A Vietnamese dissident blogger with dual French citizenship arrived in Paris on Sunday after he was stripped of his birth nationality by authorities in the one-party state and deported, reports FRANCE 24.
Former maths lecturer Pham Minh Hoang was put on a plane to Paris late Saturday, weeks after his Vietnamese citizenship was revoked -- a rare move that has sparked outrage among critics of the communist government who accuse it of quashing dissent by any means available.
"I am very sad," Hoang told AFP by phone after his arrival in Paris.
"I tried to do the best I can but today I lost the battle, I lost the war," he said, adding he would continue pushing for democracy in Vietnam.
Hoang said police surrounded his house on Friday night and took him away with no prior warning.
He met French consular officials and a lawyer before his deportation but was unable to say goodbye to his wife Le Thi Kieu Oanh.
"I feel totally defeated... when my husband left, I couldn't say any farewell words, I also feel very angry," Oanh told AFP.
After speaking to Hoang on arrival in France, Oanh said she was at least reassured he no longer faced political persecution.
While authoritarian Vietnam routinely jails critics of its regime, 62-year-old Hoang is the first Vietnam-based dissident to have his citizenship revoked in recent history.