Book publisher to be prosecuted

Ha Noi Police instructed the city's People's Procuracy on Wednesday to prosecute Tran Minh Thang, 35, director of Minh Tan Culture Ltd Co, for violating book publishing regulations.

Police seized over 1,200 books titled " To learn well English 10" without publishing licences and more than 900 others with out-of-date licences from company premises in June.

Flood-hit commune leader dismissed

Nguyen Van Tuan, chairman of Duc Lac Commune People's Committee in central Ha Tinh Province was dismissed yesterday for neglecting citizens caught in the recent floods. According to Duc Tho District People's Committee, Tuan did not perform his duties as head of the local flood control and prevention body from October 16-22 and refused to obey orders to help flood-hit residents.

Landslide destroys 25 homes

A serious landslide in Phu Yen Province's Tuy An District on Tuesday damaged a section of National Highway 1A and destroyed 25 houses in the mountainous commune of An Linh.

According to local officials, another 55 households in the area are at risk of further landslides.

Many families in the commune's Phong Thai village have moved their families to the nearby market to stay for fear their houses will be destroyed.

Phan Chi Linh, whose house was built in 2003, said his family ran out of the house after hearing strange sounds and seeing cement falling from the ceiling.

His neighbours left their houses at the same time, assuming that an earthquake was occurring.

Tran Van Buu, the commune's deputy party secretary, said the commune had suffered two similar landslides before, in 1983 and 2001, but this year's had been the most serious one.

The landslide caused large cracks to appear in the commune's headquarters and schools, which are at risk of collapsing.

Nguyen Quoc Dung, head of the commune's People's Committee, said the commune was located on the side of a mountain where the land could easily slide during heavy rains.

Ten years ago, the commune began building the Gieng Dong Resettlement Area on 12 square kilometres of land, located two kilometres from the An Linh commune, to relocate about 80 families living in an area at risk of landslide.

Twenty families have been removed to the new resettlement area.

Local authorities are urging other families to move to safer places to live.

The landslide also caused serious damage to the commune's roads.

According to local residents, 100-metre-long, 2.5-metre-wide cracks have appeared on the road connecting Phong Thai village and An Linh Commune's headquarters.

In addition, about a 100-metre stretch of National Highway 1A in Tuy An District was seriously damaged.

Nation tries to reduce stunting malnutrition

Viet Nam is facing challenges in its annual goals to reduce the rate of malnutrition among children under five years old from 30 per cent to 2 per cent by the year 2020.

Nutritionists met in Ha Noi yesterday, Nov 11, and said the target - which is a crucial element to improving the height of Vietnamese people - would be hard to reach in the next decade despite the good results that have already been achieved.

Ministry of Health statistics show that the rate of malnutrition, which leads to stunted growth, fell from nearly 60 per cent in 1985 to 47 per cent in 1994 and 31.9 in 2009.

The percentage of children under five who are underweight due to malnutrition reduced from 51.5 per cent in 1985 to 18.9 per cent in 2009. Studies have shown an average height increase of 1-2 centimetres in Vietnamese children and adults in recent decades, according to the National Institute of Nutrition (NIN). "By analysing factors that contribute to malnutrition in children, we can reduce the current numbers. However, the speed of reduction will be slower than the rate in the 90s," said Deputy Director of NIN Le Danh Tuyen.

Mothers needed to get proper nutrition prior and throughout their pregnancies, he said. They also needed to provide their growing children with proper nutrition, especially before they reach the age of five as children under five need sufficient energy and nutrition to grow properly.

"In order to firmly reduce stunted growth due to malnutrition, comprehensive improvement in providing food to families, health care services and environmental and care taking activities are needed. Emphasis has been put on caring for the quality of nutrition, particularly at the family level," said Tuyen.

Malnutrition prevention activities should be socialised in all corners of the country with a specific policy designed for each region. Areas that are threatened by the risk of food insecurity should develop measures to ensure sustained provision of food. Production activities and self-sustaining food production are encouraged along with a strengthening of nutrition communication activities.

Charity run targets sick children

The “Run for Children” campaign is scheduled for November 21 to commemorate 10 years of running for a good cause in Hanoi.

All proceeds from individuals, organizations and donors at the event will go to disadvantaged children, Canadian Ambassador Deborah Chatsis said at a press briefing in Hanoi on November 11.

This year marks 10 years of the Terry Fox Run and the Run for Children, jointly held by the Canadian Chamber of Commerce (CCC), the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organizations Hanoi chapter, the Vietnam-Canada Friendship Association and other donors, according to Alexandre Legandere, CCC’s Vice Chairman.

Over the past ten years, close to 43,000 people have supported the initiative and helped to raise more than VND3 billion.

In 2009 alone, the event attracted 5,000 participants and raised nearly VND900 million. The funds had been used to support more than 50 children from poor families who have cancer or heart diseases at the National Hospital of Paediatrics, Hanoi Heart Hospital and Heart Beat Vietnam programmes.

Int’l organizations assist flood victims

The Hanoi Union of Friendship Organizations (HUFO) held a ceremony on Nov.11 to receive aid for flood victims in the central region.

The event was attended by representatives from the embassies of Saudi Arabia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Morocco, Myanmar, Russia, Palestine, Panama, Thailand, Venezuela and HUFO member organizations.

In response to the appeal of the Vietnam Fatherland Front and Hanoi city, the Malaysian embassy and its community in Vietnam donated VN200 million, the Laos embassy VND20 million and the UNESCO Association of Hanoi, VND10 million.

On Oct.23-25, HUFO visited and offered gifts for the flood victims in the central provinces of Nghe An and Ha Tinh with the participation of Palestinian Ambassador to Vietnam Saadi Salama.

Khmers recall rich revolutionary history

The Khmer ethnic minority group has been urged to uphold the revolutionary tradition in strengthening national unity.

Chinese ship crew rescued in Danang waters

The 26-member crew of the Chinese boat Jian Mao 9, which sunk off the waters of Vietnam’s central city of Danang on Nov.9, were brought ashore in the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau on Nov. 11.

These Chinese crewmen were rescued by the Panama-flagged Nyk Aquarius ship which was going from China’s Senkou port to the SP-PSA port in Ba Ria-Vung Tau.

Tran Cong Hieu, Deputy Chief of the Ba Ria-Vung Tau Border Guard Command, said necessary procedures will be implemented for the handover of these crewmen to China as soon as possible.

VNN/VOV/VNS