HCM City encourages children to wear helmet

A fun event to promote helmet wearing among Vietnamese children took place at Phan Van Tri primary school in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City on April 24.

During the day, joyful games and 500 gifts of helmets made the road-safety learning of local pupils an enjoyable experience.

Swedish Ambassador to Vietnam Camilla Mellander said Vietnamese parents and Government need to pay more attention to their younger generation’s safety on the road. She hoped the event will encourage more citizens, particularly youth, to wear helmet.

According to Tran Viet Hung from the municipal Steering C ommittee for Traffic Safety, Ho Chi Minh City leads the nation in terms of the helmet wearing rate and has implemented a range of practical programmes to promote the safety precaution.

The Sweden Embassy in Vietnam and the Asian Injury Prevention Foundation (AIP) organised the event.

An AIP 2014 research showed that only some 38 percent of children wore helmets in Ha Noi, Ho Chi Minh and Da Nang.-

Large quantity of smuggled goods seized

The central province of Quang Tri's Huong Hoa District police seized smuggled goods worth hundreds of millions of dong in Lao Bao Township on Thursday.

Police discovered several motorbike drivers transporting large amounts of illegally imported cigarettes as they drove through the township.

Officials report that as policemen were checking the smuggled goods, the suspects ran away. The confiscated goods included 5,000 packs of cigarettes illegally brought in from Laos through the border gate.  

Following their seizing the cigarettes, policemen later confiscated 3,400 Heineken-brand beer bottles at a residential house at Tay Chinh village in Lao Bao township.

The owner of the house, Nguyen Thi Dao, 68, said she was paid to store the smuggled goods.

Meanwhile, the Ha Noi City market management department, in co-ordination with Hoang Mai District police, seized 1,400kg of illegally imported candy.

Officials report that the smuggled goods, which originated in China, were transported by a lorry that stopped at Giap Bat bus station late on Thursday.

The owner of the bonded goods, An Van Tuan from the village of Hung yen in the northern province, did not present an invoice or food safety licence for the goods.

Representative of the city's market management department said all goods involved in food safety and hygiene violations, and presenting no place of origin, may be destroyed, according to Government regulations.

American doctors to visit Hue for health check-ups

A group of American doctors and medical staff is going to visit the central Thua Thien-Hue Province next week, to offer local residents charity health check-ups and medicines.

The group, comprising 18 doctors and staff and 13 supporters, will examine an estimated 600 residents in the mountainous A Luoi District and Hue City. Its local coordinator, the province's Union of Friendship Organisations, will provide 16 interpreters to aid communication between the medical group and the local people.

The week-long visit from April 27 to May 5 is being conducted as part of a mission by American non-governmental organisation Vets With a Mission, which expects to spend VND400 million (US$19,000) on medical expenses.

Visits by Vets With a Mission's doctors have been an annual treat since 2012. The American organisation has offered free check-ups to 3,061 residents in the districts of Quang Dien, A Luoi, Huong Tra and Hue City.

It has spent VND1.3 billion ($60,000) on its trips in the last three years.

Earthquake hits central mountainous district

An earthquake with a magnitude of 3.0 hit the mountainous A Luoi District in the central Thua Thien-Hue Province yesterday.

The earthquake occurred at 2pm and lasted several minutes, with its epicentre at 16.329 north and 107.309 east. No damage to life and property was reported.

The National Centre for Earthquake and Tsunami Alert is monitoring the progress of the earthquake.

It was the fifth earthquake in the district in the last one year, following an earthquake with a magnitude of 4.7 in May, a 3.3 magnitude tremor in November, a 2.9 magnitude quake in December last year, and a 3.5 magnitude quake on April 8 this year.

HCM City urged to ensure traffic safety during long break

The Ministry of Transport has instructed the HCM City Department of Transport to regulate traffic to ensure safety and security especially at bus stations during the long holidays when celebrations for the 40th anniversary of Reunification Day (April 30) will be held.

Transport operators and bus stations are required to keep an eye on buses leaving stations to prevent overloading and other problems.

Buses and taxis have been warned not to cause traffic jams while dropping and picking up passengers.

Meanwhile, the department has blocked off certain streets in the downtown area where the celebrations are scheduled to be held.

Closed off on the evening of April 24 (7pm-12am), and on the morning of 26, and 30 (4am-12pm) is an area bounded by Cach Mang Thang Tam-Nguyen Thi Minh Khai-Nguyen Binh Khiem-Nguyen Huu Canh-Ton Duc Thang-Ham Nghi-Le Lai-Pham Hong Thai-Cach Mang Thang Tam.

People have to take alternative routes to circumvent the cordoned-off area. —

Fire destroys company store in Thai Binh Province

A huge fire broke out yesterday evening at a store of Thang Long Textile Co Ltd (Thalimexco) in the northern Thai Binh City's Bo Xuyen Ward.

Fortunately, there were no workers in the store when the blaze broke out. Only four guards were present outside the store. No casualties were reported in the fire.

A witness said he saw a huge blaze at the store at about 8pm yesterday.

Residents living near the store were in a panic after the fire broke out.

A local woman said the fire, the resulting power outage and rushing fire trucks, all created chaos in the residential quarter.

Fire trucks from the Thai Binh Province fire-fighting police were immediately dispatched to the area, and they were able to stamp out the fire in 20 minutes.

Initial investigation said the fire was caused by electrical leakage in the towel store.

The company's management board is examining the losses.

Also yesterday, a fire that broke out at a project in the Sing Viet land lot on Tran Dai Nghia Street in Binh Chanh District of HCM City was brought under control by fire fighters by 6:30pm, four hours after it was reported by local residents.

Nine tanker trucks and more than 100 fire fighters were dispatched to the site to help prevent the fire from threatening dozens of nearby local residential areas and to the neighbouring Lang Le-Bau Co protective forest and a HCM City nursery.

More than tonne of candy seized

The Ha Noi City market management department, in co-ordination with Hoang Mai District police, seized 1,400kg of illegally imported candy.

Officials report that the smuggled goods, which originated in China, were transported by a lorry that stopped at Giap Bat bus station late on Thursday.

The owner of the bonded goods, An Van Tuan from the northern province of Hung Yen, did not present legal documents for the goods.

In a separate case, the central province of Quang Tri's Huong Hoa District police seized smuggled goods worth hundreds of millions of dong in Lao Bao Town on Thursday.

The confiscated goods included 5,000 packs of cigarettes illegally brought in from Laos through the border gate.

Following their seizing the cigarettes, policemen later confiscated 3,400 Heineken-brand beer bottles at a residential house in Lao Bao's Tay Chinh village.

The Ministry of Science and Technology on April 24 kicked off an exhibition in HCM City casting the spotlight on the city and nation’s scientific and technological achievements as part of the festivities marking the 40th anniversary of southern liberation and national reunification.

Over the past 40 years, Vietnam has made remarkable scientific achievements that are well-known throughout the region and world and have met the requirements for the country’s socio-economic development.

Vietnam is the leading vaccine producer in the Southeast Asian region and one of the top ten nations in the world for installing drilling platforms. It is also the leading nation in constructing large hydroelectric power plants, mastering technologies of ground control and analysis of satellite images.

It is also the first Southeast Asian nation to construct a nuclear power plant, which is one of the world’s safest. In the agricultural field, the country is a leading exporter of rice, pepper, cashew nuts and seafood.

Minister of Science and Technology Nguyen Quan said the city's  strong system of scientific and technological institutions has led to major achievements in research activities to support the south-western provinces and Mekong delta localities.

OVs in Thailand mark Reunification Day

A get-together to mark Vietnam’s Reunification Day was held by the Vietnamese Embassy in Thailand on April 23, which involved more than 40 overseas Vietnamese who had made contributions to the past resistance wars for national independence.

The OVs were proud of the April 30, 1975 historic victory. They recalled the period of difficulties and hardship and asserted to join hands with their younger generations in making further contribution to national development.

Ambassador to Thailand Nguyen Tat Thanh and Consul General Nguyen Ngoc Son shared their joy and pride of the April 30 victory and appreciated OVs contributions to national development.

They urged the senior OVs to encourage their children to join Vietnamese associations in Thailand and to share experience in preserving and promoting the Vietnamese culture, especially the Vietnamese language.

Keep immunisation high: Deputy PM

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam urged the health sector to maintain high immunisation rates yesterday at a meeting held in order to respond to the Immunisation Week 2015 in Bac Giang Province.

Dam praised the health sector's efforts and the support of international organisations in obtaining high immun-isation rates in Viet Nam over the few past years.

"We pride ourselves on the high child vaccination rate. However," Dam added, "we are displeased that immunisation hasn't yet reached all children in the country."

The deputy PM said that relevant ministries and sectors should work together with the health sector to provide sufficient number of safe vaccines to all people in the country," said Dam.

UNICEF representative Youssouf Abdel-Jelil said that about 51,000 Vietnamese children under the age of one had yet to be fully immunised in 2014.

For example, despite the success of the recent measles and rubella campaign, which reached more than 19 million children between 1-14 years old, Abdel-Jelil said 518,000 children failed to get vaccinations.

"It is vital that all parents complete the recommend doses of vaccines and strictly adhere to the national immunisation schedule," he said, "For this, we must use every means possible to restore parent's confidence in immunis-ation."

The UNICEF representative suggested that Viet Nam should integrate immunisation with other health services to reduce missed opportunities and to provide health education on the importance of immunisation.

Immunisation Week is an annual campaign to increase the number of vaccinated people as well as raise public awareness about the importance of vaccinations for both children and adults.

Health sector statistics report that Viet Nam maintained a 97 per cent rate of routine immunisation of children throughout 2014.

The Expanded Programme on Immunisation has saved an estimated 42,000 lives and prevented more than 6.7 million cases of serious childhood diseases in Viet Nam over the past 27 years.

WHO and UNICEF estimated that across the world, around 1.5 million children die each year from diseases that vaccines could easily prevent.

Children's fund donates lifebuoys to Son La students

Viet Nam Trade Union's fund for supporting children and VietinBank (Viet Nam joint stock commercial bank for industry and trade) have donated 1,000 lifebuoys in Son La Province.

The lifebuoys were given to students of the three mountainous districts of Mai Son, Muong La and Quynh Nhai. The gifts will help minimise deaths due to drowning in the coming flood season.

People generally travel by boat and ferry in the northern mountainous Son La Province, which has several rivers, lakes and ponds.

However, they lack life-saving equipment, especially children travelling to school on small boats without lifebuoys.

HCM City ready with dengue prevention programme

HCM City's Preventive Health Centre reported that 3,800 dengue cases had been treated at hospitals earlier this year, reflecting an increase of 42 per cent from a year ago.

On an average, 140 cases of dengue are treated at hospital each week, the centre reported.

Two casualties due to dengue were reported in HCM City this year.

Eight districts have reported a high number of dengue cases (accounting for half of the total cases in the entire city) mainly in the outlying areas, including Binh Chanh, Binh Tan, Thu Duc, Hoc Mon, Go Vap, Tan Phu, Tan Binh and District 8.

These districts are liable to experience an outbreak of a dengue epidemic due to a growing population, large immigration and ongoing construction.

Doctor Nguyen Huu Hung, deputy chairman of HCM City's Health Department, said the department would assign a task to every district's health centre to implement dengue prevention measures.

The department would also focus all human forces on preventing and fighting dengue in areas that were at risk because of the epidemic.

"The department will provide technical assistance and training courses for district-level centres' staff to raise awareness on disease prevention," he said.

"Grass-root centres can discover early infection symptoms and can mobilise the local residents to take part in the dengue prevention programme."

300kg bomb defused in Nghe An

A 300kg wartime bomb was successfully defused by the central Nghe An Province's Military Command after it was found on Wednesday in Quynh Luu District.

The war-era bomb, which is 2m long and has a 40cm diameter, was found by workers while they were dredging a section of the river in Tien Thuy Commune's Phong Thai Hamlet.

On the same day, it was brought to a vacant piece of land before being defused yesterday.

No let up in smuggling, trade fraud

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc yesterday called for more effective measures against smuggling, trade fraud and the production and trade of counterfeit goods.

He said relevant agencies should clearly assign responsibilities and continuously co-ordinate and concentrate efforts in the fight against these evils.

He was speaking at a meeting of the National Steering Committee on Prevention and Control of Smuggling, Trade Fraud and Counterfeit Goods in Ha Noi.

He said despite the committee's work, several serious cases of smuggling, fraud and counterfeit production have been recorded since the beginning of the year.

These problems have persisted for years and continue to have adverse impacts on socio-economic development, he said.

He said relevant agencies, both in border and central provinces, must take full responsibility for their failure to crackdown on the problems, and increase their capabilities.

Phuc asked the committee members to comprehensively review and identify agencies that are not wholly dedicated to the fight against smuggling, trade fraud and counterfeit production.

Legal frameworks and control mechanisms should be improved to severely punish individuals and organisations engaged in these activities, as also corrupt Government officials helping them from the inside, he said.

He ordered the Ministry of Public Security to form an anti-smuggling department.

The Deputy PM stressed the importance of disseminating information among citizens and encourage their participation in efforts to get rid of all economic crimes.

In the first quarter of this year, notably shortly before and after the Tet holiday, there was a sharp spike in smuggling and counterfeiting activities as demand for goods increased.

A common practice among smugglers was to store goods in warehouses near the border and split them up in smaller quantities for trafficking to different places in the country. Sentries and lookouts were deployed to warn the smugglers and in some cases, they were even ready to fight back after being detected and approached by Government forces.

Since the beginning of the year, relevant agencies have detected over 50,000 cases of economic crime and collected VND3 trillion (US$141 million) in fines and other punitive measures. Of these, 351 cases were prosecuted and 430 individuals sentenced.

Two drug traffickers arrested in Son La

Police in the northwest border province of Son La arrested two men attempting to transport 31 cakes, or about 11.62 kilograms, of heroin on April 24.

They are Trang A Senh, born in 1985 from Van Ho district and Giang A Nha, born in 1972 from Moc Chau district.

Authorities also seized an automobile, three mobile phones and several other pieces of related evidence.

The detainees admitted they had purchased heroin from overseas for domestic consumption.

Relevant agencies are continuing their investigations into the case.-

Vietnamese expats pay tribute to President Ho Chi Minh

As many as 70 Vietnamese expatriates from 20 countries and territories paid homage to the late President Ho Chi Minh at the Kim Lien relic site, Nam Dan district, the central province of Nghe An on April 24 on the occasion of 40 th anniversary of the Southern Liberation and National Reunification (April 30, 1975-2015).

A number of the visitors hoped that Vietnamese expats worldwide would forge bonds with the homeland and make contributions to building a stronger nation to fulfill Uncle Ho’s desire.

Nguyen Dang Hien, an official from the National Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs, said this is an annual activity creating opportunities for Vietnamese expats to look back on Vietnamese history, culture and tradition as well as enhance relations with the homeland.

There are approximately 4.5 million Vietnamese living and working in 103 countries and territories. They form an indispensable part of the nation and play an important role in intensifying cooperation and friendship between Vietnam and the rest of the world.

New bridge links Mekong Delta provinces

The Co Chien bridge between the Mekong Delta provinces of Tra Vinh and Ben Tre has been completed after two years of construction, Sai Gon Giai Phong reported.

The four-lane bridge is 1.6km long and 16m wide and cost more than 2.3 trillion VND (103 billion USD).

Nguyen Thanh Tam, Deputy Chairman of the Tra Vinh Provincial People’s Committee, said the bridge helps shorten the route between Ho Chi Minh City and Tra Vinh by 60km, boosting development of the province’s economy and tourism.-

The Prime Minister has approved a project to purchase fire-fighting, search and rescue equipment using official development assistance (ODA) funds from Finland.

The investment totals more than 16 million EUR, over 15.8 million EUR of which is from Finland’s ODA. The remaining 200,000 EUR is sourced from the Vietnamese Government’s budget.

The project will be implemented between 2015 and 2017, aiming to improve fire-fighting, search and rescue force operations and increase their efficiency.

Vietnamese, Polish labour organisations foster cooperation

Deputy Speaker of the Polish Lower House Jerzy Wenderlich has affirmed his support for cooperation between the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL) and the All-Poland Alliance of Trade Unions (OPZZ).

Welcoming visiting VGCL President Dang Ngoc Tung on April 22, the Deputy Speaker recalled the time-honoured friendship between Vietnam and Poland, stressing his hope for maintained relations moving forward.

Tung briefed the host on the outcomes of his talks with the leader of the OPZZ.

He also pledged to continue coordination and experience sharing with the alliance.

Over 400 war veterans who used to serve on the Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago gathered at a meeting in the central coastal city of Nha Trang on April 24 to mark the 40 th anniversary of the liberation of Truong Sa.

At the meeting, Le Xuan Ba, former Vice Chairman of Political Affairs of Naval Zone 4, looked back on the military campaign which liberated the archipelago on April 29, 1975,

contributing to the liberation of the entire southern region and reunification of the country.

Xuan Ba, who also once served as Chairman of Truong Sa district People’s Committee, described the remarkable changes in the islands over the past 40 years, particularly the enhanced living standards of both soldiers and civilian communities in the district.

The war veterans later floated lanterns in Nha Trang Bay to pay tribute to the fallen soldiers, who sacrificed their lives to protect the nation’s territorial skies and waters.-

Symposium reflects on work of war correspondents

A symposium on the work of war correspondents was held at the Vietnam News Agency (VNA)’s headquarters in Hanoi on April 24, with the participation of many journalists who once reported on battlefields across the country.

VNA General Director Nguyen Duc Loi said more than 400 Vietnamese correspondents had laid down their lives on the battleground. The VNA alone had 260 reporters and technical staff who died covering the war and hundreds of others suffered from war injuries.

VNA war reporters had covered all major battlefields throughout the resistance wars against France and the US, he said, stressing that they were both journalists and soldiers at the same time.

“They risked their lives to accurately report the war and strengthen the confidence of all Vietnamese soldiers and people that we would fight to the end for national independence,” the General Director said.

At the function, Vietnamese and foreign journalists shared their experience in reporting war-related news, recounted their time serving as war correspondents, and expressed their views on the past wars.

Former VNA General Director Tran Mai Huong, himself a war correspondent, said Vietnamese war correspondents had to report using antiquated equipment and sometimes, it could take several days to walk back to their offices and process their photos under US bombing.

Duong Duc Quang, a former VNA war correspondent, said working on the battlefield, the motto of him and his colleagues was always true reporting, and they were always standing side by side with the fighting soldiers in order to reflect the real situation of the war.

Participants at the forum also spoke highly of the role of international correspondents, noting their impartial report helped the global public have a correct view on the wars in Vietnam, thus supporting the Vietnamese people’s struggle for independence.

The forum was part of a series of seminars on journalism on war topics organised by the Vietnam Journalists Association, the VNA, the Academy of Journalism and Communications, the Quan doi Nhan dan (People’s Army) newspaper, and the military-run Viettel television.-

Quang Nam pardons prisoners on reunification day

Police in the central province of Quang Nam have announced clemency for 10 prisoners thanks to their redemption progress.

The move comes on the occasion of the upcoming anniversary of Liberation of Southern Vietnam and National Reunification Day (April 30) and May Day.

Of the pardoned prisoners, three are freed ahead of their release dates while the others received 2-5 month sentence reductions. Most have served more than two-thirds of their terms.

The clemency not only reflects the government’s leniency policy, but also encourages prisoners to reform so that they can return to society sooner.

A ceremony was held on April 24 in northern Bac Giang province to kick-start the Immunisation Week 2015 in Vietnam. Event participants included Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien and representatives from ministries, sectors and localities.

The event, co-hosted by the Ministry of Health and local authorities, is part of promotion activities to increase awareness of the importance of immunisations in protecting community health.

It also aims to mobilise the active participation of authorities at all levels, international and domestic organisations and the community in national vaccination campaigns to protect vulnerable children and prevent and control vaccine-preventable diseases from spreading widely.

Addressing the ceremony, Minister Tien highlighted the significance of vaccines in controlling infectious diseases, minimising mortality rates and protecting human health over the past two decades.

More than 30 communicable diseases can be prevented by vaccinations, she said, stressing the importance of vaccines in preventing the reoccurrence of these diseases in Vietnam.

Meanwhile, Deputy PM Dam attached the significance to the contribution of the Vaccination Week programme to health protection.

He also called on the community to be aware of the importance of vaccines in child health, as well as urged relevant bodies to work with the health sector to ensure effective implementation of the national expanded immunisation programmes.

A representative from the United Nations Children’s Fund suggested Vietnam integrate its vaccination programmes with other healthcare services to mitigate missing-out possibility.

In addition to developing a system to provide vaccination services and build capacity for staff, the country should also expand publicity campaigns to raise awareness of the importance of immunisations and build trust in the community regarding vaccination.

Participants attended a number of campaigns and witnessed a vaccine injection held immediately after the ceremony at the healthcare centre in Song Mai commune.

The Immunisation Week 2015 is launched by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in the West Pacific Ocean Region from April 24 to 30 to inspire global efforts to protect community health through timely and comprehensive vaccinations.

Hundreds of millions of children across the country have received free basic vaccines through large-scale national free vaccine programmes over the past 30 years.

Vietnam has remained poliomyelitis- and new borne tetanus-free since 2000 and 2005, respectively, and kept other infectious diseases under control, minimising mortality rates from diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus and measles.

It has undertaken drastic measures to eliminate measles with a nationwide programme covering 20 million children.

WHO experts recently announced that the Vietnamese vaccine safety surveillance programme meets WHO requirements, evidence of the quality of domestic vaccines and contributing to realising global goals to eliminate poliomyelitis by 2018, measles by 2020 and bring the hepatitis B-infection rate in children-under-five to below one percent in the West Pacific Ocean Region by 2017.

Thua Thien-Hue to cope with exotic malaria

Localities in the central province of Thua Thien- Hue are facing increased cases of malaria, due primarily to imported infections from neighbouring Laos, according to the provincial Centre of Malariology, Parasitology and Entomology.

In 2014 there were 103 malaria patients in the province, as many as 100 of whom worked outside the locality and carried their infection home.

Reports also revealed that malaria parasite incidences reduced from 81 to 78, but the rate of imported exotic parasites reached about 96 percent.

To deal with these issues, the provincial health sector has asked the community, and especially those who work in malaria-affected areas, to take preventive measures such as sleeping under a mosquito net and using mosquito repellent.

The province has also urged relevant agencies in collaboration with border guards to keep a close watch on controlling cross-border malaria infections.

As of 2014, Vietnam had reduced its malaria cases by 90 percent and malaria deaths by nearly 96 percent from 2000.

The health ministry said the country reported only six malaria fatalities and no outbreaks in 2014. Vietnam targets to completely eradicate the disease by 2030.

Sapa prepares for long holiday rush

The district of Sapa in the northwest province of Lao Cai, one of the top tourism destinations in Vietnam, is expected to welcome about 50,000-70,000 visitors in the upcoming six-day vacation which starts from April 28.

In order to support travellers, the locality is rushing to prepare for the influx of tourists.

Accordingly, the municipal Youth Union has provided tour guide training courses for about 250 union members aiming to provide information and instructions to tourists.

The district plans to open three information booths and hotlines in 35 public locations.

Moreover, municipal authorities have asked 350 hotels, restaurants and bars in the locality to commit to not raise their prices on the occasion.

There are nearly 200 hotels with 5,000 rooms and more than 100 homestays in Sapa, according to the municipal Cultural and Information Office.

Tourism SMEs receive training to enhance competence

The National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) in cooperation with the Pacific-Asia Travel Association(PATA) has held a training programme to improve the competitive ability of small and medium tourism enterprises.

The two-day event aims to prepare enterprise and workers in the tourism sector for the formation of the ASEAN Economic Community slated for the end of this year.

The training focused on destination management, handicraft production and hotel management, using a set of standards recognised by all ASEAN member countries.

According to the PATA chapter’s General Secretary and Head of VNAT’s International Cooperation Department Dinh Ngoc Duc, the training programme is significant, particularly as the ASEAN Mutual Recognition Agreement on Tourism Professionals (MRA-TP) officially takes effect in 2015 allowing free movement of tourism workers between countries in the regional bloc.

Currently, a total of 1,456 enterprises have been licensed to operate in international travel nationwide while tens of thousands provide domestic tours. The country has 16,000 tourism accommodation units with over 332,000 rooms.-

VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri