31 Oct 2012

Songwriters sentenced to prison

5:14 am on 31 October 2012

Two Vietnamese musicians who composed songs denouncing China have been jailed in Vietnam for spreading propaganda against the state.

Detained in late 2011, the two were sentenced after a five-hour trial in Ho Chi Minh City.

Tran Vu Anh Binh and Vo Minh Tri were sentenced to six and four years in prison respectively.

As well as social issues, their work included songs that criticised China over its territorial claims in the South China Sea and the Vietnamese government's handling of the row.

Beijing and Hanoi have overlapping territorial claims in the South China Sea.

The BBC reports three bloggers accused of spreading anti-government propaganda were recently sentenced to prison for between four and 12 years.