Information openness has come under further threat in Vietnam, as the ongoing suppression of critical voices within the country may be strengthened through recently proposed regulations regarding use of the Internet. The new regulations seek to further criminalize and ban controversial web content, which combined with Vietnam’s long history of Internet censorship could further restrict an already limited information environment. Those same regulations also seek to impose new restrictions on bloggers, a community that has long experienced detainments, intimidation, and assaults.

…Vietnam remains a heavily restricted information space, with a consistently strict Internet filtering regime and ongoing targeting of critical bloggers. The introduction of regulations that would provide new powers to censor and criminalize Internet use threatens Vietnam’s information space even further. The ongoing harassment, intimidation, and detainment of bloggers, combined with the potential for new real-name registration requirements, make Vietnam a dangerous environment in which to express dissent.

(Source: opennet.net)