The United States and the European Union have called for a jailed Vietnamese activist to be released.

Activist and blogger Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, better known as Me Nam or Mother Mushroom, was taken in to custody on Monday for allegedly publishing anti-state reports.

The US Ambassador to Vietnam said the trend of imprisoniong bloggers in the country threatened to overshadow the Vietnam’s progress on human rights.

He called on Vietnam to let individuals express their political views.

Quynh could face a prison term of up to 12 years for her critical Facebook posts which detail civilian deaths in police custody among other matter deemed to defame the ruling Communist Party.

In a statement on Tuesday, the EU Ambassador in Vietnam also called for Quynh to be freed.

– TiVi Tuan-san