Insurance companies may let down Carina Plaza residents

People suffering damages from the fire at the Carina Plaza building may not receive compensation from insurance companies.

According to the authorities, the Management Board of Carina Plaza had not been elected until the time of the fire. Therefore, in this case, the insured subject may only be the building’s investor. This also means that if the building's management violated the insurance contract on fire prevention and fighting for assets, they could be refused compensation, according to Circular No.220/2010/TT-BTC.

“In fact, the fire prevention system in this building seriously violated regulations as the sprinkler system had no water to spray, the fire alarms were inactive, and there was no water in the fire hydrant. There were many other issues, including the fact that the management board was not elected according to regulations, but the investor assigned an administrative for the building’s maintenance on its behalf, and maintenance funds were not handed over to the residents’ representative. Therefore, if the authorities conclude that there were violations, the insurance policy holder may be denied compensation,” said an insurance expert.

Phung Dac Loc, former general secretary of the Vietnam Insurance Association, said that while waiting for the final conclusions, insurance companies may first pay humanitarian assistance for residents, then subtract it later on from the insurance coverage paid to the investor. However, it is not entirely sure whether the investor will be found eligible for insurance compensation.

However, according to a representative of a large insurance company from Ho Chi Minh City, while issuing insurance contracts for such buildings, the insurance company may be more lenient with the terms so that the people can be compensated.

To date, the insurance firm PVI has not announced the official detailed information of insured subjects, but people in the Carina Plaza building could possibly receive compensation because the building was insured by PVI insurance package worth VND357 billion ($15.7 million).

PVI also covers some of the damaged cars in the building’s basement. Currently, the insurance company is checking the extent of the damage and is making a plan to repair the vehicles.

Thus, PVI has three types of insurance for the Carina Plaza fire, including the apartment’s property insurance, public and products liability insurance for the apartment management unit worth VND500 million ($22,000), and insurance for some of the damaged cars in the basement.

Many people consider the VND500 million ($22,000) insurance value for public and products liability miniscule compared to the damage caused.

On March 28, Bao Viet insurer received claims for two damaged cars that had vehicle insurance and Saigon Hanoi Insurance Joint Stock Corporation (BSH) received a claim for a Kia Morning car that had material insurance.

Along with the insurance policies of PVI, Bao Viet, and BSH, Bao Minh and PTI also sold insurance policies for the Carina Plaza residents. PTI also said that they received five claims for damaged cars.

Three family members die after eating poisonous mushrooms

Three family members in the northern mountainous province of Ha Giang have died and another is in critical condition due to mushroom poisoning according to local doctors.

Doctor Tran Van Hoc from Ha Giang Provincial General Hospital has announced that the third victim died on Monday afternoon while the last one who was in critical condition has been sent to Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi for further treatment.

According to the doctor, the four family members from Vi Xuyen District were rushed to hospital at 11 pm on March 28 with symptoms of abdominal pain, vomiting, dizziness, and diarrhoea.

"The couple aged 52 and 48 and their son aged 28, and daughter-in-law aged 23 said that they ate mushrooms taken from a forest near their home for breakfast at 7 am that day," doctor Hoc said. "They said they started feeling unwell at around 3 pm."

Despite rescue efforts by the hospital, the son, Sung Van Hoang, and his mother, Thao Thi Va died on March 31 and April 1. The daughter-in-law, Ly Thi Pa died at 5 pm on April 2, the doctor said.

The father, Sung Dieu Hong has been sent to Hanoi's Bach Mai Hospital for further treatment.

Mushroom poisoning occurs quite often in Vietnam, especially in the remote and mountainous areas where local people usually get their vegetables from the wild.

Mushrooms are plentiful at this time of the year, and doctors are warning people not to put their lives at risk by eating unidentified fungi.

Men travel 200km to save a stranger’s life

Teacher Nguyễn Quý Hùng (left) and Government officer Nguyễn Văn Quân (right) receive the merits for donating their rare blood to save a stranger. - Photo thanhnien.vn

Two men from the central province of Quảng Bình have been praised by the health ministry for travelling more than 200km at night to donate their rare blood to save a dying patient.

The 38-year-old Nguyễn Quý Hùng, a secondary teacher of the Cao Quảng School in Tuyên Hóa District, and 33-year-old Nguyễn Văn Quân, an officer of Lệ Thủy District People’s Committee, on Monday were granted the merit certificate signed by the Minister of Health Nguyễn Thị Kim Tiến at Hà Tĩnh Province General Hospital.

During the night of March 3, the hospital received a 70-year-old patient Hồ Thị Thi whose stomach was bleeding severely. Thi needed an immediate blood transfusion, the doctors said, or her life would have been at risk.

Blood tests determined that Thi had A - RhD negative blood, which is very rare in Việt Nam as only 0.08 per cent of the population belong to the blood type.

There was only one person in Hà Tĩnh recorded to have the blood type, who at the time was abroad.

The hospital urgently contacted the National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion – the biggest blood storage facility in the country, yet there was no blood type A-RhD negative available.

It was not until doctors asked for help from the Club of Rare Blood Types in central region, who managed to find five people with the same blood type to Thi’s, among whom were Hưng and Quân.

The two rushed to catch a coach from Quảng Bình to Hà Tĩnh, travelling more than 200km upon hearing of Thi’s emergency. They arrived at the hospital in time to donate two units of blood to the old woman and saved her life. 

Large online gambling ring broken in Vĩnh Phúc

Police in the northern province of Vĩnh Phúc have smashed a large-scale illegal online gambling ring, with 22 arrests and the seizure of over VNĐ200 billion (over US$8.8 million).

The ring was operating via a website, 3in1bet.com, with gambling in the form of football bets.

Lưu Văn Nam, 29, from Vĩnh Yên City, was identified as the leader of the ring.

The police also seized some computers, mobile phones and currency.

Within just six months between June and December 2017, the ring organised 14,000 bets on regional and international football tournaments, police said.

The case is under further investigation.

Redundant charger blamed for fire in HCM City

The scene of the fire which occurred at ParcSpring building in HCM City’s District 2, causing panic among hundreds of residents. — Photo vietnamnet.vn

Initial investigation in a fire at ParcSpring building in HCM City’s District 2 revealed that the fire had started from a charger plugged in the bedroom, online newspaper Vietnamnet reported.

The charger was reportedly plugged on for several days, which caused it to overheat and catch fire, burning a pile of books, computers and mattress, said a representative of District 2’s Fire Fighting and Prevention Office.

The incident was reported at 6pm on Sunday when residents of the building detected smoke coming out of the apartment on the eighth floor. Hundreds of panicked residents of the building started to flee.

Four fire engines and dozens of fire-fighters immediately rushed to the scene and extinguished the fire in some half an hour. No casualty was reported, but all furniture inside the apartment was burnt down.

The incident took place just a week after a fire broke out at Carina Plaza in HCM City on March 23, killing 13 people and injuring 50.

Following the deadly fire, the district authorities have started to conduct fire safety inspections of all buildings in the locality.

ParcSpring is a project of a property developer, CapitaLand, and became operational in 2011.

The fire safety system of the building was inspected two days earlier, the newspaper reported. The fire alarms worked normally on Sunday, and people escaped to safety using the stairs.

Further investigation into the incident is underway.

Social loans help poor households in Dong Nai

The Vietnam Bank for Social Policies branch in the southern province of Dong Nai has offered more than 970 billion VND (43.11 million USD) in loans to nearly 38,000 poor and near-poor households since 2015, helping thousands escape poverty and earn higher incomes. 

Huynh Cong Nam, Director of the branch, said many households have received loans at monthly interest of 0.55 percent for production and trade.  

To ensure that loans are used effectively, the branch worked with authorities to inspect each household, he said, adding that more than 98 percent of borrowers repaid their loans on schedule. 

According to the provincial Steering Committee on Poverty Reduction, Dong Nai changed the criteria for poor households in 2015. Accordingly, each household earning below 1 million VND per month per person in rural areas or below 1.2 million VND per month per person in urban areas is considered poor. 

Near-poor households in rural areas have monthly average income of 1 – 1.3 million VND per person while those in urban areas have 1.2 – 1.6 million VND per person. 

With such criteria, Dong Nai recorded about 20,500 poor households, or 2.89 percent of the total and roughly 8,000 near-poor households, accounting for 1.12 percent of the total, in 2015. 

Over the last three years, Dong Nai has employed several poverty reduction programmes, with preferential credit policies for poor households the most effective.

Since 2015, nearly 14,000 local households have escaped poverty. The rate of poor households is now 0.9 percent while the number of near-poor households has fallen from 1.12 percent to 0.59 percent.

Vietnam learns from foreign experience in making ethnic policies

The workshop on April 2 looks into international experience in making and implementing policies targeting ethnic minority groups 

A workshop was held in Ho Chi Minh City on April 2 on international experience in making and implementing policies targeting ethnic minority groups.

Nguyen Dinh Cung, Director of the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM), said studying ethnic minority policies of other countries will help Vietnam overhaul its ethnic policies in the future.

He added the event aimed to gain an insight into some countries’ viewpoints and policies on ethnic minority groups, including those on minorities’ languages, migration, education, health care, ethnic cadre development, land, poverty reduction, employment, cultural preservation and religious affairs.

Dr Tran Van Ha from the Institute of Anthropology under the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences, who has studied policies on ethnic minorities in some Southeast Asian nations, said all ethnic policies of the countries aim to consolidate community and national solidarity. Building national cultural characteristics is considered important in developing national unity.

Vietnam needs to focus on building national cultural identities and sustainably developing ethnic groups’ culture. It is also necessary to create development policies for each region and policies for specific ethnic groups, he noted.

At the workshop, participants discussed the socio-economic development framework for ethnic minority areas in Vietnam for 2016-2020. They said the country needs to build a sustainable infrastructure system, develop production, trade, services, tourism, science and technology while also making special policies on poverty elimination, credit and employment for ethnic minorities.

Existing policies should match the socio-economic development plans of regions nationwide, including border regions which are home to many ethnic minorities and adjacent areas, so as to devise appropriate policies.

Dr Dang Thi Thu Hoai from CIEM said resources should be gathered instead of being scattered in different fields and programmes like at present. She added ethnic minority policies over the years have resulted in positive outcomes, helping to improve ethnic minority and mountainous areas.

British Council helps preserve Vietnam’s heritage in community

The British Council in Vietnam on April 1 announced a project worth 500,000 GBP (702,800 USD) aiming to help Vietnam preserve, develop and promote its music and film heritage. 

The British Council in Vietnam has announced a project worth 500,000 GBP (702,800 USD) aiming to help Vietnam preserve, develop and promote its music and film heritage. 

The project, to last from 2018 to 2020, focuses on the heritage values of music genres and films that are unpopular and on the verge of oblivion in Vietnam. 

As part of the project, the council will work with localities, cultural heritage research institutes and relevant organisations to study, collect documents and improve their capacity in the work. 

The project is expected to enable the localities to directly contribute to and benefit from cultural heritage protection. 

The project forms part of activities marking 25 years of the council’s operation in Vietnam.

Vietnamese culture introduced in Egyptian locality

Tourists travel by boats around the Trang An Tourism Complex. 

Documents, books and photos on Vietnamese culture, history, landscapes and handicraft were introduced at an event in Egyptian Ismailia province on April 2.

The event was organised by the Vietnamese Embassy in Egypt and attended by Ismailia province governor Yassin Taher, Director of the Egyptian Public Library Development Fund Reda El-Taify and local visitors.

The event is part of activities to mark the 55th anniversary of Vietnam – Egypt diplomatic ties.

During the occasion, the Embassy of Vietnam also launched a reading room named “A Window to Vietnam” at the Ismailia Public Library to facilitate access to information on Vietnam.

Visitors could also enjoy a dance with conical hats performed by Vietnamese students in Egypt and Vietnamese traditional food and coffee.

Vietnamese Ambassador to Egypt Do Hoang Long highlighted the economic potential of the Egyptian province, particularly in agriculture.

He voiced his hope that similar events will be held in other Egyptian provinces, thus providing more information on Vietnamese culture for Egyptian people.

The same day, the Vietnamese diplomat had a working session with Ismailia province governor Yassin Taher on cooperation between the province and Vietnamese localities.

He detailed Vietnam’s socio-economic situation and highlighted the cooperation potential between the two nations.

For his part, Taher suggested the two sides promote links between Ismailia province and Vietnamese localities, particularly in trade, investment and agriculture.

Vietnamese classes opened for children of Vietnam – RoK families

Scene at the opening event

A Vietnamese language course targeting 80 children from Vietnam – Republic of Korea (RoK) families opened at the Seoul Woman Plaza in Seoul on April 1. 

The course was sponsored by the Vietnam Embassy and the Vietnamese Association in the RoK. It was established based on the fact that more than 60,000 out of approximately 170,000 Vietnamese expatriates in the country were women married to Korean men, and most of their children cannot speak their mothers’ native language.

Aiming at children aged 6 – 14, the course is set to run classes every Sunday afternoons between April and December on an annual basis. Textbooks used for the course were compiled by the RoK Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. Six Vietnamese students who are studying for doctorate/ master degrees at RoK universities and have teaching experiences are in charge of these classes.

The students’ mothers voluntarily pay part of the tuition fee, and the Asian Development Fund (ADF) contributes part of the course’s running cost. 

The Vietnamese Association in the RoK plans to open more classes of this type across the country. It will work with the ADF to offer scholarships for the students to pursue higher education in Vietnam.

The Vietnam Embassy said it hopes the success of the course will help the children make contributions to deepening relations between the two nations in the future.

Quan The Am festival opens in Da Nang city

The Quan The Am (the Goddess of Mercy) festival kicked off at Ngu Hanh Son (the Marble Mountain) in the central coastal city of Da Nang on April 2 (the 17th day of the second lunar month).

Chairwoman of the People’s Committee of Ngu Hanh Son district Nguyen Thi Anh Thi said this is an annual cultural, religious and spiritual festival held at Quan The Am pagoda.

The event is meant to preserve and promote the ethnic culture and traditional values, she said, adding that it creates an opportunity for the tourism sector to attract more domestic and foreign tourists.

A wide range of activities are held at the festival including a sutra reading ceremony, a photo exhibition on Indian Buddhism, a visit to the Buddhist cultural museum, an incense offering festival to commemorate Princess Huyen Tran, and a traditional boat racing festival.

In 2000, the Quan The Am festival was ranked one of the 15 biggest festivals nationwide. The festival has attracted a lot of Buddhist monks, nuns and followers across the country.

Quan The Am Pagoda, built in 1957, is located at the foot of the Kim Son (Metal Mountain) in the Ngu Hanh Son (Five Element Mountains), which boasts wonderful natural landscapes with several ancient pagodas, mysterious caves and picturesque scenery.

Conference to be held on land concentration

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has approved the organisation of a conference on promoting land concentration to serve large-scale agricultural production and agricultural industrialization and modernization. 

The PM assigned the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to be in charge of the organisation work. The ministry is to coordinate with the Party Central Committee’s Economic Commission, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Planning and Investment and related agencies to prepare content for the event. 

Key topics will be the situation of land use, the real needs for land, the necessity of land concentration for agricultural production and socio-economic development, along with difficulties and obstacles in the process of land concentration. 

The agencies are also tasked with analyzing and assessing the impacts of existing land concentration policies on socio-economic and environmental issues. They are required to propose solutions in terms of mechanisms, policies and methods of implementation to promote land concentration, as well as tasks, in-charge agencies and roadmaps to achieve set targets.

Can Tho welcomes 2.4 million visitors in Q1

More the 2.4 million people visited the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho in the first three months of 2018, up 13.6 percent year on year and realising 30.2 percent of the yearly target.

Tourism brought in 895 billion VND (39.29 million USD) during the period, an annual increase of 20.9 percent. The revenue met 25.7 percent of target set for 2018.

Le Minh Son, Vice Director of the municipal Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, attributed the results to myriad activities held in celebration of the lunar New Year holiday, particularly the opening of nine more tourism sites.

A range of tourism promotion programmes have been launched, such as piloting guitar and calligraphy performances on Ninh Kieu Wharf every Sunday and introducing three food and fashion streets.

The city plans to boost quality of local tourist destinations, while offering new destinations and tourism services. The plan covers the improvement of river tours and electric car services, and the construction of entertainment and resort area, among other facilities.

Easter greetings extended to Catholics in Hanoi

Head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Mass Mobilisation Truong Thi Mai presents flowers to Archbishop of the Hanoi Archdiocese Cardinal Pierre Nguyen Van Nhon. 

Head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Mass Mobilisation Truong Thi Mai wished Catholic dignitaries and followers in Hanoi a merry Easter holiday when visiting Archbishop of the Hanoi Archdiocese Cardinal Pierre Nguyen Van Nhon on April 2.

She emphasised the close relationship between the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Mass Mobilisation and the Hanoi Archdiocese.

She affirmed that the Hanoi Archdiocese, Cardinal Nguyen Van Nhon himself and Catholics in Hanoi have contributed greatly to the country’s socio-economic achievements.

Mai also acknowledged their contributions to charitable activities and encouraged local parishioners to continue following the Party’s policies and the State’s law.

Cardinal Nguyen Van Nhon expressed thanks for the Party and State’s attention to as well as the Mass Mobilisation Commission’s acknowledgement of the contributions of the Hanoi archdiocese.

He affirmed the archdiocese will accompany the nation and support the country’s progress in the spirit of sharing and looking towards the future.

Vietnam helps Lao journalists improve skills

A training course on professional skills for journalists and reporters of centrally-run press agencies and localities of Laos opened in the capital city of Vientiane on April 2. 

Co-organised by the Vietnamese Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) and the Lao Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, the opening ceremony saw the participation of Deputy Director of the MIC’s Press Department Nguyen Thai Phien, Director of the Lao Institute of Mass Media, Culture and Tourism Vilaythong Sisanonh, Vietnamese press lecturers and Lao journalists and reporters. 

Themed “Skills of illustrating information via images for newswires”, the five-day course will offer 42 Lao journalists and reporters an insight into how to make photo and infographic news, helping readers fully understand contents in the fastest way. 

Since 2012, the MIC’s Press Department has held 20 training courses with different topics for nearly 600 Lao reporters and editors.

Da Nang to build smart city

2017 is the 9th consecutive year Da Nang has topped the Vietnam ICT Index, which ranks cities on their readiness for information and communications technology development and application.

IT application has changed the working style and operation of state agencies in Da Nang, contributing to the municipal efforts to build a modern, civilized city.

For the past year, locals and visitors have been satisfied with Da Nang’s on-time city bus system. A growing number of people like the service, in part thanks to Danabus, a smartphone app that allows users to find local buses. The city also has a new bus management system.

Luu Thanh Tung, the Director of the Da Nang branch of Quang An Industry Company 1, the operator of the city bus system, said “The routes on the Danabus app connect all TMF bus and Cocobay City Tour buses, 5 subsidized bus lines, and routes to Hoi An. We tell customers about the app so they can save time, shorten their travel distance, and find bus stops and buses faster.”

Da Nang has put into operation an electronic government system at egov.danang.gov.vn, an integrated foundation for a range of e-government applications. The most outstanding application is a digital document management system for 215 state agencies. The system aims to improve quality and save time in handling administrative work at state agencies and create a suitable environment for e-documents and digital signatures.

Another core application is one-stop software for departments, districts, communes, and wards, allowing easier management of Da Nang’s administrative procedures.

Tran Quang Thanh, Director of the municipal Information and Communications Department, said “Local people who need to know anything about the administration or have any queries can call 1022 to access public services offered by state agencies. Through the system, residents can send their suggestions and feedback to the local government.”

Pursuing the motto “Multi partners – One foundation- One infrastructure – One policy- Multi applications”, Da Nang has sped up its development of a smart city through e-government applications that have been successfully applied in recent years.

Vietnam’s largest observatory poised for test performance

A new ground-based observatory is slated for a test run in June in northern Vietnam, ushering in an important stage in the country’s astronomical research.

The observatory is located in the Hoa Lac Hi-tech Park in Thach That District, just outside Hanoi, and is managed by the Vietnam National Space Center, an organization meant to further the country’s space technology, including satellite technology.

The location boasts the hitherto largest optical telescope in Vietnam, measuring 0.5 meters in diameter, produced by an Italian company well-known for its accuracy and design.

The telescope’s movement is synchronized with the observatory’s automatically controlled dome, and equipped with astronomical telescope camera and a high-resolution optical spectrum analyzer.

The facility also features a space in which astronomical images on a dome-shaped screen with the diameter of 12 meters are shown by six high-definition projectors able to provide 3D effects.

The space houses 100 seats for viewers, nearly double the capacity of the other observatory previously opened to visitors late last year in the south-central city of Nha Trang.

The Hanoi-based observatory is expected to enable studies of the universe in various types, such as those in stars with regularly variable brightness, stellar categorization based on spectral lines, and stars’ rotation velocity and magnetic field, said Pham Anh Tuan, general director of the Vietnam National Space Center.

“This is an important stepping stone for Vietnamese youth to understand the universe and have their interest in astronomy kindled,” he said.

Vietnam achieves high in gender equality

The United Nations has assessed that Vietnam is one of the countries with impressive gender equality achievements.

Thanks to Party guidelines, State policies, and active involvement by sectors at all level, gender equality results have boosted Vietnam’s socio-economic development.

Vietnam ranked 60th of 154 countries on the UN’s Gender Inequality Index in 2014. The UN’s Millennium Development Goals report in 2013 said Vietnam completed the goals of gender equality and raising women’s status two years ahead of schedule.

Vietnam has fined tune its legal framework and policies on gender equality by issuing more legal documents in line with the 2006 Law on Gender Equality and the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).

Vietnam has implemented a National Strategy on Gender Equality from 2011-2020 to raise awareness, narrow the development gap, and promote women’s status. It has carried out regional and global initiatives to promote and protect women’s rights and fight gender discrimination.

Vietnamese women account for more than half of the population and nearly half of the labor force. The percentage of female National Assembly deputies from 2016 to 2021 is 26.8%, one of the highest percentages of female National Assembly deputies in the world.

Women hold key positions, including Politburo member, National Assembly Chairwoman and Deputy Chairwoman, Vice President, Minister and Deputy Minister. Ethnic women work in many sectors including education and healthcare. Female workers account for 49% of the work force. The literacy rate among women is 92% and 80% of ethnic child girls attend schools. Women account for over 50% of bachelor's degrees, 30% of master's degrees, and 17% of PhDs.

Vietnam’s human rights efforts, in accordance with the UN Universal Periodic Review Mechanism of which Vietnam was a member from 2014-2016, have focused on areas with serious inequality or a high risk of inequality. Vietnam has reduced human trafficking and domestic violence and created opportunities for women to study and improve their profession.

The Vietnamese government has enhanced international cooperation to improve public awareness on gender equality, eliminate gender violence, and narrow the employment, income, and social status gaps. Measures will continue to be implemented to increase the number of ethnic women in leadership and give women more opportunities to raise their incomes, and improve living standard and education. Communications programs will be enhanced to raise awareness and social perceptions of gender inequality.

The ground breaking ceremony for the new co-working space in 135 Hai Bà Trưng in HCM City’s District 1. Developed by the city’s Youth Federation, it will give more choices for start-ups looking for a place to nuture their business ideas. — Photo tuoitre.vn

The HCM City Youth Federation has just broken ground on a new co-working space at No 135 Hai Bà Trưng Street in District 1 to offer more choices for start-ups who are looking for a place to nuture their business ideas.

Covering an area of 500sq.m, it will be comprised of 15 furnished studios and high-tech facilities and equipment.

In addition, it will be a place for organising events and workshops on start-ups and entrepreneurship for people to learn from experts and exchange ideas with one another.

Trương Lý Hoàng Phi, director of the city Youth Federation’s Young People Start-up Support Centre, said the centre would be open around the clock to maximise convenience for the use of students and young people.

The co-working space is expected to start operation after two months of construction.

Earlier, a smiliar space opening at No 4 Alexandre De Rhodes by the centre has drawn great interest from young entrepreneurs in the city.

Historic sites in Nam Ô resort to be restored

A view of Nam Ô beach in Đà Nẵng City. – Photo soha.vn

The People’s Committee of the coastal city of Đà Nẵng asked Trung Thuỷ Group, the main investor of Lancaster Nam Ô Resort in Liên Chiểu District, to reassess and adjust the construction plans to preserve historic sites and improve access to public beaches.

At the meeting with local related agencies and the company on Thursday, Huỳnh Đức Thơ, the city head, gave new instructions on keeping the status quo of historic constructions on the project sites such as Nam Ô Village Temple and proposed solutions to restore those buildings.

He also asked the Department of Natural Resources and Environment to coordinate and cooperate with other related agencies to quickly carry out the procedures of land acquisition and allocation, determine financial and environmental responsibilities of the investor and timely report incurred problems to the city People’s Committee.

Nam Ô fish sauce trade village, which is located in the project site, will also be restored.

Nguyễn Thành Tiến, the city’s deputy chief of staff, said in April, 2018, local authorities and related agencies were expected to complete the draft project proposal based on mentioned requirements and present to the city People’s Committee for evaluation and approval.

According to the Vietnam News Agency, the project of Lancaster Nam Ô Resort on the area of 43.2ha was approved by the city authorities in 2010.

In March, 2014, its construction size was reduced to 36.6ha with a total investment of VNĐ3.3 trillion (US$146 million). After eight years, the investor has completed land clearance and started planning the construction.

The resort project contains 52 beach villas, a five-star hotel, an international convention centre and entertainment facilities.

In March this year, the project was reported to the city’s People’s Committee for intentionally blocking the path leading to the beach by Nam Ô Village residents.

In the following meeting, the authorities asked Trung Thuỷ Group to remove fences and barriers around the construction site so that people can access to the public beach.

As Nam Ô Resort is not a sole coastal project in Đà Nẵng City, Thơ stressed the city conduct negotiations with other beach project investor to make sure they would not obstruct local residents from approaching the beaches.

New art project preserves folk singing of South

Diễn xướng, a folk singing genre of the southern region, is still performed by State-owned traditional art troupes in the area. — Photo ngheanvannghe.vn

A project to preserve diễn xướng (singing and talking), a folk singing genre which originated in the country’s southern region, will launch this week in HCM City.     

Diễn Xướng Nam Bộ (Folk Singing Genre of the Southern Region) is organised by the Soul Music and Performing Arts Academy’s Soul Live Project, a long-term cultural programme that aims to expand Vietnamese traditional music and theatre.   

The project includes a series of performances, talk shows and seminars featuring the history of diễn xướng, including folk songs, dances and plays of different styles created and performed by southern farmers in the 18th and 19th centuries.  

The project has received support from dozens of cultural researchers, music and theatre critics, and veteran performers of the region.        

The project’s first workshop will include Gia Định-Sài Gòn: Điệu Hát, Câu Hò Ngày Ấy (Gia Định-Sài Gòn: Songs and Dances in the Past), a 60-minute documentary featuring folk singing and dancing of the South performed by people from Gia Định-Sài Gòn (now HCM City).   

The film was directed by researcher Huỳnh Ngọc Trảng, from the HCM City Institute of Culture and Arts Research. He has more than 20 years of experience in the art and has written more than 70 books and documentaries on traditional culture, fine arts and religion of the South.

The event will also feature performances of various styles of folk singing and dance staged by veteran artists.

The first workshop for Diễn Xướng Nam Bộ will begin at 7pm on April 8 at the Soul Live Complex at 216 Pasteur Street in District 3. Entrance is free.

Famous Vietnamese poem to be adapted into TV series

Lights, camera, action: Film director Lưu Trọng Ninh is seen at an audition for actors for his upcoming TV series in Hà Nội. The series is based on the epic Vietnamese poem, Truyện Kiều (The Tale of Kiều), by Nguyễn Du. — Photo vtc.vn

One of Việt Nam’s most famous literary works, masterpiece Truyện Kiều (The Tale of Kiều), will be adapted into a TV series by renowned film director Lưu Trọng Ninh.

Ninh, who is known for several award-winning movies and most-watched TV series, including Bến Không Chồng (Wharf of Widows), Canh Bạc (The Gamble), Hãy Tha Thứ Cho Em (Please Forgive Me), Dốc Tình (Give You All My Love) and Hoa Cỏ May (Flower of Grass), recently held auditions for actors in the series in Hà Nội and HCM City. Auditions will continue to be held in other provinces until the director finds the best cast. 

Talking about the series, the 62-year-old director said he was motivated by his late father, well-known poet, writer and playwriter Lưu Trọng Lư.

“Actually, I never thought I would throw myself in this challenging project. However, I always kept in my mind the words my father said to me when I graduated from the University of Cinematography in the 1990s. He said, ‘Ninh, do something with Truyện Kiều. It is the worthiest’.”

But there is another reason that has urged Ninh to adapt the poem.

“Although we have had such a literary masterpiece for decades, Vietnamese cinema has never approached it. I am a vanguard and I may fail in this project. But I believe someone can do better after me,” Ninh said. 

According to him, the series will focus on the time when the tale’s heroine Thúy Kiều spends a part of her life at a brothel.

“As it will reflect my own perception about Kiều and her ups and downs in life, there are several details unlike the original. I am open to feedback,” he said.

The filming of the series is expected to start in June.

The Tale of Kiều is a 3,254-line classic verse poem written in lục bát (six-eight metre), a traditional verse form of Vietnamese poetry. The poem recounts the life, trials and tribulations of Thúy Kiều, a beautiful and talented young woman who had to sacrifice herself to save her family.

The 19th-century poem, which was translated into more than 20 different languages, including French, Chinese, English, Russian and Japanese, was recognised in 1965 by the World Peace Council as one of the world’s celebrated cultural works.

Its author, Nguyễn Du, was also recognised by the UN cultural agency UNESCO as a World Cultural Celebrity in 2003.

In 1923, The Tale of Kiều was adapted into a film for the first time by the French. The movie, which cast a group of tuồng (classical drama) artistes of the Quảng Lạc Troupe in HàNội, is the first feature film of Vietnamese cinema. However, it was not well received by the public. The media attributed this to the acting skills of the cast, which was similar to their performance on the stage, as well as the costumes, which were also similar to the ones from the classical dramas.

Việt Nam, Morocco join hands to promote tourism

Koutoubia Mosque, a beautiful spot in Marrakech. — Photo moroccotraveldirectory.com

Travel companies and authorities of Việt Nam and Morocco joined together at a seminar held in Hà Nội to discuss potential co-operation between two countries in promoting tourism.

This round table is organised by the Embassy of the Kingdom of Morocco and the Việt Nam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT). It provided the gateway, for foreign travel agents, tour operators, airlines, tourism organisations, hotels and resorts in other international destinations to promote their products and services to potential customers in Việt Nam.

This is the first-time ever seminar for promoting tourism co-operation between Morocco and Việt Nam.

This event aims to showcase myriads of opportunities that Morocco and Việt Nam offer, in term of tourist attractions and the hospitality industry, both within the two countries and wider, as gateways, respectively to Africa and South East Asia.

“It is an occasion to explore Morocco and Việt Nam prospects of co-operation, by promoting the exchange of information on tourist products of both countries, and exploring innovative ways for jointly developing new forms of co-operation in the tourism and hospitality sector,” said Ambassador Azzeddine Farhane.

“Morocco’s foundations lie in its history and give the country all the authenticity; diversity and mixing that make the nation’s singular identity so strong. ​Hence, the Moroccan people are synonyms with the image of their country as well as being rich in their diversity and tolerance.​”

“Both our two countries have developed fruitful and efficient tourism strategies, as leverage for the national economy, laying the foundation for more private and public involvement to lift Morocco and Việt Nam’s tourism industries into a new height,” he said.

Salim Mikram, director of Marketing Department at the Moroccan Agency for Tourism Development, said the target is to place Morocco into the world’s top 20 tourist destinations, double tourist numbers​ and enhance sustainable and responsible tourism with custody of the environment and respect to the Moroccan authenticity, social and cultural life​.

In 2017, Morocco received 11.3 million tourists, while Việt Nam reached 13 million, during the same year.

Hà Văn Siêu, vice chairman of the VNAT, said Morocco and Việt Nam share a variety of tourism similarities and potentials, in term of stability, geographic position, wide and long sea shores, and hospitality and tourism infrastructure.

Morocco ranked top tourism destination in Africa in 2017, while Việt Nam ranked first in Asia, one the world’s fastest growing tourist destinations for the same year.

This shows the dynamism of their tourism sectors and their resilience to international market turbulent conditions, Siêu said.

The event was part of the co-operation agreement signed between the two countries, on June 15, 2012, which set the framework to promote bilateral co-operation in the tourism sector.

Brothers take the lead in fifth stage of HCM City cycling tournament

Lê Văn Duẩn (first left) celebrates winning the fifth stage of the HCM City Television Cycling Tournament on April 2. — Photo voh.com.vn

Lê Văn Duẩn won the fifth stage of the HCM City Television Cycling Tournament yesterday.

Duẩn of VUS HCM City finished first in the 155km ride from Hà Nội to Thanh Hóa, completing the stage in three hours and 26 minutes.

Duẩn’s older brothers Lê Nguyệt Minh and Nguyễn Thành Tâm of Gạo Hạt Ngọc Trời An Giang were the runners-up.

Minh was given the green jersey award as the best sprinter in the stage with 43 points – three points above his brother Duẩn.

Although Huỳnh Thanh Tùng of the Military Zone 7 team finished sixth in this stage, he nonetheless won the yellow jersey award for the best overall time at the end of all five stages.

Tùng’s performance helped his team, the Military Zone 7, take the lead in the team rankings.

Meanwhile, the white jersey for best young cyclist was awarded to Nguyễn Cường Khang of VUS-HCM City.

Yesterday, the top 13 national crews began the sixth stage of the tournament, cycling from Thanh Hóa to Vinh City, a total distance of 137km.

The tournament consists of 30 stages, covering 3,267km in total. It’s the largest number of stages for a tournmanet of its nature not just in Việt Nam, but also the world.

Tùng wins stage, awarded yellow and green jersey

Huỳnh Thanh Tùng of Military Zone 7 celebrates at the finish line of the HCM City Television Cycling Tournament’s fourth stage on Sunday. — Photo sggp.org.vn

Huỳnh Thanh Tùng of Military Zone 7 won the fourth stage of the HCM City Television Cycling Tournament on Sunday.

The young cyclist finished the 42km round at Hà Nội’s Hoàn Kiếm Lake with a time of 55.10min, leaving his closest rivals, Nguyễn Dương Hồ Vũ of Minh Giang-HCM City and Bùi Minh Thuỵ of Bike Life Đồng Nai, at a distance of 400m.

His outstanding performance pushed him up into first place in the overall ranking after four stages, with a time of 5:26.16, as well as to lead the green jersey competition with 31 points.

Military Zone 7 also moved into first place, followed by Minh Giang-HCM City and VUS-HCM City.

The fifth stage will be the 160km route from Hà Nội to Thanh Hóa.