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Vietnam rejects anti-China activist appeal
by Staff Writers
Hanoi (AFP) Dec 22, 2017


China mulls law to punish those who 'slander heroes and martyrs'
Beijing (AFP) Dec 22, 2017 - China is considering a law that would punish those who "insult or slander heroes and martyrs," according to a report Friday from the country's top legislature.

The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) said on its website that it is examining a proposal on the "Protection of Heroes and Martyrs Law" in order to "promote the spirit of heroic martyrs and patriotism."

Since President Xi Jinping took office in 2012, he has stressed a drive to infuse every aspect of Chinese education with "patriotic spirit" in a campaign to strengthen the legitimacy of the ruling Communist Party.

The NPC approved legislation last month to punish anyone who disrespects the national anthem with up to three years in prison.

Laws covering the use of the national flag and national emblem have been in place for years.

The new draft law makes entities such as public security bureaus and internet operators responsible for protecting the reputation and honour of heroes and martyrs, the official Xinhua state news agency reported.

It stipulates they must handle information that may infringe on this duty in a timely matter, Xinhua said.

The NPC discussed related legislation during its annual meeting this March, but the previous proposal focused on civil liability, whereas the latest draft mentions criminal consequences.

"Those who appropriate, damage or contaminate memorials, and insult or slander heroes and martyrs, may receive administrative penalties from public security or even criminal sanctions," the draft reads, according to Xinhua.

The "illicit appropriation" of land and facilities around heroes and martyrs' memorials would also be forbidden.

Last month, China's ubiquitous "dancing aunties" were ordered to not congregate in "solemn places like martyrs' cemeteries."

And in June of last year, a Chinese court ordered an apology from Hong Zhenkuai, editor of an influential magazine, for questioning the official story of the "Five Warriors of Mount Langyashan," touted as patriotic heroes for jumping off a cliff rather than surrendering to the Japanese during World War II.

The Beijing Xicheng District People's Court ruled that Hong had "tarnished [the warriors'] reputation and honour."

A Vietnamese court on Friday rejected the appeal of a dissident sentenced to nine years for anti-state propaganda, capping a grim year for activists in the one-party state.

Vietnam's communist government has been accused of intensifying a crackdown on its critics in 2017, jailing at least 15 activists and handing down heavy jail terms.

The latest to be punished is anti-China activist Tran Thi Nga, 40, who was handed nine years in prison plus five years of probation in July for posting material online criticising the government.

Her appeal was rejected Friday after a trial in northern Ha Nam province.

"The verdict is biased and not objective," Nga's lawer Ha Huy Son told AFP after the hearing.

Several of Nga's supporters gathered outside the courthouse were ferried away by security forces earlier Friday, according to activists' posts on Facebook.

Nga, who was arrested in January, is best known for calling on the Vietnamese government to stand up to its massive neighbour China over over territorial disputes in the resource-rich South China Sea.

She also rallied for land and labour rights and protested the government's handling of a massive toxic dump in central Vietnam last year that killed tonnes of fish.

Rights groups say her case is part of a protracted crackdown on dissent that has accelerated under the conservative communist leadership in place since last year.

On Thursday, five people in southern An Giang province were jailed for between three and five years for "anti-state propaganda" after they hung flags of the former South Vietnamese regime in several locations across Chau Doc city, according to state media and a court clerk who confirmed the sentencing to AFP.

The flag is considered an incendiary symbol by communist authorities and has been banned since the end of the Vietnam War.

Ahead of Nga's appeal, Human Rights Watch called on authorities to drop charges against the activist and release more than 100 others currently in jail.

"Tran Thi Nga and other Vietnamese activists put themselves at grave risk to speak out against rights violations happening in their country," said Brad Adams, HRW's Asia director.

"Vietnam's friends and donors need to honour their fight by pushing for their unconditional release."

SUPERPOWERS
China, Russia slam US 'imperialist' and 'Cold War mentality'
Beijing (AFP) Dec 19, 2017
China and Russia on Tuesday decried President Donald Trump's first National Security Strategy - which pilloried both nations as challengers to US power - as a "Cold War mentality" with an "imperialist character". The two global powerhouses hit back hours after the Trump administration unveiled its approach to the world with biting language framing Beijing and Moscow as global competitors. ... read more

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