Doctor arrested for trying to overthrow regime
Print Police have arrested a former university lecturer and medical doctor at Cho Ray Hospital for “attempting to overthrow the government”, Ho Chi Minh City police announced at a press conference yesterday afternoon.
69-year-old Nguyen Dan Que, aka Nguyen Chau, was caught red handed on February 26 afternoon storing and distributing many documents whose contents call on the people to overthrow the regime.
He is being detained for “activities aimed at overthrowing the people’s government”, police said.
A search at his house on Nguyen Trai Street, Ward 3, District 5 turned up over 60,000 documents stored in Que’s computer that call on the people to take the streets to demonstrate against the state and government.
Que has admitted that the documents were made by him on February 24 and distributed to a number of reactionary organizations and individuals in and outside Vietnam.
Nguoi Lao Dong newspaper reported that he distributed them through many email accounts.
Two terrorist, reactionary organizations Viet Tan (Vietnam Reform Party) and Dang Dan Toc (the People’s Party) have answered Que’s calls with certain activities, police said.
Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Sy Quang, deputy office head of Ho Chi Minh City police department, said Que previously had three criminal records regarding violating national security.
Although the Party and State has many times pardoned him, Que still carried on his anti-government activities, police told the press conference.
According to Quang, Que’s acts are very dangerous and directly infringe on the stability and strength of the people’s government.
The discovery, prevention of his illegal acts and due punishment is necessary to ensure political stability, contributing to socio-economic development in Ho Chi Minh City, Quang added.
Police are gathering more evidence.
Wanting overthrow Communist Party; pardoned twice
According to Nguoi Lao Dong newspaper, Que was born in Hanoi in 1942 and used to study in Belgium and the UK.
He later worked at Cho Ray Hospital – the most famous hospital in southern Vietnam and lectured at the Saigon Medical University before 1975.
After 1975 when the North and South were reunited, Que continued his job at Cho Ray Hospital but at the same time joined the anti-revolutionary movement “Mat Tran Dan Toc Tien Bo” (the progressive people’s front).
According to Nguoi Lao Dong, from December 1978 to February 1988, Que was detained for heading the “Mat Tran Dan Toc Tien Bo”.
After he was released, Que continued writing and drafting many documents with contents propagandizing against the socialist regime.
In February 1990, Que founded the organization “Cao trao nhan ban” (humanism movement) and called on the overthrowing of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Nguoi Lao Dong reported.
According to Nguoi Lao Dong, he called on a multi-party system, a free election with supervision from the UN. With such activities, on June 14, 1990, Que was arrested and sentenced to 20 years in prison. He was released on state amnesty in 1998, Nguoi Lao Dong reported.
After being released, Que continued writing anti-government documents to send to organizations overseas including the “Cao trao nhan dan” headed by Que’s brother Nguyen Quoc Quan in the US.
In 2004, Que was sentenced to 30 months in jail after being caught red-handed transporting anti-state documents abroad. But he was released after six months on a second amnesty from the government.
After prison, Que was featured in several foreign media interviews in which he distorted Vietnam’s situation.
Besides, Que in collaboration with his brother called on some US politicians to promote the movement “9 diem dan chu hoa tai Viet Nam” (9 points towards democratization in Vietnam).
