VietNamNet Bridge – Cell phones are not simply the means of communications but the devices that show the social status of teens. Students do whatever they can to havea cell phone. Many video clips depicting violent behavior have been filmed at schools and distributed by these cell phones. How many students have hand phones and what do the phones contain?

Even primary school students in Vietnam’s cities use cell phones. VietNamNet conducted a survey at primary schools in Hanoi like Kim Lien, Nguyen Tat Thanh, Lonomoxov, Doan Thi Diem, Nguyen Binh Khiem, Phan Dinh Phung, Chu Van An and Nguyen Trai and found out that up to 98 percent of interviewed students said they had a cell phone.

Some 31.6 percent of them used cell phones worth less than VND1 million ($50), 35.4 percent had cell phones worth over VND1 million and 11 percent used cell phones of other prices.

The ratio of high-school students who have cell phones is very high, especially in the cities.

In the cities, many parents buy cell phones for their children to be able to control or contact them more easily.

Linh Huong from Cau Giay district, Hanoi said: “Last year, my daughter entered high school. my husband and I decided to give her a cell phone. The phone is both a present and a tool to control her”.

However, for teens, cell phones are not simply a device to be in touch with their parents, but an item to show their social status at school.

“tell me the brand of your cell phone, and I will tell you who you are”. That’s a popular topic on online forums of Vietnamese teenagers.

VietNamNet’s survey shows that many students use cell phones worth VND10-14 million dong ($500-700).

Discovering teens’ cell phones

Many schoolgirls often use cell phones to take pictures of themselves or their friends to post on their blogs or Facebook. cell phones are also used to film fights between students. Many sexy pictures and video clips of violent behaviors have been spreaded from teens’ phones. Recently, the public was shocked by sex clips of two tenth graders in Lang Son province, two ninth graders in Quang Binh province and clips featuring groups of schoolgirls beating another girl.

With a cell phone, many students can chat or surf the Internet despite their parents’ ban.

“My parents don’t allow me to use computer so I play games on my cell phone,” said Huy, a student from Hanoi’s Phan Dinh Phung high school.

Teen boys also download porno clips from the Internet to their phones and share themwith their friends.

“Sometimes boys in my class gather to watch something on a cell phone and laugh together. I’m sure they watch indecent? movies. That’s bad!” said Lam, a schoolgirl from Phan Dinh Phung high school.

It is said that almost all teen boys have several porno clips in their cell phones.

Mr. Tien from Hanoi said he was very shocked to read advertisements sent to his son’s phone, who is a fifth grader. The messages urge users to send messages to service numbers to request introductions on how to kiss, how to make love, etc.

Many sad stories have been told, which centered around improper use of cell phone. A schoolgirl from a high school in Ha Tinh province committed suicide after her boyfriend blackmailed her with his phone pictures of their scenes on the bed,

Some rural teens became the culprits of rapes after watching porno clips on their cell phones.

To have money to buy expensive cell phones and pay phone charges, some schoolgirls have become prostitutes.

Phuong Minh, a high-school girl in Dong Da district, Hanoi, is working for a teen website. Minh said she works to have money for shopping and paying phone charges. This is a good example. But other girls have gone in a contrary direction.

M.N, a schoolgirl in Hanoi, borrowed money from her friends to top-up her phone. When the debt got bigger and bigger, M.N was very scared and she sought another way to earn money. She chatted with men on the Internet and asked them to help her by sending her the code of phone cards. In return for it, she showed off her body through the webcam.

At the beginning, M.N sold her body to pay the debt but after that she did it, whenever she needed money, Once, when her mother accidentally entered the girl’s room, she  was fainted seeing her daughter wriggling her nake body in front of the webcam.

Some students use part of  their school fees to pay phone bills.

Nguyen Minh, a schoolboy from Giang Vo, Hanoi, has pawned hi phone. His parents had to redeem the phone several times.

According to VietNamNet’s survey, of 800 students interviewed, 38.5 percent said they send less than five text messages a day, 29 percent sent over 10 messages a day, 13.8 percent sent from 30-40 messages a day, 29 percent mainly used cell phones to contact their parents, 71 percent contact their friends, 58.7 percent pay their phone charges with parents’ money, 82 percent use cell phones during class.

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