Conference to examine issues in mixed marriages

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan has approved a plan to organise a conference that will review different aspects of marriages between Vietnamese nationals and foreigners.

The conference will be held the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs in co-ordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Public Security, the Viet Nam Women's Union and the Ho Chi Minh Youth Communist League.

The Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta city of Can Tho will host such a conference in the first quarter of next year.

Thousands of women from the region have, over the last decade, been married to foreign nationals, most often through illegal brokering services. In many cases, the women have had to suffer abusive treatment at the hands of their husbands and in-laws.

More than 300 delegates from across the country are expected to attend the meeting.

The Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs said the conference aimed to analyse the phenomenon of arranged marriages with foreign nationals and discuss measures to prevent and stop the negative fall out from such liasions.

Finland funds water supply project in Nghe An

Construction of a water supply project using Finland’s ODA capital for areas around Vinh city in the central province of Nghe An started on December 11.

Contracts signed at Int’l Agriculture Fair total VND550 bln

International Agriculture Fair 2010 has concluded in the Mekong delta city of Can Tho with the total volume of contracts signed and goods sold at the six-day fair reaching VND550 billion.

Initiative aims to reduce blindness

Viet Nam is striving to reduce blindness to 0.3 per cent by 2020 in an effort to complete its commitment to Vision 2020 – a global initiative for the elimination of avoidable blindness.

"We have to control the main causes of blindness like cataracts, refractive error and glaucoma by providing surgery for at least 170,000 to 300,000 cataract cases each year and eliminating trachoma by 2013," said Director of the Viet Nam National Institute of Ophthalmology (VNIO) Do Nhu Hon at the National Conference on Blindness Prevention 2010 on Saturday.

The VNIO said that Viet Nam had around 370,000 blind people among nearly 2 million visually impaired people, about 0.59 per cent of the population, and that around 700,000 cataract cases and 80,000 entropion cases across the country needed surgery as soon as possible.

"Our survey said that more than 30 per cent of blind people in Viet Nam did not realise that their illness could be treated and around one-third of the blind could not afford treatment," stressed Hon.

Authorities would focus activities on establishing an eye care network for children in all key cities and regions of the country along with further strengthening medical facilities and techniques as well as a communication program-me to raise awareness in communities on eye care and eye disease prevention, according to Hon.

A rapid increase in the refractive error rate to 15 per cent of the population in rural areas and 40 per cent in urban areas along with a lack of financial resources and inadequate public knowledge were challenges for the ophthalmology sector in Viet Nam.

Health sector statistics showed that more than 130,000 cataract surgeries were performed during the 2009-10 period, of which 30,000 were carried out by private medical clinics. Viet Nam had around 14.5 optometrists per 1 million people and, at the district level, there were only 202 for 692 districts nationwide.

Airline adds flights for stranded travellers

National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines has announced it would maintain regular flights from Noi Bai International Airport while putting on one more flight for customers delayed by foggy weather on the Ha Noi-Can Tho route and vice versa.

Last Saturday, due to thick fog in a number of northern localities, particularly Ha Noi, the carrier had to cancel, delay and change flight routes on 52 international and domestic flights from and to the airport.

Around 40 domestic and international flights departing from Noi Bai had to be delayed.

Football fans fly charter to Malaysia

HCM City-based tour operator Vietravel has chartered two planes from Vietnam Airlines with a total of 360 seats to ferry football fans to Malaysia this week for the AFC Cup football semi-final against the hosts.

The flights will leave Ha Noi and HCM City for Kuala Lumpur for the December 15 match.

The tour is priced at VND8.9 million from HCM City and VND9.9 million from Ha Noi.

Vietravel will also organise two to four regular tours to Malaysia next week priced at over VND9 million that will take in the match.

Four killed in traffic accident in HCM City

Four people were yesterday killed in a road accident when an out-of-control truck hit 10 motorbikes on Highway 1 in HCM City.

One man was killed on the spot while three others died on their way to hospital. Six people were injured in the crash in which the truck, which had faulty breaks, crashed into the motorbikes at a traffic light in Tan Binh District.

The police are hunting the truck driver who ran away from the scene.

The exact number of casualties has yet to be determined.

AmCham grants 40 scholarships

The American Chamber of Commerce in Viet Nam (AmCham Vietnam) last Saturday granted scholarships valued at US$500 each and training vouchers valued at $380 to 40 students from city colleges.

Nearly 600 students from 10 universities in HCM City participated in the AmCham Scholarship 2010 Programme.

AmCham Vietnam has thus far awarded 348 scholarships to Vietnamese students, including 230 Amcham Scholars awards for the top students passing all four selection rounds and 118 Honorable Mention awards between 2001 and 2010.

Traditional medicine hospitalises 17 students

About 17 pupils from Le Ngoc Han Primary School were taken to Tay Ninh Province General Hospital on Thursday with headaches and stomach aches.

The pupils are believed to have been inhaling traditional medicine used to treat stomachaches. One of the pupils took the medicine to his class.

The students are now in a stable condition. Samples of the medicine have been taken for testing.

Two die after eating pig's blood

Two men died from respiratory failure, renal failure, high fever and haemorrhaging early this month in northern Ninh Binh Province after eating tiet canh, a traditional dish made from pigs' blood.

The men, both butchers, said they had bought pigs from many sources and it was impossible to identify the origin of the animals.

The provincial Health Department said they suspected the men had died from a zoonotic disease, one that normally exists in animals, but can infect humans.

Investigations are continuing.

Lam Dong receives gifts from Truong Sa archipelago

The Central Highland province of Lam Dong held a ceremony on December 12 to receive stones and trees as gifts from the High Command of the Naval force and people living on the Truong Sa (Spartly) archipelago.

The gifts included 10 tropical almond trees and 21 pieces of coral stones selected from 21 islands symbolising the nation’s sovereignty over its seas and islands.

The stones and trees will be laid and planted at Da Lat city’s botanical garden to raise public awareness of the sea and islands’ sovereignty.

The gifts also underlined the close ties between the military personnel stationed on the Truong Sa archipelago, the Lam Dong authorities and people.

VietsoPetro receives Gold Star Order

VietsoPetro (VSP) will continue fulfilling great missions and is worthy to the noble reward presented by Vietnam’s Party and State, said Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai while presenting the VSP with the Gold Star Order on December 11.

VNN/VOV/VNS