Vietnam upholds five-year jail term for blogger on anti-state charges

A court in Vietnam upheld a five-year prison sentence on Monday for a blogger convicted of anti-state activities who violated the terms of his probation, state media said.

Blogger Nguyen Van Oai, 36, had been sentenced to four years in jail in 2013 for "activities aimed at overthrowing the government".

He was released in January 2017 after serving his term but arrested days later for violating the terms of his probation and resisting arrest.

The Supreme People's Court of Vietnam said on its website that Oai had insulted and beaten two security personnel who were monitoring his probation.

He was then sentenced to another five years in jail last September and a further four years on probation.

Following an appeal, Oai's jail term and probation were both upheld on Monday, the state newspaper Vietnamplus reported.

In November, a court upheld a 10-year jail sentence for another blogger, Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, known as "Me Nam", or Mother Mushroom, who was jailed for publishing propaganda against the state.