The Vietnamese government has suspended a state-run news website and fired its editor over journalistic violations.

The Ministry of Information and Communications made the decisions on Monday, ordering a three-month suspension of PetroTimes and revoking the press card of its editor-in-chief Nguyen Nhu Phong.

According to various media reports, the sacking came shortly after PetroTimes published parts of an interview with exiled blogger Nguoi Buon Gio also known as Bui Thanh Hieu.

In the excerpts, which have since been taken down, the Germany-based anti-government activist reportedly shared documents defending a former official accused of mismanaging a state construction firm.

Vietnam’s media is tightly controlled by the communist government, which routinely jails dissident bloggers but rarely dismisses top editors.

– TiVi Tuan-san