Welcome to South East Asia. It's no secret that judicial process is often flawed, corrupt and sometimes, non existent in this part of the world. What do you expect though? These are developing countries. The cellphone rule is standard in government buildings as cell phones can be used to detonate bombs.

I'm delighted that your news blog recognises that the world does not stop at Dover and that we can be reminded occasionally that they 'do things differently' in other countries, although this report does seem rather inconsequential. What are we supposed to get from it? A lot of the problems we have in the West seem to be the result of increasing complexity in all areas of public life and policy. Our leaders find it difficult to deal with so many conflicting interests: the rapid march of technology, globalisation. multiculturalism and the sheer weight on the one hand of legislation, and on the other of public expectation. It's an impossible balance to maintain. It may explain why our leaders like to bathe in money as a defence against the cares of office. Perhaps there is something to be said for a regime, like the Vietnamese, that hankers after simplicity: after all, simplicity finally triumphed over the colonial powers, France and America. As our MPs have discovered, post-Legg, justice is not about fairness, but about making appropriate adjustments (just pay up, Frank Field. Your name used to be a byword for social justice, so smile and get on with it) and sometimes you have to ask yourself which is the more important, justice or fairness? We can hardly pat ourselves on the back over the human rights issue, in the light of the unfair justice meted out by the present government in areas such as counter-terrorism measures, benefits and immigration policy. We now have political prisoners of our own (and don't pretend we weren't torturing Irishmen back in the 1970s and Malays, Cypriots and Kenyans in the 1950s). There is no such thing as the perfect society, we all have to do what we think is right, and live (or die) with the consequences.

I don't see what the problem is with not being able to tell anybody details about the trial - it's the same over here. This just seems like a biased, weak attack against communism for the sake of it. At least Vietnam have a justice system, unlike the pathetic one in this country, which because of the illogical obsession with 'human rights' lets murderers, paedophiles and rapists walk free instead of giving the death penalty which is the only thing they deserve. I get sick of how so many British people think that they are above foreign justice systems, and that we have a right to criticise other countries customs and interefere with their trials when an African is stupid enough to smuggle heroin.

sound like your brains dead never mind your backside mate with your patheic effort to make out that Vietnamese justice is any more flawed than that in the west ~ cell phone rule and a communist flag Big deal!
A waste of electrons in writing the article

when in rome do as the romans do u were not in this country at the time of said prosecution if u didnt like the way they handle their affairs then dont go out there and criticise theirs concentrate on the @#$% system that we have here in the uk crims get away murder here we have a weak guttles government here who listens to all do gooders so lets get it right here bring back hanging and long sentences they might think twice before commiting crimes

Dont expect anything but disgust at your attitude to another countrys rules, typical press attitude, its someone elses country, obey the rules or sod off dairyperson52 has it spot, the UK is run by women/do gooders with no life experience/left wing pillocks and general numptys which is why we are in the @#$%.

The press in the UK dont even try to investigate some of the scandals within our own Legal System why bother going abroad, and being critical of other countries.

Nicely put paul.ingrams. On the face of it, this article does seem to lack any sensationalism, which in itself raises interesting issues regarding how media presentation of 'news' is regarded. There is precious little 'opinion', just straighforward description, which is how I think it should be.
::
Which leads to the proposition by stalingrad1, that the article is a "pathetic effort to make out that Vietnamese justice is any more flawed than that in the west ". The writer clearly refrains from making such propositions, but the comment is directed at the writer, and not the content of the article.
::
And then there is sean.kelly.3. To give him some credit, he is spot on regarding "I get sick of how so many British people think that they are above foreign justice systems". As to the rest of it, McEnroe's infamous invective springs to mind. "Vietnam have a justice system, unlike the pathetic one in this country"."because of the illogical obsession with 'human rights' lets murderers, paedophiles and rapists walk free instead of giving the death penalty which is the only thing they deserve". Slightly to the right of Ghengis Khan?. The death penalty is little more than an institutionalised manifestation of the lynch mob mentality (something the law is there to protect us against), and pandering to the desire for revenge (a common human characteristic). It also illustrates one of the nastier features of the human condition, and that is the satisfaction gained from inflicting pain and death on another human being, which I call sick.
::
So an article does not need opinion and sensationalism to stir strong responses to significant issues. The only thing of importance is whether the facts are indeed the facts. We can be assured that we may not be getting all the facts (well the writer cannot be in all places all the time), but what is crucial is whether those facts are genuine or not. To observe proceedings through an external visual feed raises many questions, but not of the writer. How about why?

Interesting when the reported said this "The rule about no cell phones turned out to be unnecessary. The signal around the court building cut out so often it was impossible to transmit my story using the phone"

Anyone fancy nipping over to Vietnam for the trial of Ian Timberlake.

We still don't know what's the nature of accusations! Who are these six people and their names? What are their crimes? What is the outcome of the trial? What is the verdict? Ian Timberlake , the worst possible way of writing a blog!