U.S.-trained human rights attorney Le Cong Dinh, the most well known of the four defendants, received a relatively light five-year sentence after judges at the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Court deliberated for just a half-hour. The court apparently…

Le Cong Dinh (far right) in court with other dissidents on trial (Reuters)

The Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA) condemns in the strongest possible terms the abduction and massacre of at least 36 Filipinos in the southern Philippine province of Maguindanao. Reports coming out of the Philippines say at least 12 journalists who were among the abductees have been slain.

It is widely believed that the horrific episode was brought about by a bitter feud among entrenched political clans in Maguindanao. Media and authorities have been quick to tag the massacre as election-related, certainly among the worst that has been seen in the Philippines in decades.

SEAPA calls on the Philippine government to do all that it must to halt the violence and bring the murderers to justice.

As swiftly as they must act, however, the Philippine leaders must also, once and for all, demonstrate its accountability for the larger toxic climate that suffocates Filipinos and Philippine democracy. The government must own up to what it has allowed to fester: an environment of impunity that had already taken hundreds of lives, including that of hundreds of journalists, long before the recent Maguindanao tragedy took place.

Even the warlordism that must be fought and condemned in Maguindanao is but a symptom of what truly has Filipinos and their democracy beleaguered.

The perpetrators behind the most heinous acts in Maguindanao must be brought to justice. Immediately. Failure to act, we are afraid, would not only be an indictment of Philippine leadership. It will be nothing new.

“The Philippines had one of the highest rates of journalist killings in the world even prior to this heinous episode of barbarism,” SEAPA Executive Director Roby Alampay said. “Even the scale of one day’s carnage cannot mask the years of government inaction, denial, and ineptitude that have allowed violence to go unpunished. That climate of impunity that has been allowed to fester is what has made all Filipinos—not just activists, politicians, or mediamen—vulnerable to powers and interests intolerant of dissent or even just independent voices.”

The clear role that warlordism plays in this, one of the bloodiest episodes in recent Philippine history, should not absolve the government of its accountability for the larger environment it has tolerated, patronized and therefore nurtured.

Its statement in full reads: “The United States is deeply concerned by the arrest by Vietnamese authorities of lawyer Le Cong Kinh on June 13 on charges of ‘distributing propaganda against the state.’ Vietnamese officials have stated that Dinh was arrested because of his defense of pro-democracy activists and his use of the Internet to express his views. Mr. Dinh is a well-respected member of the Vietnamese and international legal communities, and a former Fulbright scholar. No individual should be arrested for expression the right to free speech, and no lawyer should be punished because of the individuals they choose to counsel. Vietnam’s arrest of Mr. Dinh contradicts the government’s own commitment to internationally accepted standards of human rights and to the rule of law. We urge the Government of Vietnam to release Mr. Dinh immediately and unconditionally, as well as all other prisoners in detention for peacefully expressing their views.”

BANGKOK, 16 June 2009 — The Southeast Asia Press Alliance issued statement in which it expresses “deep concern” over the Vietnamese authorities’ arrest of Le Cong Hinh, “an established lawyer, writer, and defender of free expression and human rights.”

According to SEAPA’s statement, ”Mr. Dinh’s arrest is a simultaneous attack on two sectors vital to democratic reform in Vietnam or any society. It sends a chilling message not only to other writers and citizens who peacefully advocate for change, but also to those in the legal community who would defend the Vietnamese people’s right to free expression.”

SEAPA, which represents media and journalist organizations throughout Southeast Asia, called for the immediate and unconditional release of Mr. Dinh and urged the Vietnamese government to ensure “transparency and fairness” in the consideration of the charges brought against the attorney, by giving him access to his lawyers, and allowing independent media access to any and all future proceedings. SEAPA also asked that the international legal community be allowed to monitor all proceedings against Mr. Dinh.

Reporters Without Borders today called on Vietnam to immediately release the lawyer Le cong Dinh, author of many pro-democracy articles and a known human rights activist, who was arrested two days ago. The 41-year-old lawyer, who has defended several bloggers and free expression activitists, is facing a long prison sentence for his articles and commentaries in the Vietnamese press and online. More

Le Cong Dinh, 41, one of Vietnam’s most respected lawyers, has defended a number of pro-democracy activists.

He was alleged to have been found with a copy of a new constitution he wrote aiming to replace the current one.

The police said they will charge Mr Dinh with Article 88 of the Vietnam’s Criminal Code for distributing anti-government materials.