Vietnam protester held for ‘attempt to overthrow state’

HANOI: A Vietnamese activist who had protested mass fish deaths caused by a toxic dump has been arrested for allegedly attempting to overthrow the state, according to her family and an official report on Wednesday. Her arrest comes as the communist nation is accused of waging a crackdown against dissidents, with more than a dozen people arrested this year and others handed heavy jail terms.

Tran Thi Xuan, 41, is accused of "activities aimed at overthrowing the people’s administration" under Article 79 of the criminal code, according to the official mouthpiece of Ha Tinh province, where she was arrested on Tuesday. The article is one of several vaguely-worded clauses of the penal code that rights groups say are used by the communist country’s authoritarian rulers to persecute critics.