Binh Dinh pledges to close solar power plant if it impacts local residents

Binh Dinh Province government has pledged to immediately shut down a solar power plant in the north-central locality if it has adverse effects on local residents, Thanh Nien newspaper reported.

The province’s chairman, Ho Quoc Dung, on Monday held a discussion with residents in the outlying district of Phu My to address their concerns over the possible effects of the solar power project.

Earlier, the Hanoi-based Vietnam Renewable Energy JSC was given the go-ahead to build the solar power plant in Tra O Lagoon, located in the same district, stirring up public concerns.

The VND1.44-trillion (US461.8 million) project, which has a designed capacity of 50 MW, will cover some 60 hectares of water surface and 0.6 hectares of land in the lagoon.

The plant will help increase the capacity of the national grid and meet the increasing demand for electricity in the province. It is expected to be put into operation in the second quarter of next year.

Since mid-2018, local residents have expressed fierce opposition to the project.

During the talk yesterday, local fishermen noted they were afraid that they would have no place to earn their living. They also fretted over the possibility that the plant would cause pollution to the lagoon.

The company’s director, Le Duc Thoa, stated that the plant would not cause pollution. He pledged to support local residents with social security issues and to employ locals as a matter of priority.

He noted if the plant came into operation, it would create a source of taxes worth some VND35 billion on an annual basis.

Meanwhile, Chairman Dung claimed the provincial government would strictly abide by prevailing regulations on the execution of the project, thereby bringing benefits to local residents.

“Tra O Lagoon is a common natural resource of the Phu My people and of the province. The administration will not let anything affect the livelihoods of residents around the lagoon,” he remarked, adding that if anyone prevented locals from fishing in the area, they should report the incident to provincial authorities so the violators can be strictly dealt with.

Danang faces shortage of freshwater, salinity intrusion

The passage of a river in Danang City 

The central coastal city of Danang is struggling with a lack of freshwater and saltwater intrusion because of limited upstream rainfall and low water levels in reservoirs, according to the latest report released by Danang Water Supply JSC (Dawaco).

Ho Huong, a member of Dawaco’s board of directors, noted that the reducing upstream rainfall and low water levels of the Vu Gia and Yen rivers as well as the lowered levels of water in reservoirs versus levels recorded last year has caused salinity intrusion in the Cau Do River, with the salinity of water measuring up to 4,300 milligrams per liter.

“Dawaco operated the An Trach salinity prevention pumping station but failed to sufficiently supply raw water to the Cau Do and San Bay water treatment facilities, resulting in an undersupply of freshwater to the city’s locals,” Huong remarked.

Besides this, the water levels of the reservoirs of two hydropower plants located near Vu Gia River---A Vuong and Song Bung 4---are lower than or near the limit, the representative noted, proposing residents save clean water resources.

As such, the Danang government has asked the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to instruct owners of the upstream reservoirs of the Vu Gia and Thu Bon rivers to discharge water to ensure the water levels of the An Trach spillway dam reach a minimum of 1.4 meters so that the An Trach salinity prevention station can work smoothly.

In addition, Dak Mi Hydropower JSC was required to release 12.5 cubic meters of water per second to ensure the water supply for the city.

Dawaco is reportedly building the Hoa Trung water treatment plant with a capacity of 10,000 cubic meters per day to meet the city’s water demand by 2020. Work on the plant started in July. Moreover, the municipal government is in the process of selecting investors to construct the Hoa Lien water treatment facility, with a capacity of 120,000 cubic meters per day, under the build-operate-transfer format.

Violations by housing project announced after Cienco 6 executive’s suicide

Police come to the scene where Cienco 6 executive Vo Phi Anh was found hanged last weekend in the file photo. Anh was involved in a police investigation of a housing project before the suicide 

Binh Duong Province's inspection agency has announced multiple violations by a housing project receiving investments from Civil Engineering Construction JSC No.710, whose former director Vo Phi Anh was found hanged last weekend while under investigation, Nguoi Lao Dong newspaper reported.

The project, located in Dong Hoa Ward, Di An provincial Town, in Binh Duong, once completed, is expected to house civil servants. However, its investor was accused of committing violations in terms of expenses and receipts, according to the provincial chief inspector.

While the project was underway, the investor collected nearly VND10 billion by selling five backup land lots and mobilizing the civil servants to fund the infrastructure facilities and sewer treatment system’s development.

The expensing and receipt activities were not managed as regulated and showed signs of violating prevailing regulations.

Apart from that, the construction firm had issued a decision to hand over land to buyers without approval from the competent agencies. Meanwhile, it has yet to contact the provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment to complete essential procedures has failed to pay taxes to the State budget.

Further, the investor had sold many land lots to non-civil servants and none of them have been able to obtain land use right certificates to date. Further, they were banned from building houses by the investor, causing many land lots to be abandoned over the years.

Besides this, the project’s land area was not added to the firm’s value while the equitization of the firm was underway.

Notably, the conclusions of the inspectorate agency point out that the investor had mortgaged legal documents, including the land use right certificate of the project, to the bank, which went against prevailing regulations as the period of the certificate’s legal validity had expired.

Civil Engineering Construction JSC No.710 is a former subsidiary of Cienco 6. Vo Phi Anh worked as a deputy general director of Cienco 6 before committing suicide while the police investigation of the project was underway.

One body found in gold mine collapse

Rescuers on Saturday discovered the body of one victim of a gold mine collapse in Lộng Village, Thanh Nông Commune, Lạc Thủy District, the northern province of Hòa Bình.—Photo baonhandao.vn

Rescuers on Saturday discovered the body of one victim of a gold mine collapse in Lộng Village, Thanh Nông Commune, Lạc Thủy District, the northern province of Hòa Bình.

Senior lieutenant-colonel Phạm Tuấn Linh, an official from the Hòa Bình Police, said that after seven days of digging thousands of cubic metres of soil to search for the two missing men, the rescuing forces found one.

The deceased is Bùi Văn Thú, 28, from Thanh Nông Commune.

Rescuers are continuing to search for the remaining victim.

At about 2am on November 4, the mouth of Cột Cờ cave in Lộng Village collapsed and trapped two miners inside.

The incident occurred as a dam above the cave mouth broke while the two workers were operating an excavator inside the cave. Thousands of cubic metres of soil and water flowed into the cave, sweeping the two workers, one automobile and an excavator deep inside the cave. 

Son La police arrest man smuggling 30 bricks of heroin

Pua Lao Sau and the exhibits 

Police in Van Ho and Moc Chau districts of the northern border province of Son La caught red-handed a man smuggling 30 bricks of heroin (around 1.5 kg) on November 11.

Pua Lao Sau, born in 1967 and residing in Cang Ty village, Chieng Khua commune of Son La’s Moc Chau district, was arrested in Tan Lap village in Long Luong commune of Van Ho district.

In addition to the heroin, authorised forces seized 15 bags of meth pills, one automobile and other relevant exhibits.

Further investigation into the case is underway.

On October 31, Son La police also caught red-handed two men smuggling drugs in Cuong Muong hamlet, Muong Chum commune, Muong La district.

Mua A Dua, 30, residing in Chieng Hoa commune, Muong La district, and his accomplice Hang A Gang, 35, residing in Chieng Cang commune, Song Ma district, were arrested while illegally transporting one brick of heroin (around 350 grammes) and more than 5,000 methamphetamine pills.

Three days earlier, police in Song Ma district, Son La province, captured two local women, seizing five bricks of heroin (some 1.75kg), 30,000 meth pills and other exhibits.

The arrestees included Song Thi Dia, born in 1969, and Ho Thi Dua, born in 1979, both residing in Bua Hin hamlet, Muong Hung commune, Song Ma district.

Dia and Dua admitted that they had bought the drugs from a Lao man at the border area.

The police seized an additional 2,200 meth pills and a small packet of heroin when raiding Dua’s house.

Origin-tracing stamps gain favour amongst traders

Products sold in Han Market in the central coastal city of Da Nang have been labelled with origin-tracing stamps since early October. The move has received great support from traders in the market.

One million stamps have been provided to shop owners within the market since early October.

The labelling of origin-tracing stamps is being piloted until the end of 2018. Afterwards, the city will review and improve the programme before the model is widely applied.

Da Nang aims to make origin-tracing stamps a requirement for food trading and expand the pilot model to other markets within the city. In order to do that, the city is bolstering communication activities to acknowledge sellers and buyers on the benefit from those tiny stamps. 

Book on Hanoi's intangible cultural heritage debuts

Ceremony to launch book on Hanoi’s intangible cultural heritage in Contemporary Life 

A book on Hanoi’s intangible cultural heritage in Contemporary Life was launched on November 9 at Van Mieu – Quoc Tu Giam (Temple of Literature - National University).

The book features 24 heritages requiring priority preservation with more than 100 illustrations and 22 writings focusing on folklore linguistics, theatrical performances, customs and beliefs. 

The book is available in both English and Vietnamese. It will be made available in libraries, research institutes and schools.

Le Thi Minh Ly, Director of the Centre for Research and Promotion of Cultural Value, said the book aims to bring heritages closer to local and global communities, while connecting the protection of local intangible cultural heritages with regional and international preservation efforts.

This is also one of strategies to protect and promote intangible cultural heritage values of Hanoi, she added.

Dutch Cultural Festival opens in Can Tho

The Netherlands' cuisine introduced at Dutch Cultural Festival 

The Embassy of the Netherlands in Vietnam and the People’s Committee of Can Tho city on November 10 opened the Dutch Cultural Festival with a wide range of activities held to celebrate the 45th anniversary of Vietnam-Netherlands diplomatic relations.

Highlights of the event were a parade of orange bikes, a photo exhibition, and an area to introduce the Netherlands’ cuisine.

Other activities such as a seminar titled “the Netherlands stands side by side with Vietnam towards a sustainable future for the Mekong Delta”, a Dutch education workshop, a field trip to the Netherlands’ The Fruit Republic Company in the Mekong Delta city, and film screening promoting the European country’s culture.

Dutch Ambassador Elsbeth Akkerman affirmed that with close relations over the past 45 years, Vietnam and the Netherlands will see new developments in fostering trade, culture, tourism and education.

On the basis of the two strategic cooperative agreements on adaptation to climate change and water management, and agriculture and food safety, the Netherlands will maintain its efforts to help Vietnam build and implement plans to increase the livelihood for people in regions prone to climate change, and intensify technology application in sustainable and environmentally-friendly agricultural production, she added.

Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Truong Quang Hoai Nam emphasised the Netherlands is a strategic partner of Vietnam in general and the Mekong Delta in particular.

Therefore, with its role as the centre of the region, Can Tho will try its utmost in attracting investment, upgrading infrastructure and reforming administrative procedures to expand trade and cultural exchanges with the European nation, thus helping bilateral relations match with both sides’ potential and advantages, Nam affirmed.

Winner of Young Francophones contest named

Winners of the Young Francophones Reporters – Vietnam 2018 and organisers pose for a photo 

First prize of the Young Francophones Reporters – Vietnam 2018 – a journalism writing contest in French language was awarded to Dao Phuong Loan, a student from Hanoi University, in Hanoi on November 9.

Loan won for her reportage titled ‘Les Jeunes Vietnamiens Face des Desours de Haine sur Facebook about Vietnamese youth under the impacts of negative words on social networks, particularly, Facebook.

Entitled “The Power of Words”, the contest, the third of its kind held by Le Courrier du Vietnam, a weekly French language newspaper of Vietnam News Agency (VNA), aims to encourage young people to use the beauty and richness of French language to write about Vietnam.

Through their articles, the writers, many of whom are young students, have expressed their feelings, points of view and comments and introduced to the French-speaking community Vietnam’s beauty, culture and people.

The contest was sponsored by the International Organisation of Francophonie (OIF), the Embassies of France, Switzerland and Morocco, the Francophone Universities Association (AUF) and the Wallonie-Bruxelles Delegation in Hanoi.

It was also supported by the Vietnam National Assembly, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other international organisations and diplomatic agencies that use the French language in Vietnam.

The contest drew attention from young writers, particularly university students learning French throughout the country, as well as young foreigners who live and study in Thailand.

The organising board said 20 among a total of nearly 90 entries had been selected for the final round.

These works had been published in Le Courrier du Vietnam online at https://www.lecourrier.vn and recorded nearly 20,000 readers’ like.

Editor-in-chief of the newspaper Nguyen Thu Ha, who is also a co-head of the organising board of the event, said the third contest’s results met all its targets of promoting the movement of teaching and learning French in Vietnam.

Ha said the contest also met its targets of diversifying the contents of news and stories in the context of serving for the national foreign affairs, introducing the country, its culture and people to the community of 88 French speaking countries and territories and especially creating a playground for young people studying French.

Eric-Normand Thibeault, Director of the OIF Asia-Pacific Regional Bureau and also a co-head of the organising board, was impressed at the writing quality this time, saying that young writers through their works had brought in different angles of life in Vietnam.

The organising board also awarded one second, third and two consolidation prizes. 

Blaze destroys houses at Cai Rang floating market

Local firefighters extinguish a fire which broke out at noon today, November 8, at Cai Rang floating market in Can Tho City

A blaze broke out at the Cai Rang floating market today, destroying five houses and a boat in Can Tho City’s Cai Rang District, and causing a panic, as some sought to escape the blaze, news website Vietnamnet reported.

The fire broke out at around 11 a.m. today, November 8, at a block of houses located at the floating market, which is a popular tourist venue, and spread rapidly. Officials noted that the elderly, children and property were quickly moved to safety by local residents, adding that boats and ships operating on the river remained far from the flames.

Consequently, no injuries were reported, though a boat and some homes were destroyed, according to local officials.

Four fire trucks brought firefighters to the scene, and the flames were extinguished by about 12 p.m.

Meanwhile, the local government is assisting families whose homes were destroyed, offering VND3 million per family, said Tran Van Binh, chairman of the People’s Committee of Le Binh Ward in the district.

An investigation has begun to determine the cause of the blaze.

Cienco 6 executive was under investigation before suicide: police

A deputy general director of Civil Engineering Construction Corporation No.6, or Cienco 6, who was found hanged late last week, was involved in a police investigation of a housing project in the southern province of Binh Duong, the local media reported.

The head of the provincial police department confirmed that its investigators had launched an investigation into project No.710, also known as the housing project for civil servants, located in Dong Hoa Ward, Di An provincial Town, in Binh Duong. Civil Engineering Construction JSC No.710, a former subsidiary of Cienco 6, remained the project’s key investor.

Vo Phi Anh, deputy general director of Cienco 6, was confirmed as a suspect by the local police due to his involvement with the project, before he apparently committed suicide by hanging himself.

The zoning plan of the housing project, covering over 4.5 hectares of land, was approved by the provincial government some nine years ago. The investor was found to have left the land paperwork incomplete and had allocated houses against prevailing regulations, leading the government of Binh Duong to order the provincial Inspectorate agency to thoroughly inspect the project and transfer the case to the Investigative Police for further investigation.

Earlier, on November 3, Anh was found dead in his office in Truong Tho Ward in HCMC’s Thu Duc District.

In addition, Thu Duc District Police are conducting an investigation into the cause of his death, adding that the police will make an official announcement on the case in the coming days, stated the police leader.

Transport infrastructure development under BOT format is necessary: PM

Investment in and construction of transport infrastructure under the build-operate-transfer (BOT) investment format are necessary given the cash-strapped State coffer, said Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc at a meeting last week.

The Ministry of Transport has called on the private sector to execute transport infrastructure projects under public-private partnerships, including BOT. The ministry has already inspected a number of BOT projects in terms of the locations of their toll stations, their costs and effectiveness.

The Prime Minister spoke highly of the ministry’s efforts to guarantee security and social order at certain BOT toll stations. Meanwhile, the State Audit Office has audited these stations to leave out irrelevant costs to verify the actual investment.

The Government leader asked the ministry to further address the shortcomings of BOT projects. He noted that the goal was to ensure the legitimate rights and interests of the State, project investors and residents.

The transparency of these projects should be guaranteed – their financial plans and toll fares should be reasonable, according to the Government leader.

Seeking comprehensive solutions to the issues affecting BOT transport infrastructure projects is a necessity, he stressed, adding that the complaints and petitions of residents and businesses involved in such projects should be fully addressed.

He stated that those individuals found deliberately causing disturbances at BOT toll stations should be dealt with strictly.

Besides the problems facing BOT projects, the Prime Minister also urged the ministry to provide electronic toll collection services at all toll stations nationwide until the end of 2019.

A report from the ministry indicates that it is currently overseeing 63 BOT projects across the country.

American professor shares cancer treatment experience in HCMC

Medical Doctor, Doctor of Philosophy Zeljko Vujaskovic, director of the Maryland Proton Treatment Center at the University of Maryland’s School of Medicine, visited Vietnam to share his experience with new cancer treatment methods at Gia An 115 Hospital in HCMC’s Binh Tan District last week.

Dr. Vujaskovic delivered a speech at a scientific conference held at the hospital on applying hyperthermia therapy, or raising the body temperature, in cancer treatment.

For the past 30 years, Dr. Vujaskovic has conducted a slew of transdisciplinary research studies in the United States as well as around the world to narrow the gap between basic science and clinical research and ultimately enhance treatment results and the quality of life of cancer patients.

The event is among a series of scientific conferences aimed at updating medical knowledge in the field of oncology among leading physicians and healthcare experts at home and abroad.

The HCMC-based Gia An 115 Hospital is reportedly the first project to be executed under the public-private partnership format, with the collaboration of People’s Hospital 115. The newly founded hospital was approved by the municipal government to reduce the overload at public hospitals in the city.

The modern hospital project cost a total of more than VND1.5 trillion and was put into service one month ago.

Data on over 31,000 bank card transactions breached

A card user withdraws cash from an ATM machine in HCMC. Data on more than 31,000 transactions using bank cards were breached and disclosed on RaidForums 

Data on more than 31,000 transactions using bank cards were breached and disclosed on RaidForums, a forum for database trading, on November 6, news site VnExpress reported.

The revealed information includes part of bank card numbers, and transaction time, venue and value.

The first six digits and four last digits of each bank card number were exposed on the forum. In addition, these transactions were allegedly conducted from June 29 to July 18, 2016.

A file with 5.4 million email addresses that purportedly belong to customers of the mobile phone store chain The Gioi Di Dong and another file with more than 61,000 email addresses in the format of username@thegioididong.com, which are supposedly the email addresses of The Gioi Di Dong’s staff, were also posted on the forum.

A representative of The Gioi Di Dong was cited by VnExpress as confirming that the information was not related to its customers or staff and that the firm’s network system was still operating as usual.

Two people whose information was breached noted they had carried out transactions with The Gioi Di Dong over the last two years. They expressed concern over the possible loss of their bank account information.

A security expert in HCMC stated that hackers might have more information than what they had posted on RaidForums.

Earlier, the data of 160 million Zing ID accounts were also disclosed on RaidForums, which currently has some 90,000 members.

500 students join pedestrian safety campaign in HCMC

Around 500 students in HCMC took part in a pedestrian safety parade last week as part of a series of activities of the Pedestrian Safety Public Awareness Campaign jointly held by FedEx Express (FedEx) and Safe Kids Vietnam-Asia Injury Prevention (AIP).

Representatives from AIP and FedEx guided the students, aged 10 and 11, on a walk around Tran Hung Dao Primary School in District 1 to help educate them about dangerous areas to avoid and safe road user habits.

The Pedestrian Safety Public Awareness Campaign will run until May 2019, with other activities including delivering safety messages to parents during parent meetings and organizing interactive activities with parents during pick-up and drop-off hours at 37 schools.

“Road safety remains a big issue in the country. As an international transportation and logistics corporation, FedEx has more than 185,000 vehicles on the road worldwide each day. As such, road safety is our utmost priority, not only for couriers but for pedestrians as well,” said Hardy Diec, managing director of FedEx Express Indochina.

“We are proud to be involved in a program that brings positive change and possibilities to our communities, especially for our children. We hope this Pedestrian Safety Public Awareness Campaign will help raise awareness on the importance of road safety and contribute to safer walking environments for children in Vietnam. It is equally important to teach children about proper pedestrian behavior so that they can keep themselves safe on the road.”

According to the National Traffic Safety Committee, traffic accidents are the second leading cause of death and serious injury for children from infancy to 19 years old, with more than 1,900 children dying every year due to traffic accidents.

The Pedestrian Safety Public Awareness Campaign is part of the Walk This Way program, conducted by FedEx and AIP to increase awareness of child pedestrian safety and improve road user behaviors in Vietnam. Since its launch in 2009, the program has reached nearly 270,000 students from 315 primary and secondary schools across the country, installed a 1,700-square-meter traffic safety park for primary school students in Dong Nai Province, and donated thousands of helmets, reflective jackets and caps, pedestrian safety pencil cases, and pedestrian safety books to students.