Vietnamese Lawyers Offer Legal Assistance for Suspect in North Korean Assassination

by Defend the Defenders, March 3, 2017

The Vietnam Bar Federation said it is willing to offer legal support to the Vietnamese citizen who has been charged with the killing of the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un.

The federation has proposed the Ministries of Justice and Foreign Affairs to send lawyers to provide legal assistance for Doan Thi Huong, who is facing the death penalty in Malaysia after being charged with the murder of Kim Jong-Nam, said Chairman of the federation Do Ngoc Thinh.

“We have also discussed with some lawyers who have experience of international courts, and they are all willing to join,” Thinh was quoted by Dan Tri newswire as saying.

On March 1, Huong, 28, and Indonesian Siti Aisyah, 25, were charged by a Malaysian Court with the murder of Kim Jong-Nam, the older brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un at a Malaysian airport last month.

Malaysian police accused the two women of having smeared the VX nerve agent, a weapon of mass destruction which is banned around the world, on Kim’s face at a Kuala Lumpur airport on February 13.

Both women claimed they thought they were merely taking part in a prank video.

Selvam Shanmugam, who was appointed by Malaysia’s authorities as Huong’s lawyer, said after the trial that she denied the charge and said that she was innocent.

The next court hearing will be held on April 13. Vietnam’s government has yet to send lawyers to represent Huong while Indonesia sent four lawyers to defend its citizen.