Vietnam helps Cambodia overcome floods

The Vietnamese government has channelled US$100,000 to Cambodia through the country’s Red Cross to help the country deal with the aftermath of recent floods.

Lai Xuan Chien, Vietnamese Minister Counselor to Cambodia, handed the relief aid to the Cambodian Red Cross in Phnom Penh on October 21.

The Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) also provided 100 tonnes of rice and 40 tonnes of salt, as well as books and pens for Cambodians in flooded areas.

A month ago, BIDV presented 50 tonnes of rice and 5,000 litres of petrol to Cambodians and overseas Vietnamese in Siem Reap province.

People’s Committees of Vietnamese provinces that border Cambodia are also helping Cambodians cope with the consequences of the floods

Dong Thap province in Vietnam transferred 35 tonnes of rice and VND30 million to Cambodia’s Prey Veng province.

Father, son and wife sentenced for anti-State plots

The People’s Court of Dong Nai Province on Friday gave jail sentences of 9 years in total for Nguyen Ngoc Cuong and his son for leading anti-State activities while his daughter in law was announced an 18-month probation for her aid.

Cuong, 55, who is permanently residing in Ho Chi Minh City, is jailed 7 years for “conducting propaganda against the State of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam” in accordance to the article 88 of the penal code.

He also received US$1,500 from hostiles living abroad as reward for their anti-state activities in Vietnam.

Nguyen Ngoc Tuong Thi, 25, and his wife Pham Thi Bich Chi, 28, were also convicted for the same crime.

After joining the forum “Vietnam and current issues” with his nickname “Mikepha” in October last year, Cuong defamed the administration and State institutions and distorted Party and State policies, according to the verdict announced at the court.

Not only posting the distorted information on the internet, Cuong and his son and daughter in law typed and printed 3,000 leaflets with incorrect info and rode a motorbike to spray 1,200 of them on the National Highway 1A from Cam My District to Bien Hoa Town in the southern province Dong Nai, 30km away from Ho Chi Minh City.

Cuong even manufactured a machine to automatically spray leaflets on roads.

Victim of hit-and-run dies

The 28-year-old victim of the hit-and-run accident caused by a police captain in the southern province of Binh Duong on October 20 has died of brain injury.

Nguyen Huu Quan died yesterday morning after he was hit by a car driven by police captain Le Quang Binh, who ran away with his car.

Quan had been transferred from a local hospital to Cho Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City but couldn’t survive due to a severe brain injury. His body was taken back to his home in Hiep An Ward in Thu Dau Mot Town yesterday.

The provincial police had performed an autopsy on Quan and questioned Binh, who said he fled because of panic.

Binh has been suspended for investigation, said Major General Vo Thanh Duc, director of the provincial Police Department.

Earlier on Thursday evening, Binh’s car hit Quan’s motorbike on a road in Phu Hoa Ward. The collision threw Quan down to the ground and his car underneath the car.

Binh then drove away. Local residents riding their motorbikes chased after him and finally stopped the car in Thuan An Town, nearly 5 km from the scene of the accident.

The provincial police were then called to the scene to detain Binh.

Nguyen Van Ha, Quan’s uncle, said that a kind passer-by called Quan’s relatives using Quan’s mobile phone while the police didn’t give the victim’s family any information until some people who claimed themselves as Binh’s relatives came to Cho Ray and gave Quan’s family VND20 million (US$960).

At her husband’s funeral, Nguyen Thi Bich Nhung, Quan’s wife, said in tear, “My husband was a worker. He was hit on the way home from work that day. We have a 5-year-old child and I don’t know how we can live in the future.”

Ha said Quan was the bread-earner of his family. “We want the culprit to be strictly punished by law, no matter what position he is holding,” he said.

Some locals alleged that Binh has no driver’s license, but the provincial police have yet to confirm the allegation and said they are still investigating.

First notary society established in Hanoi

The Hanoi municipal Notary Society, the first of its kind in Vietnam, debuted in Hanoi on October 22 in the presence of the Minister of Justice, Ha Hung Cuong.

Under a decision by the Hanoi municipal People’s Committee, the society is a social-professional organization of notaries in Hanoi with its own legal identity, stamp and bank account.

The society will be managed by the Hanoi Department of Justice and other related departments and in compliance with the Vietnamese Notary Law.

Hanoi now has 67 notary organizations with nearly 200 members. The establishment of the Notary Society aims to improve the professionalism of sector's operations.

The Society's first congress elected a 13-member executive board with Chu Van Khanh as President.

The Hanoi municipal Notary Society plans to sign a cooperation agreement with the Paris Notary Chamber in order to raise its professional skills.

Police arrest 40 drug dealers, prostitutes

The police in Khanh Hoa Province yesterday raided two hotels in Nha Trang city, arresting their boss and 40 others for drug dealing and prostitution.

The raids were conducted at the Thien Binh Hotel, at 4 Bui Thi Xuan Street, and Thien Binh 2 Hotel, at 25 To Hien Thanh Street, where the anti-social crime police found 20 grams of synthetic drug and caught many people engaging in prostitution and drug use.

The police also found and seized a number of tools for drug use and some weapons, including tear gas guns, knives and scimitars.

They also inspected two houses on Ben Cho and Truong Dinh streets, where many sex workers were staying and waiting to serve guests at the hotels. The police finally arrested the boss of the two hotels, Nguyen Thanh Binh, and about 40 others, including hotel staffs, prostitutes, and drug users and traders.

Binh has a previous conviction of “intentional assault” for which he was given a 2-year probation sentence several years ago. He also was a member of a local underworld gang led a notorious gangster named Hanh Nhat, who is in jail, the police said.

Yesterday, Nguyen Thuan, deputy head of the Nha Trang People’s Procuracy, confirmed to the press that Binh’s wife, 50-year-old Van Thi Xuan, is an official of the agency.

Xuan was transferred to the city prosecutor’s office from the provincial People’s Procuracy in 2005, Thuan said.

Thuan said he would ask Xuan to report whether she has known about her husband’s illegal activities.

Administrative reform earns Danang FutureGov award

The Danang Municipal Department of Information and Communications has won the 2011 FutureGov Award for the ASEAN Public Sector Organization of the Year.

The agency was given the award for its project to develop e-government in Danang by 2015. This was the winner out of the five Vietnamese entries in the FutureGov Awards 2011.

The award was presented at the FutureGov Summit 2011 held in Malaysia.

The FutureGov Awards are the only ones in the world to honour organizations, projects, and programs in 22 public administration and service fields in the Asia-Pacific region, aiming to recognize successful reforms and renovations in the public sector.

This year, nearly 500 nominations were received from public sector organizations in 16 Asia-Pacific nations.

Couple arrested for attempting to sell son

Vong A Khin and Nguyen Thi Thuy Van in Long Thanh District, Dong Nai Province last Friday were arrested for attempting to sell their one-month-old son for VND10 million (US$500).

Previously, the couple asked Nguyen Van Dong, a street beggar, to help them sell their son and promised to pay him commission if he succeeded.

Dong then carried the newborn around Tan Mai 2 Market in Phuoc Tan Commune, Bien Hoa city and asked people if they were interested in buying the baby for VND10 million.

He offered to take any prospective buyer to Khin and Van to make legal documents.

On receiving the report from local people, Phuoc Tan’s police immediately arrested Dong, and Khin and Van who were waiting at the market’s entrance.

At the police station, Van said they were poor and wanted to sell their fourth son to have some money.

WB helps Vietnam fight H5N1 epidemic

The Additional Financing to the Vietnam Avian and Human Influenza Control and Preparedness Project was signed between the World Bank and the State Bank of Vietnam in Hanoi on October 21.

Under the project, World Bank will provide US$25 million to the Ministry of Health (MoH) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) to increase the effectiveness of public services in reducing the health risk to poultry and humans from avian influenza in eleven high priority provinces.

This will be achieved through controlling the disease at source in domestic poultry, early detection and response to poultry and human cases of infection, and preparing for the medical consequences of a human pandemic.

It will support the Vietnamese Government to further improve their responses to the highly pathogenic avian influenza, human influenza, and other newly emerging zoonotic diseases, thereby providing better protection to more than 10 million people living in these eleven provinces.  

This Additional Financing is the third operation that the Bank, in partnership with The Avian and Human Influenza Facility (AHIF) donors, has supported Vietnam in controlling the highly pathogenic avian influenza and improving the country’s preparedness for human influenza pandemic.

The first two operations with a total funding of US$40 million were successfully implemented during the period of 2004 to 2011, including the Avian Influenza Emergency Recovery Project (AIERP) and the Vietnam Avian and Human Influenza Control and Preparedness Project (VAHIP).

Vietnam was among the countries that was most affected by avian influenza (H5N1). The first human case was reported in 2003. As of March 2011, Vietnam has confirmed 119 human cases of H5N1, of which 59 were fatal. This represents 23 percent of the total number of human cases reported worldwide and 19 percent of the deaths.

Deadly hole causes evacuation in Quang Ninh

The third land subsidence within a month occurred in the northern province of Quang Ninh yesterday, creating a huge deep hole that led to an urgent evacuation of tens of families.

The accident occurred with a terrible noise from underground at 1:30 am Saturday in Cao Xanh Ward, Ha Long city, leaving a large hole, 5 m wide and 20 m deep, which put many houses nearby at risk of collapse any time, local authorities said.

Soon afterwards, authorities urgently evacuated 14 families and continued to move many others to safe places.

The subsidence caused cracks to many houses in the area and blocked traffic, local authorities said. Relevant agencies filled up the hole with stones and soil yesterday evening, said Hong Son, deputy chairman of the ward People’s Committee.

This area has been forecast to suffer land subsidence any time as it is within the mining area of Thanh Cong Coal Enterprise under Hon Gai Coal Company of the Vietnam Coal and Mineral Industry Group, said deputy chairman of Ha Long city’s People’s Committee Vu Van Hop.

”Therefore, we are proceeding with a plan to relocate all households in this area and 30 households have cooperated with authorities in the relocation,” he said.

Vietnam strengthens friendship with Spain

The Vietnam-Spain Friendship Association aims to consolidate the ties of solidarity, comprehensive cooperation, and strategic partnership between the two countries.

This was affirmed at the second National Congress of the Vietnam-Spain Friendship Association in Hanoi on October 20.

Newly-elected President, Nguyen Hoai Duong, said the association will launch a number of programs to boost the cooperation between the two countries.

He said he hopes organizations and businesses from both countries will contribute more to boosting the Vietnam-Spain strategic partnership in the interest of both peoples.

Spanish Ambassador to Vietnam Fernandi Curcio Ruigomez said the traditional friendship is a valuable asset of Spain and Vietnam.

He said that Spain is willing to cooperate with Vietnam in construction, renewable energy, and information technology, which are considered the country’s strengths.

The Spanish embassy in Vietnam always supports cultural and information exchanges to enhance the multifaceted cooperation between the two countries.

Nguyen Duc Kien, Vice President of the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations, spoke highly of the association and urged it to make greater efforts to strengthen cooperation with Spanish friends and partners.

Police officer flees after causing accident

A police officer fled away in his car after hitting a motorbike in Thu Dau Mot Town, Binh Duong Province on Friday, leaving the motorbike’s driver on the spot with a serious brain injury.

On the evening of October 20, Captain Le Quang Binh was driving a 4-seat car on a road in Phu Hoa Ward when the car suddenly hit a motorbike driving on the same lane.

The hard collision threw the motorbike’s driver down to the ground and caused the motorbike to get stuck underneath the car.

Binh did not stop his car but speeded it up to get away, despite cries of protests from many witnesses.

Local residents riding their motorbikes chased after him and finally stopped the car in Thuan An Town, 5 km from the scene of the accident. The provincial police were then called in to detain Binh.

The police took Binh’s car back to Phu Hoa to make a report on the accident and examined the scene.

Meanwhile, some locals took the victim to the provincial General Hospital for treatment, but given the seriousness of the injury, the victim was later transferred to Cho Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City.

Major General Vo Thanh Duc, director of the provincial Police Department, said he has suspended Binh from his duty for investigation of the hit-and-run.

Vietnamese businesses finance school construction in Laos

Construction of a primary school started in Xaysettha district, Attapeu province, Laos, on October 20 with financial assistance from Vietnamese businesses.

Covering an area of 18,000 square metres, the two-storey school will have eight classrooms for 450 pupils.

Initial funding for the school, estimated at US$500,000, will be sourced from the total amount of US$12 million raised by Vietnamese businesses during the Indochina golf tournament in 2009.

In addition, the Golf Long Thanh JSC will provide an additional US$170,000 for the building of ten flats for teachers.

Former official seized for false allegations and incitement

The former head of the public relations office in the provincial People’s Committee in Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Nguyen Van Tuan, was seized yesterday for lodging false accusations against high-ranking State officials and provoking others to act against the authorities.

The 54-year-old man, of Ward 4, Vung Tau City, is charged with “taking advantage of rights to democracy and freedom to infringe on State interests and the legitimate rights and interests of organizations and citizens,” and will be detained for 4 months for investigation, the local police said.

Before his arrest, he had been removed from his post and expelled from the Communist Party of Vietnam.

According to the police’s initial investigation, Tuan has filed false accusations against many State officials for the past few years. In those accusation letters, he slandered a number of leaders of both local and central governments.

He also disseminated to local residents many documents and materials related to land compensation with an aim to provoking them to file wrongful complaints against the authorities, investigators said.

He had been warned by competent agencies for his wrongdoings but he kept committing the same offenses, police said.

In searching Tuan’s house and a local printing establishment that had printed Tuan’s materials yesterday, the police seized a carton of documents related to his acts.

Doctor alleged to get commission on prescriptions

An investigation is underway after a doctor at Tien Giang Central General Hospital was accused of prescribing unnecessary but expensive medicines to patients to get commission of 10-50 percent from pharmaceutical companies.

The alleged doctor, Tran Quang Loc, has been transferred from the respiratory faculty to another department pending investigation into the accusation, which had come from a number of hospital employees, Dr Hoang Tho Man, director of the hospital, said.

Some denunciators said Loc did the same thing to other staff members of the hospital who needed medicines for their sickness.

Loc has been ordered to give a written explanation about the allegation against him and the hospital’s management board is verifying all the related information to settle the case, Man said.

A pharmaceutical representative of CiplaHealol said since 2008 Loc has enjoyed a commission of 10-50 percent on the prices of the firm’s medicines he prescribed.

Up to 1,000 bottles of Seroflo, a medicine for asthma patients and is priced at VND150,000 (US$7.2) per bottle, has been prescribed by Loc every month, enjoying a 10 percent commission, the representative said.

Since June 2006, Loc has also prescribed Furacort, also provided by the company at VND250,000 per bottle, and received the same commission rate, the representative added.

Talking with Tuoi tre yesterday, Loc rejected the allegation that he received commission from drug firms and said he has submitted a report to the hospital explaining why he prescribed such medicines to patients.

They are pharmaceutical products that are both effective and cheap, he said.

The meeting and seminars aimed to enhance regional cooperation to improve managerial skills and apply e-documents in member countries, said Deputy Head of the State Records Management and Archives Department of Vietnam, Hoang Truong.

Within the framework of the meeting and seminar, taking place from October 17-19, participants discussed how to manage e-documents, the use of microfilm in digitalising archived files as well as copyrights.

Following the event, the Vietnamese delegation visited the National Archives of the Philippines and Thailand to share experience in related fields.

Plane ticket seller hypnotized, taken $350

24-year old Pham Thi Nhu Binh was hypnotized and had VND7 million (US$350) taken by two foreigners at Vietnam Airlines ticket agency at 74 Le Hong Phong in Vinh City in the central province of Nghe An.

According to newswire Vietnamnet, Binh was closing the office at 11.40pm last Thursday when two foreigners walked in and asked to buy tickets for the Hanoi-Hong Kong flight for the following afternoon.

She checked the system and announced there were only flights in the morning. The two then sat quietly for a while.

Later, the tall, dark-skinned man took out a VND500,000 note and asked Binh to exchange it for smaller bills so he could take a taxi.

Binh said she did not have money of small denomination and refused to change it.
As two men kept insisting and refusing to leave, Binh took out her purse to show she only had big notes.

“The man then grabbed my purse, took out my money and said ‘We don’t need dollars’,” Binh recalled.

She said she had a feeling that she was being robbed and so tried to hold it tightly in her hand, somehow unable to call her colleague Nguyen Trung Dung, who was sitting next to her, for help.

“Despite holding onto the money tightly, I still had many VND500,000 notes taken away by the men, the money from ticket sales in the morning. Altogether, I lost VND7 million,” she said.

Five minutes later, Binh regained her composure when she realized she had been robbed.

“When Binh told me she had just been robbed, I ran outside and asked the security guards about two foreigners. They told me the men had just got on a Mai Linh taxi,” said Dung.

When Dung contacted Mai Linh taxi company, the operator immediately announced on the system the robbery on Le Hong Phong Street but there was no response from any drivers.

Dung said it is likely that the taxi had been waiting outside the office to pick up the two men after they carried out their scam.

This morning, police in Hung Binh ward, Vinh city met Binh to investigate the case.

Circus animals getting out of control

Circus animals are being seen to pose a threat to public safety in Vietnam when elephants have recently killed and injured local spectators.

Last Sunday, an 11-year-old audience in the northern province of Lao Cai was crushed to death when she was feeding a circus elephant nicknamed Na owned by the Vietnam Circus Federation.

The animal grabbed her, threw her down, and trampled her to death.

People’s Artist Tam Chinh, former director of the Vietnam Circus Federation during 1986-2003 term, said it was the first fatal incident in the federation.

In April 2010, a 2-ton elephant, which belongs to the Sao Mai Circus and was brought to Binh Da Stadium in the southern province of Dong Nai for a show, grabbed 13-year-old Pham Xuan Tin with his trunk and slammed him twice on the ground after Tin and his friends allegedly enraged it by pulling its tail and throwing stones at it.

But nobody can tell how to prevent circus animals from jeopardizing the lives of circus-goers and performers.

According to some insiders, the absence of barriers and such safeguards is a common cause of fatal incidents.

A rarely-mentioned reason is that circus animals often suffer harsh treatment, which leads to their mental distress.

But there have been no reports about the miserable treatment suffered by circus animals such deprivation, confinement and abuse.

The animals also lead a life in chains since most circuses are on the road for weeks at a time and are often transported in barren and cramped cages.

According to Chinh, in the past, to assure safety for circus-goers, organizers often put up protective barriers between spectators and circus animals.

The animals were also bathed and perfumed before their performances.

Some animals which are able to pose risks to the lives of spectators and performers such as bears or dogs were also forced to wear muzzle and rubber gloves.

“However, it now appears that such regulations are no longer applied,” she said.

“The lack of safeguards shows their irresponsibility to both spectators and performers.”

Only 3 art troupes in Vietnam now offer animal circus performances including the Vietnam Circus Federation, Ho Chi Minh City Circus Troupe, and a private-owned circus troupe in the northern province of Hai Duong.

Of these, the Vietnam Circus Federation has a largest number of circus animals: 70 animals of various kinds.

Dang Nang Long, who comes from a long line of elephant trainers and hunters in the Central Highlands, told Tuoi Tre that according to traditional customs and practices in the region, if a male elephant commits an error, it will be executed while a female elephant will be forgiven.

Na is a female elephant and obviously its life will be spared.

Pham Van Xuyen, deputy director of the Vietnam Circus federation, told Tuoi Tre on Tuesday that Na is currently in Hanoi and will continue to perform because it has been found not guilty.

Killer given death sentence at appeal court

Ho Chi Minh City appeal court today confirmed the death penalty for Nguyen Van Toi, 21, for murder and robbery after he intentionally killed and robbed a cashier of a restaurant where he working for.

Judges announced at the court that Toi with permanent residence in the central highlands Gia Lai Province is unable to be re-educated and so must be eliminated.

In late 2009, just two weeks after being admitted to work for Dai Nam Restaurant on Luy Ban Bich Street in Ho Chi Minh City’s Tan Phu District at the salary rate of VND1.2 million (US$58) a month, Toi and other staffs held a drinking party at the restaurant after it stopped services.

After the party, all other staffs slept on the first floor while Toi and cashier Tran Ngoc Phu went to bed on the ground floor.

Recognizing Phu falling in sound sleep at midnight, Toi used a 30cm-long pipe wrench and struck many times on the head of Phu and killed him immediately at the scene.

Toi took out keys from the victim’s pocket to open a safe but he could only get less than five US dollars.

Then, Toi left the restaurant during the night and went back home in Gia Lai before he was arrested two days later.

US Government gives aid to Vietnam flood victims

Following a disaster declaration by U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam David B. Shear, the U.S. Government through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is making available $100,000 to support emergency relief efforts in response to weeks of devastating flooding in Vietnam's Mekong Delta region.

The assistance is in response to a request from the Government of Vietnam’s People's Aid Coordinating Committee for international support. USAID will channel its assistance through CARE International in Vietnam, an international nongovernmental organization, to provide emergency relief supplies, including water containers and filters, hygiene supplies, life jackets, blankets, and mosquito nets to communities in the most flood-affected provinces.

“Our thoughts go out to the families who lost loved ones in the recent flooding,” said USAID Mission Director Francis Donovan. “We hope this assistance will help alleviate conditions of the many Vietnamese still trying to cope during this difficult time.”

Residents in An Giang Province use sand bags to prevent floodwater (Photo: Tuoi Tre)

The Mekong Delta region of Vietnam is experiencing the most severe seasonal flooding it has seen since the historic floods of 2000. Reports indicate that flood levels in the worst affected provinces are equal to, and in some areas have surpassed levels recorded during the 2000 flooding, which killed more than 500 people.

Since 2000, USAID has provided more than $9 million for emergency assistance and disaster mitigation and preparedness activities in Vietnam.

Owner hands robber $200k, hypnotism suspected

A rare incident occurred at a gold shop in the central province of Quang Ngai this morning when the shop owner voluntarily gave around 100 taels of gold and other cash worth more than US$200,000 in total to a masked robber who could have hypnotized her.

The four security cameras in the shop show Nguyen Thi Thuy, the owner of gold shop Tin Huy in Binh Son district put a large amount of gold and jewelries into a bag and gave it to the young man, apparently under no pressure or coercion.

She also took around VND1 billion in cash and gave the man.

After voluntarily giving away the money, gold and jewelries, Thuy fainted.

According to Thuy’s family members, the ‘robber’ was a young man who wore a blue long-sleeved T-shirt, face mask and helmet.

The man quickly fled the scene with the valuable bag.

Trinh Phu Vi, an employee at the shop who witnessed the scene, said: “At that time, I didn’t pay attention to him because I thought that he was a normal customer. But after I saw he left while Thuy fainted, I got frightened and reported the case to local police.”

After regaining consciousness, Thuy sobbed: “this young man came to my shop to purchase half a gold tael and paid for it. But after that, I became delirious and put around 100 taels of gold into the bag and took another VND1 billion in cash from my strongbox and gave it to him.”

Initial investigations found the man could have applied a kind of anesthetic or used hypnotism on the woman.

Police are investigating.

Toxic liquor kills 2 in An Giang, seller flees

Two men have died after drinking liquor with an extreme high content of toxic methyl alcohol at a wedding party in the southern An Giang Province two days ago.

The man who sold the liquor has fled.

Phan Van Dang, 43, of Dao Huu Canh Commune in Chau Phu District, and nine others developed symptoms of poisoning after drinking at the house of Le Van Nieng, the party’s host, Tuesday.

The victims were taken to a local hospital for treatment, but Dang, who was in critical condition, was transferred to the An Giang General Hospital Wednesday morning, but he died on the way there.

Nieng told Tuoi Tre yesterday that one more man, from Dong Thap Province, had also died in hospital, but he did not reveal his name.

The other victims, who had headache and vomiting, remained in the local hospital, local authorities said.

Nieng said he had bought three cans of liquor from Nguyen Thanh Tam, a local liquor producer, who admitted to the police he had added four more liters of methanol into every can of 30 liters of liquor.

An autopsy had been done on Dang, and an official announcement would be made about the cause of death, Pham Thanh Quang, head of the commune police, said.

The provincial Preventive Health Center took two samples of the liquor for testing and found they contained 56-64 times higher levels of methanol than permitted.

Vo Huy Danh, the director of the center, said the agency had also taken samples of the food at the party.

Authorities yesterday sealed Tam’s distillery but he had fled by then.

The police are continuing with their investigation and hunting for Tam.

Gov’t to distribute vegetable seeds in storm hit provinces  

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has instructed the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to distribute 110 tons of vegetable seeds in provinces and cities hit by Haitang and Nesat typhoons late September.  

Vegetable seeds from the national reserve will be dispatched to 22 provinces and cities in the northern and central regions including Hanoi and Hai Phong Cities, and Lang Son, Tuyen Quang, Thanh Hoa, Ninh Binh, Quang Tri and Thua Thien-Hue Provinces.

The ministry will set distribution of seeds based on the practical needs and conditions in each province or city.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Haitang and Nesat typhoons and the subsequent flooding at the beginning of October had inundated 90,000 hectares of rice and vegetable crops in the northern and central regions.
 
City prepares to open Thu Thiem Tunnel to traffic  

Le Hoang Quan, Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee, held a meeting on Friday to discuss plans to host an inaugural ceremony on November 20 for opening of the Thu Thiem Tunnel for traffic.  

According to the people’s committee organization board, the ceremony will be held at both ends of the tunnel, in District 1 as well as in District 2, while the main program will take place in District 2.

500 guests, including leaders from the Central Government, provinces and cities are expected to attend the ceremony. Senior officials from Japan and consulates in HCMC, along with representatives from foreign-invested business groups will be present on the occasion.
   
The Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union Committee will organize a walk in which 2,500 young people will walk through the 1.5km tunnel. They will then assign a volunteer youth group to plant trees along both sides of the tunnel.

Chairman Quan has instructed relevant units to do a thorough examination of the conditions in the tunnel and report findings to the city leaders during the final inspection which is expected to take place on October 29.

Thu Thiem Tunnel is an important section of the East West Highway in HCMC. The tunnel runs beneath the Saigon River, and is technically the most modern and advanced construction work in Southeast Asia.

The 33m wide and 9m high tunnel comprises of six lanes for both automobiles and motorcycles and two exit lanes. The maximum driving speed in the tunnel will be 60 kilometers an hour.
 
Hanoi doctors use blood filtering method to save serious HFM child patient  

Medical workers at the National Children Hospital in Hanoi succeeded in saving a seriously infected hand-foot-mouth child patient from dying, by continuously filtering her blood for 48 hours.

The National Children Hospital on Thursday officially announced that it had succeeded in saving a two year old girl from death. The child was admitted suffering from hand-foot-mouth disease in its fourth and most dangerous stage. By continuously filtering her blood for 48 hours, doctors were able to save her life.

The baby girl was hospitalized with high fever and rashes in her mouth. Due to her worsened condition, medics sat down to discuss her treatment methodology and decided to filter her blood continuously for the next 48 hours.

Doctors’ efforts to save the child have gone rewarded as she escaped death. She can now breathe normally without the help of a respiratory machine.

On the same day, the General Hospital in the Mekong delta province of Soc Trang said that 32 year old Lo Thi Ngoc from district My Xuyen in Soc Trang Province is recovering after two weeks of treatment in the hospital. Ngoc was stung in 340 spots in her body by a swarm of hornets. She was taken to the hospital on October 6 where her body swelled up and breathing became painful.

Health sector to concentrate on reducing overcrowding of big hospitals  

Health Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Tien said at a meeting of the Health Partnership Group in Hanoi on October 19 that the health sector will concentrate more on reducing overcrowding of patients in big city hospitals.   

The annual activity plan meeting of HPG quarter III focused on the Direction and Priorities of the Health Sector for the new term. Participants at the meeting included relevant ministries, agencies, departments, embassies, international banks and organizations working in Vietnam.

The minister said that the health sector will focus on resolving problems but it will give priority to reducing the number of patients in big hospitals to avoid overcrowding and will also promote issuing of health insurance cards.

In addition, the sector will improve medical facilities in districts to help reduce overcrowding central hospitals by recruiting more medical workers. It will push for implementation of hi-tech medical facilities and provide healthcare services as per patients’ demands.

Moreover, the sector will keep a close eye on disease prevention, food safety and hygiene, raised ethic levels amongst medical staff members and control medicine prices.

In related news, hand-foot-mouth disease (HFMD) has so far claimed over 130 lives this year, from more than 71,472 cases reported nationwide, according to the latest statistics from the Vietnam Administration of Preventive Medicine.

Although the Ministry of Health (MOH) has outlined the disease treatment diagram to hospitals, medical workers are still confused while examining and mistakes still take place, resulting in more deaths.

Medical experts fret that the disease may continue to spread until November.

It seems incomprehensible that MOH has not decided to declare HFM as an epidemic yet. They still insist that the disease is under control and the number of patients is on the decline.
 
Non-profit Vietnamese organization becomes lifesaver of the poor  

Capital Aid Fund for Employment of Poor (CEP), a non-profit Vietnamese microfinance organization, has helped many disadvantaged families in district Binh Chanh in Ho Chi Minh City to escape from poverty.  

The organization operates in provinces of southeast Vietnam and the Mekong Delta. Its objectives are to reduce poverty by creating income-generating activities amongst the poor, and to permit gradual increase in well-being and the rate of employment among the poor.

CEP has provided financial support to over 200,000 laborers to help them grow and develop a means of income.

Huynh Thi Thu Xuong, a poor woman from Da Phuoc commune in district  Binh Chanh was given VND700,000 (US$33) as start-up capital in 1998 to purchase fertilizer and seeds. Thanks to this help from CEP, she is earning enough to raise her two children.

She had lost her husband in a traffic accident in 2007 and her children were at risk of dropping out of school, after the loss of the sole bread winner. A branch of CEP in district Binh Chanh supported her children with books, notebooks and bicycles and an annual scholarship to continue their studies.

She recalls that the right help from CEP at the right time saved her and her children from despair. Her eldest son is currently a student at the Cao Thang Technical College and her daughter is in twelfth grade.

Vo Thi Kim Lien from the Tan Nhut commune in district Binh Chanh received huge support from CEP. Lien was looking after her old mother, ailing husband and 8 children. She borrowed VND500,000 (US$23,8) as start-up capital from CEP in 1994, and another VND2 million to repair her dilapidated house. After 17 years of working with CEP, she not only escaped poverty but her children now have stable employment and their own houses.

Ta Thi Mai from Tan Quy Tay commune had a harsh life when she did not know of CEP. She used to sell vegetables in a market to feed her three daughters and diseased husband. She borrowed money from people at high interest rates to buy and sell vegetables. As a result, she was always in debt and hardly ever made a profit. By 2007, she heard of CEP and applied for a capital loan of VND3 million.

She now thanks CEP for their support as her children were able to receive scholarships and her family’s economic condition improved. She hopes that more people will be able to receive support from CEP to overcome their difficulties.

Border guards arrest two drug traffickers

Dien Bien border guards, in co-operation with Lao police, arrested two drug traffickers for alleged possession of 3.73 kgs of heroin on Thursday.

Accordingly, Bun Thoong, 47 and Kham Chan, 45, both Lao residents, were apprehended on the border between Lao and Viet Nam's Tay Trang International Border Gate.

The provincial border guards sent all evidence and traffickers back for trial, in line with Lao law.

Provinces and cities to get vegetable seeds

One hundred and ten tonnes of vegetable seed will be provided to 22 northern and central provinces and cities to help them overcome difficulties caused by storms, in accordance with a ministerial decision.

Flooding caused by storms and torrential rain earlier in October, inundated more than 90,000 hectares of rice and vegetable fields throughout the area.

Petrol stations closed in Nam Dinh Province

Inter-sectoral inspectors from northern Nam Dinh Province have exposed 23 petrol stations operating without business licences and certificates related to fire prevention.

Le Ngoc An, deputy head of the provincial Market Watch Department, said yesterday that, of the total, 11 stations had been suspended from operation with each fined with VND8 million (US$390).
With seven additional stations closed before inspections commenced, inspectors are set to continue their efforts in bringing violators to justice.

Illegal titanium exploitation under control in Binh Dinh

The People's Committee in central Binh Dinh Province's Phu Cat District is attempting to bring the illegal exploitation of titanium under control.

The problem began after Binh Dinh Viet Nam-Malaysia Minerals Company ceased exploitation activities when their licence from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment expired in February, even though there was still titanium in the mines.

Since then, up to 500 people visit the mines each day to dig up the earth and collect titanium to sell illegally.

Only 10% of base transceiver stations granted licences

Only about 10 per cent of the capital's approximately 4,400 base transceiver stations had operating licences, said the Ha Noi Department of Information and Communications at a conference on Thursday.

The department attributed the situation to the quick pace of telecommunications development which management authorities had failed to keep pace with.

The Ha Noi People's Committee urged local authorities to intensify their control over base transceiver stations, including licensing, and to inspect them in line with legal regulations.

Four alleged murderers arrested on Thursday in Hoang Mai

Four people were arrested on Thursday for allegedly committing a murder in Ha Noi's Hoang Mai District early this week, according to the municipal police.

The suspects admitted to chopping off the right hand of Hoang Van Thoa, 28, of northern Phu Tho Province and pushing him from the seventh floor of a building onto the roof of the adjacent four-level house.

Thoa died on the way to hospital. An investigation is ongoing.

15 year-old boy still missing after trying to save friend from drowning

Search and rescue efforts have failed to recover 15 year-old Hoang Ngoc Manh Duc of central Khanh Hoa Province's Nha Trang City, who is still missing after trying to rescue Nguyen Thi Bao Nhi, 14, from drowning.

Nhi fell into the Cai River while playing with her friends along the riverbank on Thursday night. Duc tried to save her but they were both swept away by the swift current.

Local residents rescued Nhi 20 minutes after she fell into the water but Duc remains missing.

Microsoft helps promote e-government in Viet Nam

The Ministry of Information and Communication on Wednesday signed an agreement with Microsoft Viet Nam to set up an information technology development fund to enhance tech application at State agencies.

Besides improving human resource capacity, Microsoft would help promote the implementation of e-Government through projects at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Finance and National Assembly as well as in 17 localities throughout the country.

The projects would focus on developing information management systems and electronic portals as well as public services.

Microsoft committed to help raise national competitiveness in the sector.

Singapore Business Group gives away 325 scholarships

The Singapore Business Group in HCM City awarded 325 scholarships worth US$58,320 to local high-school and university students.

Since its inception in 2001, the SBG Educational Fund has raised $368,000 to sponsor more than 2,200 students including 860 undergraduate and 1,390 high-school students through annual scholarships.

In 2010 the SBG EdFund was recognised by the Vietnamese Government for its charitable activities in Viet Nam.

Traffic jam for eight hours on highway 27

Traffic slowed to a crawl early this morning on Highway 27 in the Central Highland province of Lam Dong after an overloaded lorry got stuck in the soft road bed.
Thousands of vehicles, mainly cars, were delayed from 1am to 8am before the situation was resolved.

Highway 27 is a main route connecting Lam Dong with south central provinces. Thousands of passenger cars and goods vehicles use the route every night.

The area around the Ngoan Muc mountain pass where traffic is forced to slow remains obstructed by concrete and construction materials for upgrade work.

PV