Truck crash kills one student, injures three others

A truck killed a student and severely injured three others today in an accident in Bau Lam Commune, Xuyen Moc District in southern  Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province.

The truck reportedly went over to the opposite lane and hit a group of four students from the local Hoa Binh High School, who were on the way to school.

The truck's driver and another man who was in the truck were also slightly injured when it fell off the side of the road. The case is under further investigation. 

Vietnam drink maker hit by boycott, quality inspection after winning fly-in-bottle lawsuit

Tan Hiep Phat Group, the maker of several popular drinks in Vietnam, is being boycotted on the Internet and scrutinized by the country’s consumer association, only days after winning a lawsuit that sent one of its consumers to prison.

The Vietnamese Consumer Protection Association has received complaints from local residents and authorities in the southern province of Ca Mau, as hundreds of Tan Hiep Phat-made herbal tea products were found containing strange objects last week.

“We have tasked the Ca Mau consumer protection unit with inviting the drink maker for a meeting to clarify the issue,” the association head, Nguyen Phuoc Hong, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Sunday.

The Ca Mau food safety watchdog said last week they had found more than 100 unopened bottles of Dr Thanh herbal tea to be containing floating ‘dregs’ from various places in the province.

The products are all within their expiry date, but white sediment can easily be seen floating at the bottom of the bottles, raising doubt over their quality, according to food safety officers.

Seventy-nine of the Dr Thanh bottles were seized on Tuesday from a local café and a beverage store, while the same white dregs were also spotted inside 48 bottles of the tea at a Tan Hiep Phat dealership the following day.

Tan Hiep Phat Group, headquartered in the southern province of Binh Duong, also makes products including Number 1 energy drink, Soya soy milk, and Zero Degree green tea, which have all been boycotted by local consumers.

The boycott movement was initiated on the heels of a court ruling that a consumer in the southern province of Tien Giang be jailed for seven years for extorting money from the drink maker with a bottle of Number 1 that had a fly inside.

Vo Van Minh demanded VND1 billion (US$46,600), and later halved it to VND500 million, in return for his silence.

Minh was about to receive the cash from a company representative on January 27 when police officers, notified by Tan Hiep Phat of what it considered blackmail, arrived to capture him.

The company had secretly called for police intervention while already agreeing to pay Minh, and was therefore blasted for treating its customer in such an unethical way, which eventually led to an Internet-based boycott of its products.

There are people who believe it is right for Tan Hiep Phat to have police officers arrest Minh, but such supporters seem outnumbered by the opponents.

Nguyen Phan Huy Khoi, director of public relations with Tan Hiep Phat, said on Saturday that the boycott is an act of sabotage and the company is a victim.

The drink maker has previously claimed that it incurred damage worth at least VND2 trillion ($89.29 million) as consumers turned their back on its products.

Also on Saturday, one day after the court ruling, Tan Hiep Phat released a letter of apology, in which its deputy general director, Tran Uyen Phuong, said sorry to “consumers and particularly the family of Vo Van Minh for the inconvenience caused.”

Phuong said the company is sticking to its ultimate goal of satisfying consumers, so it will “always listen to suggestions and improve its service quality.”

As for the lawsuit with Minh, the executive said Tan Hiep Phat “followed the laws and never compromised themselves by cooperating with illegal activity.”

The drink maker said it was “sorry for what happened to Minh,” but still referred to the customer’s act as “extortion” causing another wave of public outrage over what people saw as an insincere apology.

While the letter does not directly address the boycott of Tan Hiep Phat products, it says the company “hopes to receive support from consumers for a Vietnamese brand” and continue to compete with multinational groups.

In a separate interview with newswire VTC News, Khoi, the PR head, refused to comment on the quality complaints against the Dr Thanh products in Ca Mau.

“Errors are acceptable in any firm or brand around the world, so long as they are within a certain limit,” he said.

“Even Apple Inc. has erroneous products and as a maker of 100 million bottles of drink products a year, we cannot say ours are 100 percent error-free.”

The group maintained in a print ad published by a newspaper in March this year that its assembly line is modern and closed so nothing strange can make its way into the bottles, challenging customers to find dirt in return for a cash reward.

Khoi said the company is working with authorities in Ca Mau over the Dr Thanh scandal and refused to comment further on when there will be an official conclusion from regulatory bodies.

As for the boycott campaign, Khoi said consumers should give the company more time.

“We want more time to prove our image and responsibility to the public,” he said.

“We believe consumers understand what is right and wrong and view all public opinions as a reminder that we should ensure quality.”

Tropical depression affects VN coast

At 7pm yesterday, low pressure strengthened into a tropical depression in the East Sea with a wind force level of 6, according to the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting.

It was forecasted to move west in the next 24 hours. The Viet Nam's Truong Sa (Spratly) Archipelago and the coastline areas near the central Quang Ngai Province and southern Ca Mau Province were expected to see strong winds with potential for a typhoon.

Meanwhile, the coastal city of Da Nang and Binh Thuan Province were expected to face medium to heavy rain with a possibility of a typhoon.

Russian reporters honoured with friendship medals

Four Spunnik Internationals reporters receive the Vietnamese President’s friendship medals. (Photo: VNA)

The Vietnam Embassy in Russia bestowed the President’s friendship medals upon four experienced reporters from the local news agency and radio – Spunnik Internationals – on December 18.

The recipients were Asia department head Elena Nikulina, office head Igor Britov, reporter Alexey Syunnerberg and anchorwoman Tatiana Rumyansheva at the Spunnik Vietnamese radio.

Syunnerberg said he was moved by the honour.

Rumyansheva stated the medals were not for individuals but for the entire department.

She said she and her colleagues are working to help Vietnamese audiences understand Russia’s stances on global affairs, stressing that the work is their honour and responsibility.

The Spunnik news agency and radio, formerly known as the Voice of Russia and Radio Moscow, was established in 1929. Its first Vietnamese programme was broadcast in September 1951.

Sunwah social services launched in Hanoi

More than 500 students from the Vietnam National University – Hanoi (VNU) participated in five social services projects launched by the Sunwah Group on December 20 in Hanoi to mark the group’s 45 th anniversary.

The activities are Wall to Wall Art, Trees for the Future, Making Music Together, Live Green Live Clean, and Smile for Christmas.

Addressing the event, Jonathan Choi, Chairman of Sunwah Group and Sunwah Foundation said companies should contribute to communities where they have enjoyed success.

President of the Vietnam Association of Vocational Training and Social Work Nguyen Thi Hang hailed the activities, saying that they help raise public awareness of society and community development.

In 2015, the Sunwah Foundation have organised a number of social and charity activities and provided support for needy people across the country.

It has also funded numerous programmes on education, art and culture with the active support of the Vietnamese government, universities and people.

An exhibition showcasing 45 most outstanding photos depicting the beauty of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City in Sunwah’s journey selected from 643 entries by students across the nation also formed part of the event.

TV series highlights regional ties

The Dong Nai Province Radio and Television Station (DNTV) will broadcast a documentary series featuring friendship ties between Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.

The 30-part film, Dong Duong Chung Mot Chien Hao (Indochinese Countries are Comrades in Arms), highlights the relationships of people and soldiers of the three countries in different eras.

It focuses on historic events in 1858 when the coalition forces of France and Spain arrived near Son Tra Island to attack Vietnam and the Indochinese Peninsula later.

It also features the three countries' history, culture and lifestyle. The film used reports and interviews produced by the national TV stations of Laos and Cambodia.

The DNTV film staff spent two years working with its partners to complete the documentaries. The film was produced to celebrate the 71st anniversary of the Vietnam People's Army.

The film's 25-minute segments will begin broadcast on BTV2 and BTV1 channels every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday at 9.30pm from on December 22.

It will be subtitled in Lao and Khmer, and released in the two countries as well.

National priorities on sexual, reproductive health beyond 2015

National priorities on sexual, reproductive health and family planning beyond 2015 were announced at a workshop held by the Ministry of Health and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) in Hanoi on December 18.

Accordingly, Vietnam will focus on improving access and quality of health services in areas with high maternal death ratio while bettering quality of health services in areas with low maternal mortality.

The Ministry of Health and relevant bodies also plan to increase information provision on the issues to teens and adolescents and single youths, and enhance public-private partnership in providing friendly sexual and reproductive health services and birth controls.

Furthermore, the priorities include developing a new approach for the delivery of family planning services, the development of national standards for quality management of birth controls and the design of a comprehensive strategy for prevention and control of reproductive cancers.

In his remarks at the workshop, Deputy Health Minister Nguyen Viet Tien said the priorities on sexual, reproductive health and family planning beyond 2015 will be fundamental for the health authority to formulate and effectively implement the country’s 5-year health care plan and the national strategy on population and reproductive health for 2016-2020.

These priorities need to be well integrated into policies and projects of the government, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and development partners after 2015, he added.

Over the past years, Vietnam has made big strides towards the UN Millennium Development Goals by expanding coverage of its sexual and reproductive health care.

However, there is still a substantial regional disparity in service access while one third of young people reported obstacles in accessing sexual and reproductive health information and services.

According to the UNFPA, of the 23 million Vietnamese women between the age of 15-49, about 79 percent use some form of contraception. However, more than one-third of single women have an unmet need for contraception. This unmet need is particularly high among ethnic minority women and female migrant workers. As a result, there is a significant number of unwanted pregnancies and unsafe abortions every year, especially among unmarried young people.

Fatherland Front wishes Christians happy Xmas

President of the Viet Nam Fatherland Front (VFF) Central Committee Nguyen Thien Nhan wished Catholic and Protestant dignitaries and followers a merry Christmas.

In a letter to all Catholics and Protestants ahead of the upcoming Christmas holiday, the front leader acknowledged and praised their great contributions to preserving and upholding the tradition of patriotism, as well as their company with the nation.

Over the past years, Catholics and Protestants nationwide have followed guidelines and policies of the Party and State, and assisted victims of natural disasters and underprivileged people, he said.

They have also enthusiastically responded to campaigns launched by the VFF and partaken in social welfare activities, the fight against drugs and social evils, and environmental protection.

Nhan highlighted the signing of a co-operation programme on environmental protection and climate change response by 40 religious organisations, including representatives of Catholics and Protestants, and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment earlier this month.

The front leader expressed his hope that Catholic and Protestant followers will carry forward the patriotic tradition and lead a good life, both secularly and religiously, thus contributing to national construction and defence.

Overloaded vehicles to be inspected

The Directorate for Roads of Viet Nam, in co-ordination with the Viet Nam Register, will inspect overloaded automobiles across the country from the beginning of next year.

The inspections will be conducted on roads and at register centres nation-wide.

The inspections will also help discover automobiles which are out of date or using fake certificates.

If weighing stations discover automobiles that have violated laws they will inform the Viet Nam Register.

If register centres discover overloaded vehicles, they must ask the drivers to pledge not to repeat their violations. They will also set up a list of transport enterprises with several violations and report it to the Directorate for Roads of Viet Nam.

Director of the Directorate of Viet Nam Nguyen Van Huyen said that for the first time, all five deputy ministers of transport would join the inspections.

The five deputy ministers would check overloaded vehicles at railway stations, enterprises, ports and airports.

Cao Van Hiep, head of the Ha Noi Mobile Weighing Station said that different weighing stations operated on main roads in the city day and night.

Since the beginning of this year, the weighing stations have given fine to more than 1,000 overloaded automobiles worth VND5 billion (US$222,200). All fined automobiles were loaded to double their capacity.

Senior lieutenant-colonel Le Van Hoan, head of the transport police team No 4 which is on duty at the Thanh Tri Bridge said that issuing fines was tough because hired drivers were not given the necessary papers by the vehicles owners.

Many also know how to avoid the weighing stations.

Major-general Nguyen Huu Danh, deputy director of the Transport Police Department under the Ministry of Public Security, said that the department will supervise the transport inspectors' work.

Clinics must protect staff from infection

Staff at health facilities continue to face a fairly high risk of infections from body fluids, blood or pathogens as protective measures are not effective, local health officials have said.

At a workshop on occupational diseases held on Thursday in HCM City, Dr Huynh Tan Tien, head of the city's Labour Health and Environment Protection Centre, said that obeying standard precautions was the best way to prevent the infection.

Recently, the Ha Noi Obstetrics and Gynaecology Hospital admitted a patient they did not know to be HIV positive. During emergency surgery, the hospital's 18 doctors and nurses did not wear protective clothing.

After four hours of surgery, the doctors and nurses took anti-HIV medications following a World Health Organisation recommendation.

Research also shows that between 2011 and 2014, HCM City Hospital for Tropical Diseases had 428 health officials exposed to HIV, accounting for 56.3 per cent of the total number of fields with staff exposed to HIV, such as police and rehabilitation centres. No one has tested HIV positive.

Sharp devices that caused wounds on the skin caused the highest rate (53.9 per cent) of transmission among healthcare staff, police, rehabilitation workers and others who have exposure to HIV, according to the research study.

Nurses who injected or took blood from patients with HIV were also at a high risk of exposure. Recommended precautions are frequent hand washing; wearing gloves, face masks and other clothing; proper transport of patients; and treatment of medical waste, Tien said.

The precautionary standards should be applied to all patients and health officials, he said. Infections can spread from patients to patients, patients to health officials, or health officials to patients.

Under the Ministry of Health's regulation, each hospital is required to have a faculty or team in charge of infection prevention and control.

Ha Kim Phuong, specialist of the Medical Examination and Treatment Department, said that after five years of implementation of the circular on guidance for hospital infection prevention and control in health facilities, 13.3 per cent of hospitals nationwide had not set up a faculty in charge of the issue.

More than 41 per cent of the country's total hospitals have no sterilizing units, and 93.2 per cent have not conducted surveys on hospital acquired infections since 2010.

Dr Nguyen Viet Thinh of the city Pasteur Institute said that healthcare staff were also at risk of being infected by hepatitis.

Thinh recommended that healthcare staff receive vaccines against hepatitis.

Tien said that influenza and tuberculosis were also occupational diseases.

Health staff who have contact with hazardous elements in surgery and tests, including contact with people with HIV/AIDS and patients with hepatitis, should undergo testing for occupational diseases within six months after contact, Tien said.

Those staff who have contact with infectious diseases and tuberculosis, and work during disease outbreaks, should have examinations within 12 months.

A council for medical assessment specifies the level of health decline and labour capacity if the staff test positive for any of the occupational diseases. After the assessment, the staff is treated and examined periodically.

When resuming work, the staff are assigned to work in environments that are not considered hazardous or dangerous, Tien said.

People undefeated by post-war bombs and mines

Vietnam’s Quang Tri province, an area of scorching sun and heavy rain, was also hardest hit by the American bombing during the war. Despite severe natural conditions, victims of war bombs and mines have struggled to build a new, better life.

“When I was 15 years old, in grade 7, and was participating in a school corvee, I faced unexploded ordnance left by the war. Four people died, four were injured.  All of them were my classmates at Trung Son secondary school,” Nguyen Van Phuong of ward 5 in Dong Ha City told us his life story with a sad voice.

In the twinkling of an eye, many of the teenager’s dreams and aspirations vanished. Recovering in hospital, Phuong realized there were many other wounded people like him. His legs were amputated because there were too many victims, a shortage of medicines, his wounds became infected.

It’s hard for an ordinary person to earn a living, but it’s much harder for a person with disability.

Out of weariness, Phuong sometimes wants to let things run their course.

Children of victims of war bombs and mines and of disadvantaged households are presented with Peace Trees Vietnam’s scholarships.

He shared, “Everyone has a childhood dream: to do well in school and travel a lot to learn as much as possible. But I wanted to end my life. A few times I bought medicine to commit suicide but friends and relatives knew and dissuaded me."

"The other times I wanted to end my life by sitting on the railway track. My life began to change when I decided to live on my own. Now I’ve become interested in earning a living,” he added.

Time has passed. The pain is fading. Now Phuong finds his fulfillment in working hard for his own family.

“In 1998, I got married and we had our first baby. Our second baby was born three years later. When the Peace Tree project was launched in 2001, I applied for a house in Hoa Binh village and moved there in 2003. Ten years later, we had our third baby. They are very obedient and study hard. They make me happy and I think only of working hard to have enough money to take care of them,” he said.

Do Thien Dang, a war bomb and mine victim from Trieu Long commune, Trieu Phong district, is making flower baskets to have more income when a mushroom crop is over.

Like Phuong, the life of Tran Thi Be of ward 5 in Dong Ha city has been full of tears. She noted, “In 1973 on the way from Quang Tri to Danang, I set off a mine and lost two legs. My mom and five sisters died. My dad was injured. At that time I was 13 years old."

"It I spent two years in hospital. When my father recovered, he brought me to our native village. Our life is one of great deprivation both materially and emotionally. But I still try to continue to live,” she shared.

Her life turned a new page when she was invited to be in a film entitled “Stand life” because her life has been similar to the main characters.

She said, “The film is about a single woman who yearns to have a baby and become a mother. After participating in the film, I changed my mind, daring to dream and stop fearing others. I have a daughter. With the money from being in the film, I’ve managed to do a small trade to feed my child. ”

Be’s life has become easier thanks to the support of the community, adding “Now I have to take medicine all year round. The artificial legs make my back and spinal column hurt. Though my life is difficult, I’ll do my best to care for my daughter. I hope that she will get additional love and support from society.”

Tourist wharf in Ha Long Bay to cease operation from New Year Day

The administration of the northern province of Quang Ninh has decided to cease all ship operations from an old, deteriorated wharf starting New Year Day.

Ships bringing tourists to explore the world-famed Ha Long Bay in Quang Ninh will no longer dock at the old Bai Chay tourist wharf from January 1, 2016 onwards, the provincial administration has announced.

The decision is included in the province’s zoning plan to develop local waterways, including regulations on wharf activities meant to take tourists to the stunning bay and its neighboring look-alike, Bai Tu Long Bay, according to The Saigon Times Online.

The Bai Chay wharf has received ships sending millions of tourist visits to Ha Long Bay each year.

Once it is closed, all ship operations will be moved to new ports, including Tuan Chau International Passenger Port, and Hon Gai Passenger Port.

The Tuan Chau port, operated by Au Lac Quang Ninh Co. Ltd., was inaugurated on July 28 to receive domestic and international vessels offering the Quang Ninh and Ha Long Bay services.

The port, located south-southeast of Tuan Chau Island, off the province’s Ha Long City, consists of two docks, measuring 1,143 meters and 4,411 meters, respectively.

The port is also open to ships bringing holidaymakers to Cat Ba Island, located to the south of Ha Long Bay, the newswire added.

The Hon Gai port will also temporarily offer services to travelers to Bai Tu Long Bay.

Coc 3 Tourist Wharf will also provide services to tourist vessels and cruise ships heading to scenic spots in Hon Gai, another locality in Ha Long City, and ships departing Hon Gai for the two bays.

News of the Bai Chay wharf closure began circulating some months ago, and many ships have started docking at Tuan Chau Port since.

Ho Chi Minh City land staffer arrested for asking bribes from building permit applicant

An official from a land registration office in Ho Chi Minh City was arrested Friday for demanding a woman to pay VND50 million (US$2,230) and $5,000 as bribes to get a house construction permit.

A Tuoi Tre (Youth) Newspaper source confirmed on Friday that police in Binh Tan District have made the arrest of Thai Binh Quoc, an employee at the then-Binh Tan District Land Use Rights Registration Office, for “swindling to appropriate assets.”

The office where Quoc worked has changed its name to be known as the Binh Tan District Land Registration Office.

Quoc was accused of requesting a building permit applicant in Ho Chi Minh City to pay him VND50 million (US$2,230) and $5,000 as bribes.

Heeding a tip-off, the district police gathered evidence on Quoc’s wrongdoings after he had received millions of dong from his “victim.”  (VND1 million = US$44)

The investigative agency has also searched his workplace and home and seized loads of materials pertaining to his offence following his apprehension.

The Binh Tan District Police has also worked with the Binh Tan District Land Registration Office regarding the incidence.

In late March 2015 Pham Ngoc Yen, 40, a resident in Tan Binh District, filed her first application with the Binh Tan District Urban Management Office for a permit to build a house on a plot of land in Binh Tan’s Tan Tao A Ward, she told Tuoi Tre newspaper earlier.

Her first application was rejected, however.

Quoc then suggested she pay him VND120 million ($5,360) in exchange for his help in obtaining a construction permit quicker.

Yen refused the suggestion, to which Quoc responded that he would ensure that she would never be granted a permit.

After this, Yen failed to get approval for her application despite it being adjusted in accordance with the requirements of many relevant agencies.

She therefore reluctantly agreed to the demand from Quoc, who had continuously threatened that she could not get a permit unless she paid a bribe.

Quoc then asked Yen to pay him two amounts, including VND50 million and $5,000 in cash.

He also told the applicant that he would arrange for her to meet district chairman.

Tuoi Tre correspondents met with Thai Binh Quoc on November 6 and he admitted that he had asked Yen to pay him VND50 million in advance before she got a construction permit.

Quoc claimed that he wanted to use the amount to “show thanks” to those who had assisted him in getting the permit for Yen.

Vietnam province says no to road cutting through Cat Tien National Park

Authorities in the southern province of Dong Nai have protested a project to build a road cutting through the local Cat Tien National Park, while forest rangers say the road will not affect the environment and living habitat of wild animals there.

The Dong Nai People’s Committee has sent its proposal to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to re-examine the construction of the road in the core of the forest.

On October 29, the ministry approved the project to build the 18km long and 6m wide road that runs along the bank of Dong Nai River, from Da Co to Dac Lua forest check posts in Tan Phu District.

The construction of the project is planned to last till 2017.

Vo Van Chanh, deputy chairman of the Dong Nai People’s Committee, said the road runs through a forest area that is ruled under strict protection and allowed for building road less than 1.5m in width.

In addition, the six meter wide road is unsuitable to the ten-year plan for sustainable development of Cat Tien, he added.

The road will cause a loss of 11 hectares of the forest, badly affect its ecology for separating the forest from the local Dong Nai River, and change the natural habitat of wild animals.

Besides, the Cat Tien national park locates at the core of the wildlife reserve and biosphere forest of Dong Nai, which will soon be petitioned to UNESCO for acknowledgement as the natural heritage garden of the world.

So, the construction of the road fails to match with international conventions that Vietnam approved, according to Chanh.

However, rangers of the Cat Tien forest have different point of view towards the project.

Nguyen Van Dien, director of the Cat Tien national park, said, “The road will not affect the forest because it runs through only grassplots, secondary forest, and poor forest.

“The road will facilitate rangers in quickly moving to protect the forest.

“Now we have to patrol it by boat and it is dangerous in raining and flood season.”

One more road connecting HCMC and Long An opens to traffic

The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport on Saturday opened to traffic Tran Van Giau street running from Binh Tan district through Binh Chanh district to reach Long An province.

Tran Van Giau street project comprises two member projects including interprovincial roads 10 and 10B.

Road 10, 7.9 kilometers, had been built with four lanes at a total capital of VND1 trillion (US$44.36). Road 10B, 5.83 kilometers, has six lanes built at VND551 billion (US$24.44 million).

Deputy Director of the Transport Department Nguyen Van Tam said that Tran Van Giau street contributes in improving the traffic network linking HCMC up to Long An province and developing socioeconomics in western HCMC, and serves construction and exploitation of industrial parks namely Tan Tao, Le Minh Xuan and Vinh Loc.

The project was previously scheduled to complete in 2010 but site clearance difficulties have lengthened its progress.

Ministry launches writing contest on corruption prevention

The Ministry of Information and Communications December 18 launched a writing contest " Good examples in corruption prevention" in the media with the aim honoring good persons and good deeds as well as condemning corruption acts.

Additionally, the contest tends to increase information of the government and the Party's policies and lines of corruption fight amongst residents.

Speaking at the press conference on launching ceremony, Deputy Minister of Information and Communications Truong Minh Tuan asserted that press plays an important role in investigating cases and manifestation of corruption provided by citizens.

Press needs to report these cases of corruption which had been handled to make good public opinion, he added.

In many fields, corruption has been controlled and driven back yet newspaper reporters encountered difficulties in the fight against the problem.

In addition to increasing the Party's role and the government's management as well as completing mechanism and policies on management of corruption, education about anti-corruption

 should be increased by the media; accordingly, the role of press should develop more.

Entries are press reports which were published on printed or electronic newspaper from January 1, 2011 to April 30, 2016.

Each newspaper will select 1 or 2 reports to send to the contest organizer and each writer has 2 reports as the most. Entries should be sent to the Ministry of Information and Communications at 18 Nguyen Du Street in Hai Ba Trung Street, Hanoi from January 1, 2016 to April 30, 2016 or through email: thanhcentics@gmail.com.

Increased smuggling of unsafe food in year-end

Traffic police officers in Hanoi has just uncovered a smuggling of a large quantity of unsafe cattle organs.

Traffic policemen December 18 stopped a truck drived by   Nguyen Duc Hung, 40 year old, traveling in the National Highway 1A in Thuong Tin District of Hanoi.  Police officers detected 1 tons of cattle organs in the truck which gave off bad smell.

On the same day, inspectors of the Market Management No.11 in Hanoi detained 4 tons of salted shredded meat for testing is quality. The food was discovered the National Highway Phap Van when workers unloaded the food from this truck to another truck.

Through inspecting, drivers of the two truck could not produce any certificates of origins and certificates of food safety and hygiene. Health authority said that the food was made from safe poultry and pork meat plus preservative, chemical and wheat flour to be finished salted shredded meat which is sold to stores across Hanoi.

Female sex workers often abused and robbed

Many female sex workers here have suffered physical abuse and been defrauded of their wages, but most were not fully aware of the problem, accepting it as an occupational hazard.

Nguyen Thi Van Anh, deputy director of the Institute for Social Development Studies, told a conference here yesterday that a survey by the institute had revealed that some 3,000 female sex workers, aged between 18 and 50, worked in Ha Noi. Most were migrants from other provinces.

Many admitted to being physically abused and having their money stolen or withheld.

"They said they were shouted at, beaten, refused their wages, raped violently by a group of men or even robbed. This is all gender-specific abuse," she said.

Anh said most of the victims were poorly educated and could not find a job. They worked in this industry because they needed to earn a living. These women felt embarrassed by their job, but they could not stop working.

She said many female sex workers were severely traumatised after being abused or robbed. For instance, they would suffer mood swings, flying into a temper for no reason; refuse to meet their relatives; or feel as if their lives were meaningless.

Worse, none tried to call the police for help, as they feared they would be put into rehab centres, preventing them from earning enough money to help their families, she said.

At the conference, a female sex worker, known only as Ly, shared her story. According to Ly, a customer had taken her to an abandoned area, where five other men were lying in wait. She was gang-raped and left for dead. Ly then tried to flag down a truck, hoping to get a ride home, but she was raped by the truck driver.

Ly said she didn't know shouting or refusing her the money for her services was considered a type of abuse. She thought abuse was restricted to being beaten up and hospitalised for treatment.

"Every time a customer calls me, I hope that this guy will be a good one," she said.

Ly said she did not think she could get a job in the city as she had dropped out of school at the age of nine.

Thao, another female sex worker, is only slightly better off. One of her customers later became her boyfriend. Unfortunately, his wages from his job as a porter were not enough to support them both, so Thao was forced to continue working to earn more money.

Her boyfriend would sometimes beat her upon discovering she had returned to her old job, but Thao felt she had no choice.

Dao Van Huan of the Ha Noi Police Department's Social Order Investigation Unit said female sex workers must be made aware of gender-specific abuse. Those who wished to remain anonymous could place calls or write petitions to the police. Abusers could then be arrested for rape or human trafficking.

Huan said a hotline to support female sex workers was urgently required to provide legal consultancy services and to protect them from being abused.

JICA sees heightened Japanese interest in VN agriculture

The Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA) has joined hands with Viet Nam in setting up a chain of agricultural manufacturing units, involving production, processing and consumption activities.

JICA's Chief Representative in Viet Nam Mori Mutsuya said this at a conference held today in Ha Noi.

JICA's partners are the agriculture and rural development ministry (MARD), the central Nghe An Province, Lam Dong Central Highlands Province and the northern Ha Nam Province.

Mori said the key to making the co-operative projects successful was the close co-operation between the concerned agencies.

With help from MARD, pilot projects in Lam Dong, Nghe An and Ha Nam provinces will become stable and be expanded to other localities.

JICA's survey in Lam Dong Province showed that the local farmers' income was only one-ninth of those in Malaysia. If Japanese enterprises invested in Viet Nam, not only the enterprises but local farmers too would get great opportunities, Mori said.

For instance, the local farmers' income in Lam Dong has increased by nine times ever since they started planting flowers instead of coffee trees.

Yamamoto Satoshi, JICA official in charge of agriculture, said MARD should supervise the above-mentioned project and replicate the model. While implementing the project, local farmers should pinpoint the problems and define which of them could not solved by them and then ask for support from JICA.

Mori said manpower training was also one of the targets in the Viet Nam-Japan dialogue on agricultural development co-operation.

Manpower training in agriculture and environment sectors will be conducted at Can Tho University.

JICA is also planning to join hands with the Viet Nam National University of Agriculture in researching rice varieties.

Mori said after the medium-term and long-term visions of the Viet Nam-Japan dialogue on agricultural development co-operation were formulated, the number of Japanese enterprises paying attention to Vietnamese agriculture had increased.

Viet Nam's agriculture could not develop properly because of problems such as farmers and enterprises facing difficulties in accessing credit with interest, lack of information technology and of information about consumers.

Quang Ninh: two thirds of communes recognised as new rural areas

Eighty two out of 125 communes and six out of ten districts in the northeastern province of Quang Ninh are expected to become new-style rural areas by the end of 2015.

Dong Trieu became the first modern district in the province.

In the past few years, the province has mobilised 57.7 trillion VND (2.56 million USD) for the new-style rural building programme. The money has been splashed out on the construction of more than 1,200 works, including 600 kilometres of roads, over 84 kilometres of irrigational system and hundreds of communal clinics and cultural centres.

Thanks to these efforts, all the communes in the province have met criteria on health care, education, electricity and clean water access. Meanwhile, poverty rate has dropped to 1.55 percent from 39.9 percent in 2011.

Quang Ninh aims to have 80 percent of its localities satisfying new-style rural area criteria by 2020. To realise this goal, the province needs over 56 trillion VND (2.5 billion USD).

The province will integrate new style rural building into the “one commune, one product” programme, which helps increase the value of farm produce, jack up local people’s incomes and ensure sustainable poverty reduction.

Millions in coastal areas benefit from mangrove forest

Millions of residents in 10 coastal and mountainous provinces have benefited from a project on mangrove forestation and disaster risk mitigation implemented by the Vietnam Red Cross between 2011-2015.

The figure was released at a conference on December 15-16 in the central province of Thanh Hoa.

Addressing the event, VRD General Secretary Doan Van Thai praised the significant contribution the project has made to the VRC’s strategy through 2020 on disaster prevention and adaptation.

He said the project has helped enhance VRC chapters’ capability to conduct climate change-related risks mitigation activities and the self-recovery ability of vulnerable groups.

The 2011-2015 phase of the project, which received 215 million JPY (USD) in funding from the Japan Red Cross, has been carried out in the eight coastal provinces of Quang Ninh, Hai Phong, Thai Binh, Nam Dinh, Ninh Binh, Thanh Hoa, Nghe An and Ha Tinh, and two mountainous provinces of Vinh Phuc and Hoa Binh.

Under the project, more than 9,000 hectares of mangrove forest were cared for and 107.6 hectares of protective forest have been planted. Thousands of local rangers have been trained and equipped with necessary tools to protect the forests.

Besides, thousands of local officials, residents, teachers and students from the targeted communes under the project have received training in climate change adaptation and disaster management skills.

Communal disaster response teams have been established while infrastructure facilities have been developed and disaster response drills held.

The VRC has been carrying out the mangrove project for over 20 years, with focus shifting from planting to caring and protecting forests and disaster risk mitigation from 2010.

During the event, participants shared the view that the State should devise incentives for mangrove forest planting and protecting, with involvement of different resources in the work, especially the community.

They also called for other similar projects sponsored by the Vietnam Red Cross, relevant ministries, sectors, and.

On December 16, participants are scheduled to take a field trip to a disaster mitigation work in Hau Loc district in Thanh Hoa province.

VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/TT/TN/Dantri