phong, Tuoi Tre, Kien Giang, Phap Luat and Thanh Nien. Besides his legal name of Truong Minh Duc, he used pen names as Hoàng-Hà, Hoàng-Thành, Phương-Nam, Quốc-Thắng, and Nam-Phương. He also sent reports of civil rights violation in Vietnam to several overseas Vietnamese websites and newspapers. Copy of his works for newspaper in Vietnam can be seen at: http://www.hoamai.org/members/MinhDuc/TMD.htm. As a freelance writer, he often received harassments and threats by the security forces for his bold articles against dictatorial rule and governmental corruption.

On behalf of Mr. Truong Minh Duc and his family, we hereby ask for help from human right and media organizations, in raising awareness of Mr. Duc’s case, and demanding the Vietnam authority to give Mr. Duc a proper treatment as soon as possible.

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