Vietnamese government officials attack news website

The Viet Nam-based news site, Intellasia, has reported that it is under official attack from Vietnamese authorities, who claim that the site is “illegal” and posts “reactionary content,” according to The Guardian. Staff members have been under interrogation for six weeks, the article says.

In contrast to the government’s characterization of the site, the article claims that Intellasia is well-known for its promotion of tourism and investment in Viet Nam.

The owner and partial operator of the site, Peter Leech, responded to the attacks: “This is a very dark day for what should be a civilized country to operate in... it should be noted that any foreigner or foreign organization here in Vietnam that also operates a website abroad could at any time suddenly find themselves in a similar position of persecution - no matter how seemingly innocent the content placed on a foreign-owned website - particularly if relating in any way to a state enterprise or state entity... So, this begs the question: how safe is anyone really, now or in the future?”

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