UPDATE: Purges in Vietnam Threaten Stability of Government

HONG KONG --
Recent purges by Vietnam have resulted in scrutiny being placed on high-leveled members of both governments. The execution of the Vietnamese Minister of Education, Pham Vu Luan, the persecution of Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Binh Minh, currently in custody, and the seeking of refuge in China by Commander of the Marine Police Force, Major General Nguyen Quang Dam, demonstrate Vietnam's internal instability. Political analysts suspect that there may be an internal power struggle, with the President struggling to determine who may be working conducive to his authority.

Public opinion in Vietnam continues to be highly critical of the government, with Maj. Gen. Nguyen Quang Dam still holding up in the Chinese Embassy in Hanoi. Riots against ethnic Hoa have continued, and factories owned by Chinese corporations remained closed, with throngs of factory employees joining protests in large cities against Chinese aggression.

Observers in the United States are concerned that the growing instability in Vietnam is allowing possibly innocent government bureaucrats to be pitted as scapegoats, with public executions used as a diversionary tactic to demonstrate progress at the expense of innocent lives.


UPDATE: Efforts on behalf of the US to save the Pham Vu Luan have been recognized after his death.  The differences in opinion of public execution is pronounced between the two states, and the US's failed attempt to save Vu Luan have caused tensions between the two governments.

UPDATE: The BBC has received live footage of the public lynching of former Vietnamese Minister of Education. Please be aware of the graphic nature of the video.