Vietnam has sent three bloggers to prison for spreading “propaganda against the state” by posting on the Internet their writings about human rights abuses, corruption and foreign policy.

The defendants – two men and a woman – were sentenced Monday in Ho Chi Minh City, following a trial that lasted a few hours.

U.S. President Barack Obama mentioned blogger Nguyen Van Hai, who received a 12-year sentence, in a speech earlier this year. Ta Phong Tan, a former police officer whose mother set herself on fire to protest her daughter's plight, was given 10 years in prison. Phan Thanh Hai was given a four-year sentence.

The United States quickly criticized the sentences.

International rights groups have condemned the trial and called for the release of the bloggers.