Như Ngọc (Danlambao) - As of today, February 21, 2014, three human rights activists - Bui Thi Minh Hang, Nguyen Thi Thuy Quynh, and Nguyen Van Minh - have been arbitrarily detained by Dong Thap police for 11 days.
In terms of legal procedure, the temporary detention order expired yesterday, February 20, 2014. However, Dong Thap police, on the one hand, still illegally detain the three activists; on the other hand, they hesitate to press charges against the activists. Reportedly, Mrs. Bui Thi Minh Hang has launched a hunger strike since February 11 to protest the arbitrary assault, arrest, and detention carried out by Dong Thap police.
Dong Thap police have denied requests from relatives of the three activists asking to visit them. Currently, the activists are detained at a police prison at An Binh commune, Cao Lanh district, Dong Thap province, and their health status is unknown.
The authorities have waged a political vendetta against Mrs. Bui Thi Minh Hang; therefore, her life is seriously threatened while being in police custody. During her detention in Thanh Ha prison in 2012, she committed a failed suicide attempt to protect her dignity.
Many witnesses said that Mrs. Hang was brutally beaten by police on February 11, 2014 when they carried out the arbitrary arrest.
In this police state, it is hard to predict what would happen next to Mrs. Hang and her two friends in prison.
