HANOI, June 8 (Reuters) - Police in Vietnam have

arrested two well-known Vietnamese Facebook users on charges of

abusing democratic freedoms, the government said on Saturday, as

a major leadership reshuffle in the Communist-ruled country is

settling down.

Ex-reporter Truong Huy San, 62, and lawyer Tran Dinh Trien,

65, were arrested on accusations of "abusing democratic freedoms

to infringe upon the interests of the state", the government

said in a statement.

Despite sweeping economic reform and increasing openness to

social change, Vietnam's ruling Communist Party retains tight

media censorship and tolerates little criticism.

The statement said San and Trien had posted articles on

Facebook that infringe upon the interests of the state and

lawful rights and interests of organizations and individuals,

without elaborating.

Reuters could not immediately reach their lawyers for

comments.

San's and Trien's Facebook posts were often critical of the

administration and the law enforcement authorities. Their

Facebook accounts with hundreds of thousands of followers

disappeared from the platform less than a week ago, sparking

rumours of their arrest.

The announcement of the arrests comes after the National

Assembly on Thursday approved its new police minister and more

than two weeks after a new state president and new parliament

speaker were named amid heightened political turbulence.

The government's Saturday statement said the police had

searched San's and Trien's homes, adding that further

investigation was underway.