Hanoi - A court in Ho Chi Minh City sentenced a Mennonite Christian pastor to three years in prison Thursday for failing to repay debts owed by the company of her late first husband.

Nguyen Thi Hong, 48, had been in jail awaiting trial since her arrest in November 2007. Her second husband is the pastor, lawyer and social activist Nguyen Hong Quang, head of the Mennonite church in Vietnam.

After holding Hong for 14 months, authorities Thursday tried her for failing to repay two debts incurred in 1999 by the company of her late first husband, who died in 2003. The debts totaled 25,000 dollars.

Nguyen Duc Sau, chairman of Ho Chi Minh City's Criminal Court, said Hong had violated Article 140 of Vietnam's 1999 criminal code, which bars "abuse of confidence to appropriate other people's property."

"The indictment said she was involved with the religious organization of Nguyen Hong Quang, and she was arrested for that reason," said Hong's lawyer, Tran Vu Hai. "But after the arrest, she was turned over to the Ho Chi Minh City Investigative Police, who investigated her for abuse of confidence to appropriate other people's property."

Hai said Hong had raised money privately and repaid the second debt, amounting to 8,500 dollars, before the trial. He said the family of the repaid man had asked that Hong be released.

Vietnamese democracy and human rights organizations based outside Vietnam have protested Hong's detainment.

Hong's husband Quang has filed suits on behalf of indigent clients in property disputes. He has clashed repeatedly with Ho Chi Minh City authorities and served a year in prison in 2004-5 after an altercation with police in his neighborhood.

In August 2005, authorities bulldozed the rear section of Quang and Hong's house, which they were using as a headquarters for the church.

Vietnam officially recognized the Mennonite Church in November, after considering it an illegal religious organization for years. Freedom of religion has increased dramatically in Vietnam in recent years, but all denominations are legally required to apply to the government for recognition. (dpa)