HANOI (AFP) — US-based group Human Rights Watch (HRW) called Friday on the World Bank and donor nations to Vietnam to press the communist government to stop criminalising journalists and allow a free media.

The group pointed to the recent jailings of reporters and bloggers and the dismissals of two newspaper editors as the latest examples in "a series of measures by the Vietnamese government to stifle criticism and dissent."

"Vietnam is one of the few countries where people can be locked up on charges of 'abusing democratic freedoms'," said HRW Asia director Brad Adams.

"Vietnam's donors should continue to insist that the government stop its criminalization of peaceful expression."

Authorities have targeted the Thanh Nien (Young People) and Tuoi Tre (Youth) dailies, which helped uncover a major graft scandal in which officials squandered money from projects partially financed by Japan and the World Bank.

"The World Bank and Japan should come to the defence of these investigative reporters and their editors," said Adams.

"They should make it clear to the Vietnamese government in public and in private that this kind of retribution for good journalism is not acceptable."

(Source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gZaN8lTbNpY3GhW781arOFVogReQ)