HCM City hosts Lower Mekong Initiative Disaster Management workshop

A workshop to develop disaster management capacity for the four Lower Mekong countries of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Viet Nam by encouraging collaborative efforts through dialogue and information exchange opened yesterday, Sep 12, in HCM City.

The five-day Lower Mekong Initiative (LMI) Disaster Management workshop, hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development with support from the Viet Nam Ministry of National Defence and the US Pacific Command provides a forum for dialogue and collaboration between the participating nations.

During the workshop, participants from the four Lower Mekong countries and the US will share practical knowledge and experience on issues such as flood management, disaster preparedness and response, food and water shortage, public health concerns, and pandemic control.

They will also identify national priorities and challenges, develop common approaches to address specific challenges and strengthen existing relationships while setting the foundation for future engagement.

Three days of active discussion sessions will be combined with two days of field trips to the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta during the event.

The workshop is part of the Lower Mekong Initiative, launched in 2009 by US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and the foreign ministers of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Viet Nam to strengthen regional co-operation to better respond to common challenges and opportunities in the areas of education, environment, health and infrastructure.

Addressing the opening session on Monday, US Consul General An Le said: "This past July in Bali, we committed to an LMI Plan of Action including sharing best practices and building capacity. This workshop on disaster risk reduction and management is an opportunity for all of you to share knowledge and experience to meet common challenges.

"This workshop not only facilitates dialogue among the LMI partner countries, but, crucially, it also connects civilian and military officials within and among our countries. Effective civilian-military partnership is essential to disaster and pandemic preparedness and response."

4 more die in central region floods

The severe floods in the central region claimed four more lives in Binh Thuan and Nghe An Provinces in the last two days.

Pham Thi Duy Uyen, 17, a student at the High School for Students Gifted in Sports in Binh Thuan, was swept away by floodwaters while on the way to school yesterday morning, Sep 12.

Photos: VNN

The floods have caused severe damage to infrastructure, houses, and crops in many provinces.

In Binh Thuan, they had submerged hundreds of hectares of crops, local authorities said.
Yesterday they salvaged a fishing boat that sank in the sea Sunday and cleaned the oil leaking from its oil tank.

In Lam Dong, 10 bridges have collapsed, around 500 houses have been damaged, and thousands hectares of crops have submerged. The total damages are estimated at VND10 billion (US$480,000).

In Nghe An, the rising Ca River caused a landslide Sunday blocking a section of National Highway 7A. Traffic was halted for a day until it was cleared yesterday afternoon. 

Taiwan firm gives workers vile Mid-Autumn cakes

Thousands of workers at a Taiwanese garment company based in Binh Duong Province were disappointed to get very low-quality moon cakes from the company for the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Many workers at Hansoll Vina Co Ltd in Song Than Industrial Park yesterday told Tuoi Tre that they did not dare eat the cakes and returned them to their managers.

The cakes had been packed in cartons with just a Chinese legend and no expiry date, there had been ants in some of them, and many cakes were burnt.

At a meeting with related authorities yesterday, Sep 12, the company’s representatives said they had been cheated by a broker.

The company had bought 6,600 cakes bearing the Hiep Hoa brand name for VND215 million (US$10,300) from a trader in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province through the broker who could not be contacted after the company found the cakes unacceptable.

The authorities have told the company to keep the cakes pending investigation.

Elsewhere, the Hanoi Health Department said a number of moon cake producers had possibly used materials imported from China.

They had yet to furnish invoices or other documents proving the origin of the materials, the chief inspector of the department, Nguyen Viet Cuong, said.

The department would destroy the materials without origin, he added.

Vietnamese arrested for immigration racket

A Vietnamese woman has been arrested by police in Japan on suspicion she arranged a fake marriage between a 39-year-old Vietnamese woman and a local man, NHK reported.

The police identified the suspect as Tran Thi Xuan Phuong, a resident of Saitama north of Tokyo.

Phuong was also suspected of fixing eight other fake marriages, charging each woman US$39,000 to facilitate their illegal immigration to Japan, they said.

She confessed to her crimes, they added.

Over 1,000 people get gifts, medical treatment

A charity group made up of Vietnam News Agency staff co-operated with doctors from HCM City gave free medical examinations and gifts to over 1,000 local underprivileged people living in the central highland province of Lam Dong's Dran Township on Sunday.

The group also presented mid-autumn cakes and multi-coloured lanterns to 500 children.

The medical examinations and gifts were worth over VND150 million (US$7,300).

The group gave gifts and provided medical examinations to more than 700 people in Cat Tien District's Phuoc Cat 2 in the province in June.

Traffic police’s fight with citizen sparks debate

A 30-second clip on Youtube capturing a fight between a traffic policeman and a driver in Ho Chi Minh City has sparked a debate about who was in the wrong.

In the clip, a man wearing a striped shirt, white trousers, and a blue helmet for some reason let out a string of oaths against the policeman and then pushed and beat him on the chest.

The police swore back, demanded him to speak properly and pushed him down. The fight attracted many people, none of whom intervened. 

A plate on the policeman’s sleeve shows that he comes from the Rach Gia Traffic Police.

Some netizens said the policeman was wrong and his action amounted to assault while others criticized the driver’s behavior.

Tuoi Tre will further report about the case.

On the occasion of the Mid-Autumn Festival, around 4,000 disadvantaged and disabled kids in 27 provinces and cities were offered gifts and cash from a fund of nearly US$72,800 raised by the Child Protection Fund under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs.

A spokesperson said they would continue to raise funds to provide medical assistance for disabled children, scholarships for kids, and classrooms and playgrounds for disadvantaged children.

Traffic accidents soar despite police efforts

A total of 222 people were killed and 185 injured in road and railway accidents across the country in the first week of this month despite the police effort to control it.

Road and Railway Traffic Police Department figures show there were 236 road and 12 railway accidents in the period.

An average of 35 accidents happened each day, killing an average of 32 people, compared to 29 and 25 respectively in the previous week.

Traffic police across the country punished more than 88,200 people for traffic rules violations, including 11,200 for failing to wear a helmet in the period. The police also impounded 156 vehicles and 10,777 motorbikes.

More traffic police were put on patrol in eight provinces across the country including Ha Nam, Ninh Binh, Thua Thien-Hue and Khanh Hoa.

Nguyen Dang Sinh, deputy head of the department's Strategy Division, outlined some reasons of the increased accidents.

A great number of university students began their new school year this month, and the hot weather made them and other people hesitate to wear helmets, he said.

Some roads and highways, especially the ones in rural areas, were being upgraded and were perhaps less safe due to the construction, he added. Sinh proposed some measures to the department in order to reduce accidents in the future.

"The Youth Union plays an important role in disseminating traffic rules to reduce the number of accidents, since most accidents involve young people," said Sinh.

Traffic rules should be included in Youth Union meetings in the form of short plays or leaflets, he said.

The division would ask city and provincial police to set up a list of "hot spots" of accidents and assign more police to supervise those areas.

The department would join hands with relevant bodies to perform checks and suspend expired automobiles.

Police across the country will focus their energies on vehicles that often cause serious accidents such as lorries, containers and trucks.

Police going on patrol at night would also be urged to prevent motorcycle racing, said Sinh.

"But the most important and effective measure is that all residents should raise their awareness when travelling," he said.

Rats thought extinct ages ago are daily food in VN

A species of rat presumed to be extinct 11 million years ago is actually very much alive and currently serves as a local delicacy for an ethnic minority group in Quang Binh Province in central Vietnam.

The rat has recently been discovered alive and kicking in Thuong Hoa Commune, Minh Hoa District, where many Ruc ethnic minority people told the scientists they call the rat “chuot da” (“rock rat”) - one of their common foods.

After careful examination, a group of experts from the Fauna and Flora International (FFI) confirmed the scientific name of the rat as Laonastes aenigmamus, which was classified before 2005 as “presumed extinct”.

The animal, with its tail like the one of a squirrel and its hair like that of a dog, could be trapped easily in rock caves, and its population has gradually been dwindling in the past few years, said Tran Xuan Tu, head of the O village.

Luu Minh Thanh, director of the Phong Nha - Ke Bang National Park, said local authorities and relevant agencies should advise the Ruc people to stop hunting for or eating the rat, for the sake of conservation of endangered wild animals.

Ensuring food hygiene and safety

Dr. Nguyen Hung Long, Deputy Head of the Food Hygiene and Safety Department under the Health Ministry led a delegation to make a fact-finding tour to Dutch Lady Dairy Farm in Phu Ly city, Ha Nam province.

A delegation includes representatives of food hygiene and safety agencies from 31 provinces and cities nationwide, as well as participants in a training course recently held by the Health Ministry and the Government Inspectorate to monitor the quality of dairy products.

Dr. Long spoke highly of the farm’s efforts to strictly implement ISO programmes and constantly improve the quality of its products.

Dutch Lady Dairy Farm of the Vietnam FriesklandCampina is one of the most modern dairy facilities, with a total capitalization of US$45 million and a capacity of producing 14 million barrels of fresh milk and one million boxes of powder milk a year.

EMW helps Hue Central Hospital treat waste water

Hue Central Hospital on September 12 put into operation a system of waste water treatment funded by the East Meets West Foundation (EMW) with a total capitalisation of US$425,000 since the project started in 2009.

The system uses modern equipment from Taiwan and Japan to treat the waste water from Hue Central Hospital before it is discharged into the drainage system of Hue city.

It has a capacity of about 850 cu.m per day.

Cop dies chasing after speeding motorcyclists

Sergeant major Luong Khanh Viet, 22, died after his motorbike fell down to the road while he and his colleague were chasing a group of young motorcyclists who drove at high speeds in Ho Chi Minh City early yesterday morning, Sep 12.

At 3:50 am yesterday, Viet and another sergeant major, Tran Vo Hoai Thanh, from Ben Thanh Traffic Police Team, was patrolling on a motorbike when they found the young men speeding on Nguyen Trai and Nguyen Van Cu  streets.

They chased after the ‘racers’ and when they were passing by the house at 385 Nguyen Trai Street, Nguyen Cu Trinh Ward, District 1, their motorbike crashed down to the slippery road.

The accident flung the two policemen against the wall of that house.

Locals took the victims to Cho Ray Hospital but Viet died on the way. Thanh is in critical condition.

Earlier on the night of September 10, two other traffic police officers ran after two young men on a motorbike who had jumped the lights on a street in HCMC.

When the officers got close to the men, one of them kicked the officers’ motorbike, causing them fall down to the ground.

Lieutenant Le Trong Tuan broke a thigh bone in one leg while the other got a slight injury.

Some bystanders seized and handed them over to the police.

JICA provides US$5 mil for green technology development

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Vietnam National University (VNU) signed a project to develop green technology for bio-diesel in Hanoi on September 12.

The US$5 million- project entitled “Multi-beneficial measures for the mitigation of climate change in Vietnam and Indochina as a whole by the development of biomass energy” will be implemented in five years with the aim of promoting the use of an economically and environmentally superior biomass energy cycle model.

The project, approved by the Japanese government under a joint programme named “Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development (SATREPS)” was designed by JICA and Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST).

It will focus on planting trees for oil like Jatropha and others on desolate and contaminated soil, developing green technologies for bio-diesel production and monitoring the newest environmental method for bio-diesel utilisation.

Among participants in the project are scientists from Osaka province University, Osaka City University, Ehime University, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City National Universities and the Institute of Environmental Technology.

Motonori Tsuno, Chief Representative of the JICA Office in Vietnam said the project is essential for Vietnam as it is one of the countries most affected by climate change in the Asia-Pacific region. The project will also consider multi-beneficial use of bio-diesel for application in Southeast Asia.

Ha Giang invests VND150 billion for rural clean water project

The State budget has allocated VND150 billion for the northernmost mountain province of Ha Giang to implement the national programme for clean water during 2011-2015 period.

According to the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, 300 projects will be carried out to provide clean water for more than 60,000 people.

The programme aims to have over 75 percent of the rural population using fresh water by 2015. 

After 10 years of deploying the national clean water programme, the number of child deaths and people infected with water-borne diseases has decreased considerably.   

Cao Dai followers celebrate sect’s grand ritual

More than 100,000 Cao Dai visitors and followers flocked to the Tay Ninh Church in the southern province of Tay Ninh on Sept. 12 for the sect’s grand ritual, Hoi Yen Dieu Tri Cung.

Hoi Yen Dieu Tri Cung is a great annual banquet where trays of fruit and food are offered to the Great Mother to pray for favorable weather, a peaceful and prosperous country and a happy people.

Addressing the event, Monsignor Thuong Tam Thanh, Chief of the Cao Dai Tay Ninh Church’s Executive Council, thanked the Party and State for providing favorable conditions for Cao Dai followers to practice their faith.

He called on Cao Dai dignitaries and followers to enthusiastically participate in poverty reduction programs, charitable and social activities, environmental protection campaigns as well as building a healthy cultural lifestyle in the residential areas.

He urged the followers to practice faith in line with both the religion’s rules and the country’s laws under the motto “serving both religion and society well”.

US women explore consequences of war

Members of the two US organizations, Peace Trees Vietnam (PTVN) and Center for Women and Democracy (CWD) have voiced concern over solving the consequences of war in Vietnam, especially the future of families of AO victims and treatment for these victims.

At a reception given by President of the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organizations (VUFO) Vu Xuan Hong in Hanoi on Sept. 12, the two delegations, led by PTVN co-founder Jerilyn Brusseau and CWD leader Megan McCloskey, said that after this fact-finding tour in the country they will convey messages to those who were interested in Vietnam to help solve the consequences of the war and promote cooperative relations between Vietnamese and US people.

VUFO President Hong welcomed the visit by 36 women from the two organizations and highlighted the positive contributions of PTVN in landmine and unexploded ordnance clearance in Dong Ha town, Quang Tri province.

Hong said he hoped through the visit, the delegations would contribute to cooperation between the two countries’ people’s organizations and join Vietnam in settling the aftermath of war, particularly activities to help AO victims.

During the 12-day stay in Vietnam, the delegations will work with the Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin (VAVA), the Vietnam Women’s Union, the Centre for Studies and Applied Sciences in Gender, Family, Women and Adolescents (CSAGA) and meet with female leaders of a number of ministries and branches, and bomb victims.

They will also visit the Temple of Literature, the War Remnants Museum, the Women’s Museum, the Vinh Moc tunnel of central Quang Tri province, the former imperial city of Hue and Ho Chi Minh City.

US Supports Disaster Management Workshop

U.S. Consul General An Le today opened the Lower Mekong Initiative (LMI) Disaster Management Workshop in Ho Chi Minh City that aimed to develop the capabilities in disaster management for Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam by promoting their cooperation.

With support from the Vietnam’s Ministry of Defense and U.S. Pacific Command, Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is hosting the five-day workshop, which was held at the Sheraton Hotel at 8:20 am.

“During discussions this week, you will work on disaster and pandemic preparedness and share information on capabilities and priorities,” Consul General An Le said.

This workshop not only facilitates dialogue among the LMI partner countries, but, crucially, it also connects civilian and military officials within and among our countries. Effective civilian-military partnership is essential to disaster and pandemic preparedness and response, he said.

"This past July in Bali, we committed to an LMI Plan of Action including sharing best practices and building capacity. This workshop on disaster risk reduction and management is an opportunity for all of you to share knowledge and experience to meet common challenges. Alongside our Vietnamese hosts, let me add my own welcome to all of you who have traveled to be here today. I am proud to see such a strong U.S. delegation of experts as well as senior officials from the other LMI countries," he said.

The workshop combines three days of active discussion sessions with two days of field trips to the Mekong Delta.

Participants from the above four Lower Mekong countries and the United States will share practical knowledge and experience on issues such as flood management, disaster preparedness and response, food and water shortage, public health concerns, and pandemic control; identify national priorities and challenges; work together to develop common approaches to address specific challenges; and strengthen existing relationships while setting the foundation for future engagement.

The workshop is part of the Lower Mekong Initiative, launched in 2009 by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and the foreign ministers of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam to strengthen regional cooperation to better respond to common challenges and opportunities in the areas of education, environment, health, and infrastructure.

VNN/VOV/VNS/Tuoi Tre