Mega 6/45 creates 3 jackpot winners; Awards US$5.5 million

It was another day of ‘winners, winners – everywhere’ on February 8 with the award of US$5.5 million to three jackpot winners of the Mega 6/45 lottery game, according to Vietlott.

All the winning tickets were sold in Ho Chi Minh City. The prizes have already been claimed and validated but the names of the winners are not being released at their request for privacy.  

With little more than a month since the lottery began in Vietnam, six jackpot winners have been created with gross cash awards totaling more than US$10 million before taxes and fees are deducted. 

Thanh Hoa arrests alleged smuggler

Police in Sam Son town, the central province of Thanh Hoa, have arrested Vu Dinh Bien for allegedly smuggling 13 local workers into China.

According to police, on February 6, Bien hired a van to carry the 13 workers to Mong Cai in the northern province of Quang Ninh for their illegal crossing to China. 

When the vehicle got to Hau Loc district, Thanh Hoa, the workers were caught red handed. Police seized 20 million VND (884.6 USD), 11,000 CNY (1,597 USD), five mobile phones and other belongings. 

The workers, all residents of Sam Son town, said they gave Bien from 500,000 to millions of VND for the crossing.

Bien, born in 1976, has reportedly been in the business for years.

The case is under investigation.

Australian tourist’s death was suicide, say police

Australian tourist Stephen John Scott, whose body was found in the waters of Hạ Long Bay on Monday, committed suicide, the Quảng Ninh police said.

On Monday afternoon, Scott’s body was pulled out near Ti Tốp Island, four hours after he was reported missing from the cruiser Biển Ngọc.

As per the police’s preliminary investigation report, disclosed on Tuesday, around 8am on Monday, the cruiser anchored near Sửng Sốt Cave, a famous tourist destination in the bay, for a group of foreign tourists to visit the cave. However, Scott, head of the tourist group, and another British tourist chose to stay behind.

Around 8.30am, the British tourist and the six crew members heard a loud splash in the water and could not find Scott on the cruiser.

When the rescue force and fishermen found Scott’s body, they discovered that a dumbbell made of cement and metal had been tightly tied to his legs with a blue nylon rope.

The dumbbell was locally made and often kept on the deck of the cruiser, while the nylon rope was the type used in the cruiser, its crew members said in their statement.

An autopsy showed that there were no other injuries on Scott’s body and that he had died by drowning.

Based on autopsy results and evidence, the police have concluded that Scott’s death is not a crime and that he had tied his legs to the dumbbell himself and committed suicide. 

Artworks created with special technique of relief printing are on show

Tomorrow, at 6pm, the Goethe Institute will open an exhibition entitled Shape of Round, showcasing new artworks created with a special relief printing technique by artist Phạm Khắc Quang.

Several years of woodcutting work has cultivated the 42-year-old artist’s affinity for reduction printing. This technique works with multiple colours, but through only one printing plate.

After printing one colour, the plate is further processed and the next colour is applied so that more and more of the printing plate is removed. With a drilling machine, Quang then cuts circular holes into the plate and in this way creates impressive works, some of which are only recognisable from the distance.

The exhibition Shape of Round showcases a selection of very personal works by the artist, including portraits and landscapes.

A talk and workshop with the artist will be held on February 25 at 3pm. Quang will give an introduction to relief printing and demonstrate his technique with his own materials and tools. Participants will have the opportunity to create their own prints. A registration isn’t necessary.

A graduate of the Việt Nam University of Fine Arts in Hà Nội, Quang has presented his works in numerous exhibitions in Việt Nam, China, Denmark and Belgium.

The free entrance exhibition will open to public until March 5. The Goethe Institute is at 56-58 Nguyễn Thái Học Street.

New safety measures proposed for railways

Installing speed bumps and increasing the number of guards at rail crossings are among measures to reduce the number of railway accidents.

The measures were proposed at a meeting held on February 6 by the Transport Ministry following a sharp increase in the number of railway accidents during the week-long Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday that ended last week.

The Vietnam Railways Corporation (VR) reported that in just seven days (January 26 to February 1) eight railway accidents claimed six lives and injured 11. This was an increase of 60 percent in the number of accidents, 100 percent in fatalities and 175 percent in the number of injured compared to the holiday last year.

From January 1 to February 4, there were 43 railway accidents nationwide in which 19 people died and 38 were injured.

Officials attending the meeting urged that speed bumps are installed at all rail crossings by the end of year, and to increase the number of guards at particularly accident-prone crossings.

Vu Ta Tung, director of VRC, said localities should assign people to guard such areas round-the-clock, otherwise they would become a “trap”.

“People often assume that there are always people guarding crossings. When there is no one there, they will relax and assume that there is no train coming, which can lead to accidents,” Tung said.

According to Tung, 20 provinces with rail routes have organised to have guards at 183 accident hotspots using provincial budget funds. However, 13 other provinces have not done so.

Khuong The Duy, deputy head of the Vietnam Nam Railway Authority, pointed out that some provinces like Yen Bai, Quang Nam and Thai Nguyen “have done almost nothing” on this issue due to financial difficulties.

In other cases, although provinces have assigned guards at existing crossings, they have failed to stop local residents from illegally setting up new ones.

“For example, there were 26 new crossings illegally opened by local residents in Ha Nam province in 2016,” he said.

Acknowledging the complexity and severity of railway accidents during the recent Tet holiday, Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Ngoc Dong asked VR to find concrete solutions for each accident hotspot and route with high traffic flow.

He also asked VR to work with localities and reach agreements on guarding level crossings.

Besides, it should also implement technical solutions like installing convex mirrors, increasing intensity of light signals in locomotives and crossings to make them more noticeable, he said.

“In the long term, measures should be taken to eliminate illegal crossings, devices like automatic barriers should be added to prevent accidents, and the content related to railway traffic in car driving manuals and testing programmes, especially for commercial drivers, should be enhanced,” he said.

FVH hosts talk on Mother Goddess Worship

Next Thursday, February 16, the Friends of Vietnam Heritage (FVH) will host a lecture and performance on Việt Nam’s Mother Goddess Worship, which has been recognised as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.

Mother Goddess Worship is a fusion of Vietnamese and other religions. Professor Dr Nguyễn Chí Bền, former director of the Việt Nam National Institute of Cultural & Arts Studies, will conduct the event

Over the course of two hours, from 7pm to 9pm, Prof Bền will speak about the origins and beliefs that make up the worship, mediums and shamans, music used in the rituals, and important ceremonies. Two performances of rituals will also be shown to the audience. A Q&A session will follow the performances.

The English event will be supported by visuals and as much explanation as possible. From 6.30pm, attendees will be able to browse a mini exhibition before the talk.

The event will take place at the Thế Giới Publishers, 46 Trần Hưng Đạo Street.

Donation: VNĐ200,000 per person. Limit: 35 people. Contact: Stella, stellaciorra@hotmail.com

Car thieves busted

Thousands of automotive parts and accessories were confiscated by the Hà Nội police from two gangs of thieves near the Hòa Bình or Giời market in the capital city, the police said on Tuesday.

Several of the items belong to expensive automobiles worth billions of đồng.

Trần Tuấn Anh (born in 1982) and Nguyễn Tiến Huy (born in 1980), members of the first gang, are both drug addicts who were previously charged with illegal drug possession, both residing in Hoàng Mai District, according to the police. 

From a few days before the Tết (Lunar New Year) holiday until they were caught on Monday, the two suspects stole parts of cars that were parked in deserted areas near ring roads and cemeteries and sold them to Nguyễn Đình Tuấn (born in 1966, resident of Hai Bà Trưng District).

The ringleader of the second gang is Đào Ngọc Lan (born in 1985, resident of Hai Bà Trưng District). Thousands of automotive accessories were found in her two storages – No 31 and No 43 – on Đồng Nhân Street on Monday.

Lan started selling automotive accessories in 2010 without a business registration certificate, according to the police.

Both cases are under further investigation.

Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu to deliver birth certificate home

Since July 2, 2017, birth certificates, health insurance cards and residence papers of newborns in southern coastal Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu Province are being delivered right to their homes.

Notably, the documents are getting delivered just one day after their families submit the proper applications to local authorities.

This is part of a newly-approved plan by the province’s People’s Committee, aiming at improving the quality of public service delivery, saving time and cost for residents and affirming local authorities’ concern for the welfare of the children.

The family of the newborn would be informed in advance on the delivery of the papers, and representatives from local agencies, such as the commune’s People’s Committee, Women’s Union or head of the residential group, would bring the papers home.

Last August, central Đà Nẵng City launched a similar service.

Festival promotes Thai Nguyen tea products

The annual Spring Tea Festival was opened in Thai Nguyen City, the northern Thai Nguyen province, on the 12th day of the first lunar month (February 8), drawing crowds of domestic and international visitors.

The event comprises numerous activities, including parading old tea trees and tea drying contests.

Tea is the strategic product of Thai Nguyen. Over the past 20 years, tea trees have provided high economic value and jobs for tens of thousands of labourers. Thai Nguyen tea in general and Tan Cuong tea in particular have been household names in Vietnam since old time.

Currently, the province has nearly 1,500 hectares of tea growing area, producing 19,000 tonnes of fresh tea buds per year, generating 180 million VND per hectare per year.

Over the past five years, the locality has made efforts to expand market for its tea products, attract foreign investment in tea farming and processing, while encouraging local farmers to produce safe tea and improve tea quality.

Nine cooperatives in Phuc Xuan, Phuc Triu, Tan Cuong communes, Thai Nguyen city have been granted certificates for its safe tea products, with the involvement of nearly 300 households farming on a combined area of 110 hectares.

In order to promote the Tan Cuong trademark of local tea, the Thai Nguyen provincial People’s Committee has designated the Tan Cuong tea growing area as tourism site, which spreads across six communes of Tan Cuong, Phuc Triu, Phuc Xuan, Thinh Duc, Quyet Thang and Phuc Ha.

According to Vice Chairman of the Thai Nguyen City People’s Committee Quan Chi Cong, the city will continue to implement a project to promote the Tan Cuong trademark, with the annual Spring Tea Festival being part of the effort.

Man arrested for illegally bringing people to China

Police in northern Thanh Hóa Province on Tuesday said they had arrested a local for attempting to take a group of residents to China to work illegally.

On Monday evening, Vũ Đình Biển, 41, living in Sầm Sơn Town, was arrested while travelling in a van with 13 people to Móng Cái Town in northeastern Quảng Ninh Province, from where they would leave for China.

The 13 people, hailing from different localities in Sầm Sơn Town, said they had each given Biển amounts ranging from VNĐ500,000 (US$22.2) to some million đồng to arrange for their illegal passage to China.

At the scene, the police seized VNĐ20 million, 11,000 Chinese yuan and five mobile phones.

They also managed to persuade the 13 people to return home.

Preliminary investigation by the police revealed that for years Biển had induced residents in the province’s coastal areas to go work in China without legal documents.

The case is under further investigation.

Last year, a report by Vietnam Television revealed that thousands of labourers in Thanh Hóa Province had given money to brokers who promised to help them go to China to work.

However, after arriving in the country, they were forced to live illegally, hiding from local authorities to avoid being caught, with no stable jobs and often being exploited.

Trần Temple Festival honours ancient kings

Thousands of locals and visitors attended the water procession and fish worship ceremonies held yesterday at Trần Temple Complex in Lộc Vượng Ward, Nam Định City of the northern province of Nam Định.

The ceremonies aim to honour ancestors of the Trần dynasty (1226-1400), who earned their livings from fishing.

The ceremonies also remind locals of famed fish breeds dating back hundreds of years in Tức Mặc Village, in today’s Lộc Vượng Ward. The village was also the residential area of the Trần family in Nam Định Province.

The ceremonies, which pray for good weather, had been lost for years until they were reborn in 2014 based on the memories of local elders.

Early yesterday morning, local elders gathered at Cố Trạch Temple to pray before setting off to take water from a nearby ancient well.

A procession of 200 people carrying flags, including dragon dance teams and drum players carried a sedan chair to the well. Fishermen with traditional costumes and fishing tools also joined the procession.

After fetching the water, the procession stopped to join a fishing ritual at a half-moon-shaped pond near the well. Ten snakehead and carp fish were caught and stored in a boat carried on a dragon-carved palaquin.

The procession moved to Thiên Trường Temple for a worship ceremony.

The fish were then set free in the Hồng (Red) River, aiming to bring a prosperous year for local fishermen.

Up to Sunday (February 12), there will be other activities like dragon dances, folk singing, human chess and folk wrestling.

On Saturday (February 11, or the 15th day of the first lunar month), a worship ceremony and symbolic royal seal distribution ceremony will be held.

“We have prepared enough symbolic royal seals to give to locals and tourists as lucky cards for the new year,” said Cao Xuân Hoạt, an organising committee member.

Phạm Thị Oanh, deputy chair of Nam Định People’s Committee, said the organisers had tightened management to ensure the festival’s security.

The Trần Temple Festival in Nam Định, which is held every year between 13th and 18th day of the first lunar year, was recognised as national intangible heritage in 2014.

The historical complex of the Trần Kings’ shrines and tombs received special national relic status in 2015.

The neighbouring Thái Bình Province is considered the birthplace of the Trần Kings, while Nam Định was their first residential area. The festival is also held at the Trần Temple complex in Thái Bình during the first lunar month every year.

Thua Thien-Hue helps needy households escape poverty

The central province of ThuaThien – Hue has so far supported 14,000 needy households in accessing preferential loans from the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies (VBSP) in 2017.

Nguyen Van Nghia, residing near Tam Giang lagoon in QuangLoi commune, QuangDien district, is a prime example of poor people escaping poverty thanks to preferential loans. Nghia’s family had been living under the poverty line for many years. Local authorities assist them to borrow 30 million VND (1,324 USD) from the VBSP to start duck breeding. In 2016, the family escaped poverty. Nghia received another loan of 20 million VND (882.8 USD) in January this year to further expanding his business.

Preferential loans have helped boost sustainable poverty reduction in the province. So far, 95,000 local poor and near-poor households have accessed preferential loans worth over 2 trillion VND in total.

Since 2016, ThuaThien – Hue has implemented a poverty alleviation programme worth more than 52 billion VND (2.29 million USD). It has helped provide vocational training for 1,285 people as well as educational support for 3,300 students.

According to the multidimensional poverty standards, the province has 23,600 household living under the poverty line and more than 14,000 others living close to the line. The figures account for 8.36 and 4.97 percent of the local population respectively.

Vietnam attends annual tourism expo in Israel

An annual international tourism expo opened in Tel Aviv, Israel, on February 7, attracting travel companies from 40 countries worldwide, including Vietnam.

Featuring about 200 stalls, the event also includes seminars and workshops.

In an interview on the sidelines of the fair, Vietnam Ambassador to Israel Cao Tran Quoc Hai said participating Vietnamese firms have the chance to gain experience and make partnerships.

To promote Vietnamese tourism they need to be more creative, he added.

Reports from the local tourism sector showed that Israelis make a total of 4 million trips overseas on an annual basis, with each resident having between 4 and 10 days of holiday abroad on average.

Alstom Foundation to support sustainable mobility project in Vietnam

Supporting a sustainable mobility project in the southern Vietnamese province of An Giang is among the 2017 global agenda of Alstom Foundation, the body said on February 7.

The project, to be launched at the well-known Phu An bamboo village in An Giang's Phu Tan District, aims at building sustainable and reliable boats with bamboo-based material in Vietnam, where wood is becoming a scarce resource, according to Alstom Foundation.

This is the sixth year Alstom Foundation sponsors projects in Vietnam, where it has had a presence for over 15 years.

This project is part of the 18 projects Alstom Foundation selected in 2017 worldwide, promoting employability, welfare and children’s education in countries where the foundation has a presence.

The remaining 17 projects are in India, the US., Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Peru, France, U.K., Italy, Romania, Algeria, Egypt and South Africa.

The Alstom Foundation, which is celebrating ten years of activity, has already supported a total of 151 projects across 52 countries.

With a budget of €1 million per year, the Alstom Foundation supports and funds projects proposed by Alstom’s employees who team up with local partners and not-for-profit organizations to carry out initiatives aimed at improving living conditions in communities located near the Alstom’s facilities and project sites around the world.

The foundation’s past projects have focused on economic and social development, access to energy and water, environmental protection and access to mobility.

Well established in Vietnam, Alstom has been awarded on January 17, 2017 a contract by Hanoi Metropolitan Railway Management Board (MRB) to supply a metro system for Hanoi metro line 3 to start commercial operation in 2021.

This is the first integrated metro system contract for Alstom in Vietnam.

Heavy rain damages rice crops in southern Vietnam

Mekong Delta provinces, which just recovered from a historic drought a year ago, is bracing for more unfavorable weather.

Vietnamese farmers in the Mekong Delta are seeing their rice crops being damaged after heavy downpours hit the region in recent days.

Nguyen Van Cung from Can Tho City said that his family is trying to dig ditches to save nearly 1,000 hectares (247 acres) of rice submerged under water.

“We can’t harvest now because the crops are not ready," he said.

Latest statistics showed that more than 7,000 hectares of rice in the two Mekong Delta provinces of Ca Mau anh Hau Giang have been ravaged by rain. Many shrimp farms are also threatened by flooding.

Experts said the heavy rains were caused by the weather phenomenon La Nina, which came after the devastating El Nino last year.

They said the Mekong Delta should expect to see more unusual weather patterns, with more rain likely coming until the end of February.

Last year, a historic drought and saltwater intrusion damaged more than 400,000 hectares of crops and resulted in severe water shortages for 1.5 million people.

The region, Vietnam's main rice and fruit grower, is among those most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, various studies have suggested.

Tour operators warn of rise in cost of package holidays

Tour operators have warned that Vietnam holidaymakers will have to pay higher prices this year due to their need to pass along the rising entry fees to popular tourism attractions.

Tu Quy Thanh, director of the Lien Bang Travelink, said the admission fees for the Huong Pagoda in Hanoi, Trang An Complex in Ninh Binh and Ha Long Bay in Quang Ninh, have risen by 50% over the past few months.

 Thanh added that the higher costs are eating into the earnings of tour operators and they must either pass them along to customers or close their doors and go out of business.

Thanh noted that some of the attractions may be pricing themselves out of the market.

A typical four-day and three-night package holiday to the central or northern region of Vietnam currently runs around US$363, while the price of a similar tour to Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, or China is much less at roughly US$300. 

HCM City wants to wow tourists with light festival

Visitors to Ho Chi Minh City this year will have a chance to see the city glowing in the night during a light festival.

The city government at a meeting on February 6 approved the culture department’s plan for the festival, during which famous buildings and streets will be lit up with colorful installations and light shows.

A specific timeframe has not been announced. Icons such as Ben Thanh Market, the Opera House and the city’s town hall are expected to make the final list of venues.

The upcoming festival is expected to become another reason to visit Ho Chi Minh City, one of the most popular destinations in Vietnam with 5.2 million foreign arrivals in 2016, a 10% increase from the previous year.

The city puts on colorful street lights every New Year and it has decided to keep the lights on every weekend.

It hopes to receive six million visitors this year.

Among various plans to bring in more tourists, the city has announced its intention to create a floating market, similar to the famous markets of the Mekong Delta, and launch weekend fireworks shows.

Light festivals have been a staple of many tourist cities across the world like Lyon and Sydney.

Hoi An in central Vietnam also lit up its ancient houses during its first-ever light festival, Shades of Hoi An, early this year. Watch the official video from Quang Nam Province.

Gia Lai to crack down on loggers

The People’s Committee of Gia Lai Province on Tuesday asked local authorities to investigate and prosecute lumberjacks operating in the northeast Chư Păh forest region.

The Central Highlands province’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Development and the People’s Committee of Chư Păh District have been asked to conduct investigations and submit a report by February 20.

Before the Tết (Lunar New Year) holidays in the end of January, the northwest Chư Păh forest management board had caught two people red-handed while they were transporting timber out of the forest using two oxen.

At least 73 logs that had been cut down were found in forest zone No 174. However, on the morning of February 1, 20 armed people had stolen 45 of the 73 logs. The remaining 28 logs are still there in zone 174.

This is the second incident of timber theft recorded in Gia Lai Province in the past six months. The first one took place in Ia Grai District’s Ia Chia Commune, which shares a border with Kon Tum Province. However, the stolen timber was seized.

The border areas between Gia Lai and Kon Tum provinces have recently become a hot spot for deforestation. The two provinces’ forest management forces have stepped up patrol to prevent the cutting down of trees.

Boats to be controlled during Hương Pagoda Festival

Boat owners will have their boats seized if they operate them at the Hương Pagoda without having life jackets for passengers.

This was stated by Nguyễn Chí Thanh, head of the Hương Sơn Relic and Landscape Management Board.

The move is aimed at curbing the operation of overcrowded or unlicensed boats at the Hương Pagoda -- a complex of pagodas and Buddhist shrines built into the limestone cliffs of the Hương Mountain in Hà Nội’s Mỹ Đức District.

Since the very first days of the Lunar New Year, people have been flocking to the Hương Pagoda Festival, which is considered the greatest Buddhist festival in the north of Việt Nam, playing an important role in the spiritual life of Vietnamese people, and Vietnamese Buddhists in particular.

The festival officially started last Thursday -- the sixth day of the first lunar month -- and will continue for three months.

Thanh told Giao thông (Transport) newspaper that over 3,500 boats were numbered and licensed to carry visitors to the Hương Pagoda this year. The rowboats were equipped with lifejackets. Boat fares and admission fees for sites were made public along with the hotline numbers to support and address visitors’ problems.

However, he admitted there were engine boats without licences offering to carry visitors or some rowboats which carried up to 30 people or more in a ride.

He said Hương Sơn Commune People’s Committee was responsible for licensing the boats operating during festival time and every local family could apply to join this transport service, making it difficult to manage.

As soon as the local media reported on the overcrowding, chaos, overcharging, and in particular on the unlicensed boats that carried people on Yến Spring that leads to major sites within the Hương Pagoda Complex, inland waterway officials and inspectors reached the site, calling for strong action to address the situation.

Deputy head of northern region’s Inland Waterway Division Phạm Minh Tuấn asked for measures to be implemented to control the boats before they departed to ensure safety of passengers.

Mỹ Đức District People’s Committee was asked to regulate clearly the number of passengers on each boat to ensure there were enough lifejackets and boats did not exceed their capacity.

The Việt Nam Inland Waterway Department under the Transport Ministry also asked for further control and overseeing at festivals which are held on rivers, such as boat racing and water/statue procession, or festivals during which people travel by boats.

Northern provinces finishing preparations for a warm winter-spring crop season

About 1.14 million hectares of rice will be planted in northern Vietnamese provinces in the 2016-17 winter-spring crop, down 18,000 hectare compared to the 2015-16 winter-spring crop, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development reported on Tuesday. 

As of Monday, most northern province authorities had secured freshwater for farming at over 515,000 hectares of agricultural land.

Hải Phòng City and Hà Nam Province both secured 100 per cent freshwater for farming in the winter-spring crop, the ministry said.

While provinces of Thái Bình, Ninh Bình, Phú Thọ and Hưng Yên are following to reach over 92 per cent of the target.

The ministry reported that Hải Dương Province has completed sowing 30,000 hectare of rice area, gaining 50 per cent of the target.

Lương Thị Kiểm, head of the cultivation office at the Hải Dương Province’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said local farmers had completed basic preparations for farming the winter-spring crop.

The average temperature from January to April will be about 0.5-1 degree Celsius higher than previous years, according to the agriculture ministry, while cold spells and deep freeze will not be long.

These are the favourable conditions for the good growth of rice, however, warm weather gives an opportunity for the spread of rice-damaging insects, according to an agricultural expert.      

So local authorities and agricultural departments need to prepare measures for insect prevention.  

Kiểm said that mice and yellow snails were the most rice-damage vermin, so local authorities have just launched an insect- killing campaign to prevent the spread of these crop-harmful animals.

Farmers in the north are happy to hear information about this year’s favourable weather in order to speed up the sowing process.

Vũ Thị Hà, a farmer in Hải Dương Province’s Tứ Kỳ said “We made full use of  warm weather in the last two weeks to finish sowing. Rice seed and fertiliser are available in the area, however, we hope local authorities ensure freshwater for farming."

She said Ngọc Sơn Agricultural Co-operative was contracting qualified experts to kill mice in the field.

Khanh Hoa ready for APEC 2017

The south central province of Khanh Hoa has basically finished preparations for hosting activities within the framework of the APEC Year 2017, heard a February 7 meeting between Chairman of the Khanh Hoa People’s Committee Le Duc Vinh and the provincial steering committee for the work.

KhanhHoa has chosen five hotels to host APEC meetings, while turning the province’s conventional hall into the press centre and recruiting and training 180 volunteers to serve the event.

A number of activities have also been planned to promote the province’s image, including making a video clip introducing its economic potential and strengths, cultural beauty and tourist destinations.

Alongside, Khanh Hoa has also prepared gifts for delegates, which are local specialties such as aloes wood, bird’s net and coffee.

Social security and traffic safety measures have been appliedwhile the local health sector has been ready to ensure food safety and providing health care services to delegates.

Streets across Nha Trang city have been decorated, especially Nguyen Tat Thanh Avenue from Cam Ranh international airport to Nha Trang city centre.

The APEC Year 2017 is among the most important foreign relations activities of Vietnam this year, which will be held in many localities across the country, including Hanoi, Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh City, Hoi An in Quang Nam, Can Tho, Ha Long in Quang Ninh and Nha Trang in Khanh Hoa.

Nha Trang is scheduled to host the first APEC Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM1) from February 18 to March 3, with 80 meetings to be attended by about 2,500 delegates. The APEC Finance Deputies’ Meeting and Central Bank Deputies’ Meeting will also be organised in the city.

HCM City weather shifts trigger disease outbreaks

Abrupt weather changes this year have triggered several disease outbreaks, according to health experts.

The HCM City Preventive Health Centre has warned that the unseasonable rains in the city since the Lunar New Year could see more people hospitalized with dengue fever; hand, foot, and mouth; respiratory ailments; and diarrhea.

Dr Nguyễn Trí Dũng, the centre’s head, said people should take preventive measures like destroying mosquitoes and larvae and maintaining personal hygiene.

Statistics released by the Paediatrics Hospital 2’s infectious diseases ward on Monday (February 6) showed that 22 dengue patients are receiving treatment, double the number compared to the same period last year.

Of them, four are in the serious condition, including a child who is on a ventilator.

According to Dr Lê Tiến Dũng of the University Medical Centre, when the weather changes suddenly, viral fever and pneumonia often break out, with children, seniors and people with low immunity especially at risk.

Trần Minh Điển, deputy head of the National Hospital of Paediatrics in Hà Nội, told Tuổi Trẻ (Youth) newspaper that the weather this year had been “strange.”

Normally after Tết the weather in the north is humid, he said, pointing out that this year temperatures had been quite high at night and low in the morning. "The difference in temperature is high, leading to increased risk of respiratory diseases," he said.

On Monday his hospital admitted 1,300 patients, many of them with respiratory diseases, he said.

Dr Nguyễn Thành Nam, head of the paediatrics ward at another Hà Nội hospital, Bạch Mai, said on Monday the ward was filled with children, half of them with respiratory ailments.

There were also children with chickenpox, which often breaks out during the transition from winter to spring, he said.

The Hà Nội Preventive Health Centre warned that mumps, measles, rubella and other diseases could break out.

Nam advised that parents should raise resistance for their children by feeding them sufficient nutrition, keeping them warm and in the  hygiene condition in order to prevent from infecting diseases via respiratory tract.

They also should bring their children to health facilities to get vaccines against chickenpox, mumps, measles and others.

Deputy PM urges press to promote innovation, creativity

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam has encouraged the press to strongly promote innovation and creativity in society and of every individual in the new year of 2017.

He made the call at a New Year meeting with media representatives in Hanoi on February 7. 

The Deputy PM thanked the press for supporting the government in building a facilitating government of integrity, and in fulfilling tasks in socio-economic development, national defense and security, and external affairs.

Politburo member Vo Van Thuong, who is head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Communication and Education, spoke highly of the press’s achievements last year.

He described 2017 as an important year, which requires journalists to continuously increase their professional qualifications and ethics to fulfil their political mission.

Management agencies should further improve their leadership and management of the press while quickly responding to and addressing problems discovered by the press, he said. 

The annual meeting was held by the Party Central Committee's Commission for Communication and Education, the Ministry of Information and Communication, and the Vietnam Journalists Association.

HCM City cinemas, theatres see large crowds during Tết

Cinemas and theatres over the long Tết (Lunar New Year) holiday reported full houses and high ticket sales for foreign film screenings.

CGV Cinemas and Galaxy Cinema said they had a full house during Tết, with more tickets sold for foreign films than for Vietnamese films.

Released on January 27 (Lunar New Year’s Eve), Hollywood blockbuster xXx: Return of Xander Case, the third installment in the xXx franchise and a sequel to both xXx (2002) and xXx: State of the Union (2005), raked in VNĐ32 billion (US$1.43 million) in ticket sales in five days.

A new production of Jackie Chan, Kung Fu Yoga, was released on the same day of the Hollywood production. The action-adventure comedy, written and directed by Stanley Tong, earned VNĐ17.5 billion ($785,000) after five days of release.

Journey to the West: The Demons Strike Back, a Chinese fantasy-adventure-comedy film directed by Tsui Hark and written and produced by Stephen Chow, appeared on screens in January. It earned VNĐ35 billion ($1.57 million) in ticket sales in just four days. 

Nguyễn Huyền Trang, a representative of Galaxy Cinema, which released Journey to the West: The Demons Strike Back and Kung Fu Yoga, said: “Many Vietnamese people like Stephen Chow and Jackie Chan’s films.”

This season saw the release of four domestic films, including Nàng Tiên Có Năm Nhà (A Pretty Woman), Rừng Xanh Kỳ Lạ Truyện (Magical Forest), Lục Vân Tiên: Tuyệt Đỉnh Kungfu (Lục Vân Tiên: Kungfu Hustle), and Chạy Đi Rồi Tính (Lost in Sài Gòn).

Of these, veteran director Trần Ngọc Giàu’s Nàng Tiên Có Năm Nhà had the highest number of ticket sales with VNĐ19 billion ($852,000) after five days of release beginning on January 27.

The film is about a young and beautiful girl (played by Khả Ngân), who tries to “manage” four rich men at the same time. It also stars famous comic actors Hoài Linh, Chí Tài and Tấn Beo.

Three other films, however, had lower ticket sales and thus limited show times.

Local filmmakers said that Việt Nam began to label domestic films in 2017. Four Tết films were labeled with C13 and C16 classifications.

As a result, the films lost audiences as many people choose films for all of their family members.

Many moviegoers said the similarity in the plot of films for Tết was boring.  

Trần Bảo Trâm, a senior student at the HCM City’s Open University, who visited Galaxy Cinema to watch a Hollywood production, said: “I watched the film because of its quality, plot, and actors.”

“I don’t choose Vietnamese films because I don’t like the way most local filmmakers use comedy details in their films. Some of them are weird and meaningless,” she added.

Meanwhile, thousands of families flocked to theatres to watch dramas.

Trịnh Kim Chi of the Trịnh Kim Chi Drama Theatre, said that most of the big theatres, including Thế Giới Trẻ, Hoàng Thái Thanh, IDECAF and Phú Nhuận, expanded their performing schedule during Tết.

Chi’s theatre introduced four new plays, including Lọ Lem Truyền Kỳ (Story of Vietnamese Cinderella), Phim Trường Đại Chiến (War at Film Studio), Hoa Hậu Ao Làng (Miss Countryside Pageant), and Chàng và Thiếp (You and Me), featuring funny stories with meaningful lessons.

“We did better than last year. We will continue to stage new comedies with romantic details in the upcoming weeks to serve people, especially on Valentine’s Day,” said director Ngọc Hùng, director of Thế Giới Trẻ Theatre.

The theatre offered three new plays during Tết, with all tickets selling out after two weeks.  VNS

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