Nguyen Thanh Nam and Tran Viet Anh have been taken into custody.
The Hanoi Police Investigation Agency has issued a decision to initiate a criminal case, indict the suspects, and temporarily detain Nguyen Thanh Nam and Tran Viet Anh.
On the evening of July 7th, the 7 PM news broadcast of Vietnam Television reported that the Security Investigation Agency of the Hanoi City Police had issued a decision to initiate a criminal case, indict and temporarily detain Nguyen Thanh Nam and Tran Viet Anh for the crime of "Making, possessing, distributing or disseminating information, documents, or items aimed at opposing the Socialist Republic of Vietnam." The case relates to the book "Stories with Thanh - A New Account of Light" and several videos containing content that violates the law.
The investigating agency determined that these documents contained content that distorted historical facts about revolutions, the Party's guidelines and policies, and the State's laws and regulations; and also insulted President Ho Chi Minh, General Vo Nguyen Giap, and many other Party and State leaders.
During the investigation, defendant Nguyen Thanh Nam admitted that many contents in the book were untrue, expressed remorse, and apologized to readers. Defendant Tran Viet Anh also stated that the purpose of creating the content was to attract viewers, increase interaction, and maximize economic benefits on digital platforms.
Currently, the Security Investigation Agency of the Hanoi City Police is continuing to expand the investigation to clarify all the actions of Nguyen Thanh Nam, Tran Viet Anh, and other related individuals in order to strictly handle them according to the law.
Previously, on June 15th, the Department of Publishing, Printing and Distribution (Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) issued a decision to impose administrative penalties on the Vietnam Writers Association Publishing House for publishing the book "Stories with Thanh - A New Account of Light" by author Nguyen Thanh Nam, which contained seriously inaccurate information.
According to the penalty decision, the book contains inaccurate information and opinions about some historical figures and events; it also uses inappropriate language when writing about President Ho Chi Minh and some of the Party's former leaders.
The Vietnam Writers Association Publishing House was fined 100 million VND and suspended from operation for two months to conduct a comprehensive review and rectification of its professional activities. In addition, the publishing house must destroy all recalled publications and return all illegal profits obtained from the book's distribution.
Previously, on June 4th, the Department of Publishing, Printing and Distribution requested the Vietnam Writers Association Publishing House to suspend distribution and recall all copies of the book from the market; at the same time, it issued a document requesting localities to review, recall, and prevent the distribution of the book and requested the library system not to make the book available to readers.
