Ta Phong Tan landed in Los Angeles to a heroes welcome after year’s of abuse in Vietnam while in prison, reports the Orange County Register.
She had been in prison in Vietnam since 2011 when the communists jailed her for “anti-state propaganda.” Years of imprisonment have not silenced her.
“I will always fight for the people of Vietnam,” Ta said through a translator. “All I’m asking is to give back basic human rights to the people.”
She is the second political prisoner released in the last year by Vietnam. The other is Hai Van Nguyen who was the first to rush to Ta and give her a hug after she appeared in the airport terminal.
“They don’t let us do our work and they treat us badly,” Nguyen said. “The Vietnamese government needs to release many more prisoners instead of doing it drop by drop. But there’s still hope.”
You can learn more about her long plight and the struggle to get her released in the Orange County Register.
