Computer failure causes chaos in Hanoi airport

Failure in computer system caused a great chaos at Hanoi’s Noi Bai International Airport at 7.30am this morning.

As all flights were delayed, numerous passengers could not proceed on board and were stuck in Terminal T1.

At 9.10am, the computer system resumed and passengers started to jostle to check in, causing disorder in the airport.

As no one queued up, some passengers were unable to get on board.

At 9.25am, many passengers going to Da Nang, Cam Ranh, Ho Chi Minh City, Luang Prabang, Seam Riep, Bangkok, Shanghai could not get on their planes although it was close or past departure time.

Consequently, passengers boarding at 10 and 11am had to wait for those who had missed their flights to finish their priority check-ins.

At 10am, the check-in area was cleared but there was a long line of passengers at security gate.

Suspected bird flu patient recovers

The third person to have caught bird flu in Viet Nam is recovering, according to the HCM City Hospital for Tropical Diseases.

Truong Phu Son, 22, still being kept under surveillance, was hospitalised with high fever and respiratory problems on February 23 after slaughtering and eating ducks in Cu Chi District. Tests confirmed the man from Binh Duong Province had contracted the H5N1 virus.

The first two cases of bird flu reported in Viet Nam since the start of the year both resulted in death.

Hotlines for tourism services established

Two hot lines have been made available in Thua Thien-Hue Province by the local Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism since Thursday to receive complaints on tourism services.

Tourists can call numbers (054) 3847232 or 0914050005, which are already publicised at historical sites, shopping centres and hotels.

Health sector urged to curb HFM outbreaks

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has asked healthcare centres and administrators at all levels to work harder to control outbreaks of hand-foot-mouth disease.

The request was made as Phuc attended the launch of a national campaign to fight the disease in the northern port city of Hai Phong yesterday.

Hai Phong has recorded the highest number of human infections, with 848 cases per 100,000 people.

Phuc also ordered the city to raise public awareness on hygiene to help prevent the spread of the disease. Improving knowledge for healthcare workers and those working in child care to diagnosis the disease in its early stages was also necessary, he said.

In March and April the campaign will focus on households, mothers and carers of children under five years old, with measures set to be applied to curb the disease at schools and kindergartens.

Similar campaigns will be carried out nation-wide, according to the Ministry of Health.

The disease has already claimed the lives of nine children and struck 7,889 people in 60 cities and provinces in the first six weeks of 2012. Continued cold weather is forecast to lead to the threat of more outbreaks of the disease.

Busy market for special Women’s Day

Many promotions are taking place in HCM City to celebrate International Women’s Day (March 8).

Co.op Mart is offering up-to-45 percent discounts for over 1,000 products until March 11.

BigC supermarket is holding two promotions for 5 to 50 percent off the regular prices of 1,500 of its products from February 27 to March 18.

BigC representative Duong Thi Quynh Trang said this is the seventh year the supermarket has held promotions for cosmetics, fashion and food items to commemorate Women’s Day and bring more diversified choices to consumers.

Only 60 percent of customers are currently shopping for the day compared to the usual number in previous years and it is hoped that these attractive promotions will stimulate sales.

*** Flower growers in Hanoi are facing difficulties due to the long cold spell and high humidity in the northern region.

Flowers are blooming more slowly than in previous years and their quality is not as good.

In Me Linh flower market, flower prices have increased 5-10 percent above those in late February.

This year, 24 karat gold-coated roses are considered a special gift for Women’s Day. Along with jewelry, increasing numbers of young people consider these luxuries more attractive and meaningful gifts, rather than more traditional items such as flowers, chocolate, teddy bears and cosmetics.

Gold-coated roses appeared two years ago and have gained widespread popularity since this year’s Valentine’s Day (February 14).

The biggest gold-coated rose costs VND1.95 million while the smallest about VND1.16 million. Only 100 of the luckiest women will receive those roses, said Nguyen Long, a representative of Thinh Dat International Joint Stock Company.

Gold-coated US$2 note is also considered a good luck symbol and attracts many buyers. It now sells for up to VND300,000 per piece.

Mass poultry deaths reported in Khanh Hoa province

Poultry has been dying in large numbers recently from unknown causes in Ninh Loc village, Ninh Hoa town, Khanh Hoa province.
 
The village now has 11,500 birds, including 8,000 free range ducks being raised freely in open fields, that were not vaccinated in 2011 due to a lack of H5N1 vaccines.

The Ninh Hoa town Veterinary Department has sent staff to coordinate with local authorities to disinfect the affected areas.

Ten provinces and cities are currently reporting cases of the bird flu including Ha Tinh, Quang Nam, Quang Tri, Thanh Hoa, Nam Dinh, Quang Ninh, Hai Duong, Haiphong, Thai Nguyen and Bac Ninh.

The Prime Minister has directed localities and relevant authorities to continue fighting the disease and prevent it from spreading.

Raising local capacity to cope with natural disasters

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) has conducted a training course on Climate Adaptation and Disaster Resilience (CADRE) in Hue City.

The course, funded by USAID and the American Red Cross, was part of a project to reduce risks related to natural disasters in coastal areas.

Trainees were equipped with knowledge about common risks, fire and underwater emergencies, as well as basic search and rescue operations, first aid and basic support, ensuring the safety of families and classifying victims.

They also learned about community-based risk management and practiced their skills in real-life situations.

The USAID-funded project for “reducing disaster risks in coastal areas” has benefited more than 590,000 people in 64 villages in eight provinces including Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue, Binh Dinh and Phu Yen.

The project aims to help localities develop community-based risk management systems and improve the capacity of the Vietnam Red Cross and its grassroots level chapters to implement USAID technical assistance prorgammes.

Japan helps build medical stations in Hoa Binh

Japan will provide nearly US$150,000 in non-refundable aid to build two medical stations in the northern mountainous province of Hoa Binh.

The stations will be built in Giap Dat and Tan Pheo communes, Da Bac district, each costing US$72,753.

A document to this effect was signed in Hanoi on March 2 by Hideo Suzuki, Minister-Counsellor of the Japanese embassy in Vietnam, and Nguyen Manh Hoa, Chairman of Da Bac district People’s Committee.

Suzuki expressed his belief that the projects will improve the quality of healthcare services in the two communes.

The two healthcare stations were built in 1990 and have already deteriorated.

The Japanese Government has agreed to assist Hoa Binh in building the new facilities. Each has two storeys and 10 rooms so people can access hygienic and safe healthcare services.   

The household poverty rate is over 30 percent in Giap Dat and Tan Pheo communes. More than 95 percent of the two communes’ population are ethnic minorities.

Forest sector’s operation under review

Vietnam’s forestry sector has gained significant achievements thanks to timely direction of the government, coordinated efforts of agencies, as well as technical and financial assistance of foreign donors.

Ha Cong Tuan, Deputy Director General of the Vietnam Forest Administration Office under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), made this statement at an annual meeting of MARD’s Forestry Sector Support Partnership (FSSP) in Hanoi on March 2.

Tuan noted that in 2011, the sector’s production value increased by 5.7 percent (1.5 percent above the target) while its export earnings hit US$4.1 billion and national forest coverage reached 40.2 percent.

Tuan said 2012 is an important year for the sector when it has concluded a project to plant five million hectares of forest and started the 2011-2020 Forest Protection and Development Plan.

This year, Vietnam will try to increase forest coverage to 40.8 percent and forestry exports by 12 percent, and minimize illegal deforestation and damage caused by forest fires, he said.

FSSP co-chairman Juergen Hess, who is also coordinator of the natural resources management programme of the German International Cooperation Agency, said FSSP will continue supporting the forest sector in implementing its key tasks.

He expressed his belief that the sector will be able to fulfil its target with the coordinated efforts of all stakeholders, including government agencies, research organizations, civil society organizations, private businesses, local communities, Vietnam’s international partners, and non-governmental organizations.

Participants in the meeting reviewed the sector’s operation in 2011 and the project to plant five million hectares of forest, and discussed ways to implement the 2011-2020 Forest Protection and Development Plan, which has been approved by the Prime Minister.

Trade Union to improve labourer protection capacity

International experience and practices in Vietnam show that improving the Trade Union’s capacity to represent workers is a key factor in preserving stability and harmony in labour relations.

Vice President of the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour (VGCL) Nguyen Van Ngang emphasized this at a March 2 seminar on the VGCL’s renovation initiatives to represent and protect workers, which was jointly held by the VGCL and the International Labour Organisation (ILO).

With ILO support, the VGCL has implemented two pilot programmes on renovating methods to organize trade union members and establishing trade union organizations at the grass-roots level, and strengthening the interaction between trade union organizations at all levels and labourers. The results of these activities are expected to create new models for reforming trade union operation and building harmonious labour relations in businesses. They will also help the VGCL effectively participate in completing the Labour Code in Vietnam.

Head of the ILO Office in Hanoi Gyorgy Sziraczki said the seminar marks an important milestone in Vietnam’s efforts to build harmonious labour relations, especially as Vietnam is transforming to a socialist-oriented market economy.

He said the ILO will help Vietnam popularize new methods to improve the VGCL’s role in labour relations.

Participants in the event discussed different issues such as renovating approaches, increasing trade union membership, establishing trade union organisations in industrial zones, improving their capacity to better represent and protect employees, and ways to improve the quality of collective labour agreements.

Singer offers free music course to needy teenagers

Singer Ha Phuong, in cooperating with the Hoai Nam music center, will provide a free music course to disadvantaged teenagers in Ho Chi Minh City.

In the 6-month course, selected students can choose to learn vocal, dancing, guitar or keyboard skills.

The purpose of the course is to give young people a chance to improve their talent and pursue a musical career in the future.

Application is open from now until March 15.

Details on the course can be found at the Ha Phuong Foundation at Ben Thanh Theater, 6 Mac Dinh Chi or online at www.haphuongfoundation.net

SOS children’s village to be built in Pleiku

SOS Children’s Villages International will help to build an SOS village and a school at a cost of US$2.5 million in Pleiku in the Central Highland province of Gia Lai.

The village will be able to look after between 110 to 120 orphans while the school will take care of about 180-200 children aged between 3-5.

After the project is completed, SOS Children’s Villages International will continue to provide US$200,000-300,000 each year to cover all running costs of the school and village.

Wrongly-sentenced woman to get $48,000 damages

A woman in Thai Binh Province who has wrongly been jailed for three and a half years will receive damages of nearly VND1 billion (US$48,000) from the local prosecutor’s office.

The provincial People’s Procuracy has issued a decision to award Phung Thi Thu, former director of the Thanh Cong Export Garment Enterprise in the province’s Thai Binh City, with VND991 million for her suffering from a wrong sentence imposed four years ago.

According to the case file, Thu signed a garment in-sourcing contract with a South Korean company, Hungsen, in 1998.

During the execution of the contract, Thu sold a volume of finished products made by her company under the contract and a quantity of materials the company had contractually received from its South Korean partner.

Thu’s company gained US$45,000 in revenue from the sale but later failed to fully deliver the products to the foreign company.

The total value of 6,100 undelivered items was more than US$61,000.

Police investigated the case and prosecuted Thu for “abusing trust to appropriate assets.” The Provincial People’s Court later sentenced her to prison for the charge.

Thu appealed the sentence and in August 2010, the Supreme People’s Court concluded that Thu had not committed the crime and asked the police to release her.

Thu later demanded the provincial prosecutor’s office to pay her a total amount VND15 billion ($720,000) in damages. After many negotiations between the two, the compensation was finally agreed at VND991 million.

Vung Tau eateries fined $1,730 for rip-off

The Vung Tau City People’s Committee yesterday imposed penalties, totaling VND36.2 million (US$1,730), on the owners of two local eateries that have been overcharging tourists over the past few months.

Tran Thanh Huong, who runs the Nhu Y eatery at 306 Phan Chu Trinh Street, was fined VND25 million for distributing the eatery’s flyers without permission, and for “using food additives with dubious origins in food trading.”

Meanwhile, Tran Thi Hue, owner of Hung Phat 2 eatery at 189 Hoang Hoa Tham Street, received to a VND11.2-million fine, and had her business license revoked for charging customers higher prices than registered.

Earlier in February, following the readers’ complaints, Tuoi Tre undercover journalists penetrated the two food establishments to uncover their tricks of ripping off tourists.

Nhu Y restaurant was found to use a weight-adding scale to rob customers. The scale, which was put near the seafood tank for customers to check the food weights, will automatically add 300g to the seafood being weighed.

For instance, on February 5, a group of customers ordered two lobsters at Nhu Y, and was told by Huong that they weighed 750g, while the real weight was only 450g.

With the lobster costing VND1.3 million ($62) a kilogram, the customers had to pay VND975,000, and were thus robbed of VND390,000 for the 300-g “virtual weight.”

Meanwhile, Hung Phat 2 eatery at 189 Hoang Hoa Tham Street has arranged a more sophisticated scam to fleece their customers.

The woman who takes orders at the eatery would invite customers to try the Thai hotpots, a dish that costs only VND100,000 ($5). The hotpot, however, is always accompanied by a dish of seafood, which the restaurant charges an exorbitant price.

On February 7, Phan Duc Tien, from HCMC, and his family went to Hung Phat 2 for lunch, where Hoa persuaded them to order the hotpot.

The waiters later brought out a hotpot with four lobsters, and a dish of cuttlefish.

Upon finishing the lunch, Tien was given a bill of VND1.2 million ($57.6) for the meal.

HCMC considers small-bus system for downtown

As part of their efforts to limit personal vehicle use, the Ho Chi Minh City Transport Department and the District 1 People’s Committee have drawn up a plan to use small-sized buses for passenger transport in the city downtown.

The plan has been submitted to the city People Committee for approval, said Tran Vinh Tuyen, chairman of the district People’s Committee.

If approved, the plan will be implemented later this month, Tuyen said.

According to the plan, a fleet of 5 to 10 buses, about 25 seats each, will be used to transport passengers. The bus service will be run at a 5-7 minute interval between each trip.

The bus fare is set at VND2,000 (nearly US$0.1) per person.

These buses will have stops at State agencies, universities, trade centers and some other public places in the city’s central areas.

The small-bus system will help reduce the use of personal vehicles and ease the congestion in the downtown, especially during rush hours, Tuyen said.

The district authorities will call on its civil servants to use the system at least two times a week.

The city had about 5.6 million personal vehicles, including 5 million motorbikes, by the end of January 2012 and the annual growth of those vehicles in 2011 was 13 percent, or 637,000 vehicles, according to the city Road Traffic Infrastructure Exploitation Department.

Such an increase has worsened the overload of the city’s traffic system and caused more traffic jams, especially during the rush hour, the department said.

Vietnam plane ordered to fly 1 hour over Guangzhou

A passenger plane of Vietnam Airlines working on the Hanoi – Seoul flight was ordered on Jan.15 to fly constantly 55 minutes in the airspace of China’s Guangzhou Province by the Chinese Air Traffic Control due to ‘dangerous activity taking place in the area’.

Lai Xuan Thanh, vice chief of the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam, announced the news and added he had suggested the Chinese agency to make explanation about the incident.

As the result, the flight coded VN 416 was then delayed for many hours as the plane ran out of petrol and had to land in Shanghai, China for refuel, according to the official.

Till the evening of March 2, the air aviation agency of China has yet to make any reply about the incident, Thanh said.

In law, a passenger plane which is operating in the airspace of a nation has to comply with instructions of the nation’s aviation authority.

The fact that a passenger plane is required to change direction or fly round to avoid a military maneuver is not rare, but local aviation authority always has clear explanation, Thanh added.

Reinvestigation confirms suspect’s confession

After 2 re-investigations, the Long An Province People’s Procuracy has issued the 3rd indictment that confirmed a woman’s confession that she killed her husband last January.

According to the 1st indictment which was issued in July, 2011 by the provincial prosecutor’s office, 41-year-old Tran Thuy Lieu was charged with burning her husband Le Hoang Hung to death on January 19, 2011.

Later, the case had to be re-investigated twice at the request of the provincial People’s Court, Lieu’s mother, and the editorial board of Nguoi Lao Dong Newspaper where Hung worked as a reporter covering crimes and anti-corruption cases.

Because the investigators didn’t report any new finding, the content of the 3rd indictment was the same as the previous ones, concluding that Lieu acted alone in the murder, Cao Minh Tri, chief of the secretariat of the prosecutor’s office, told the media yesterday.

This final conclusion means that the allegation that Nguyen Van Tam, Lieu’s lover and former head of a market management team in the province, had helped her in the murder was false.

As requested by the court, the investigators had re-examined all text messages and letters between Lieu and Tam, but found no evidence that suggested Tam’s involvement in the case, Tri said.

The investigators also re-examined Hung’s testimonies before his death but found nothing that could lead to any change to the indictment.

Talking with Tuoi Tre, an official of the provincial People’s Court said the court had assigned a judge to re-examine the case file before it could decide whether to bring the case to trial or carry out one more probe.

According to the case file, since mid 2010, Lieu and Hung had many arguments over money and the fact that Lieu often gambled in Cambodia and had an affair.

On January 19, 2011, Lieu set her husband on fire when he was sleeping in their house in Long An’s Tan An Town. Lieu later pretended to extinguish the fire and rushed him to hospital.

Hung died 10 days later.

Lieu, who turned herself to the police on February 20 last year, told the investigators that she had wanted to burn him just as a warning, since he often beat her because of her debts and gambling habit.

She also said nobody had helped her in the burning.

Few Vietnamese women receive vocational training  

At the Vietnam Women’s Union online meeting on March 1, of pressing concern was the fact that only a few women today received vocational training as compared to men.  

Leaders from the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs; the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development; and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, answered many of the concerns raised by participants in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and the Southern City of Can Tho at the online meeting.
 
A matter of urgent concern was the fact that the rate of women receiving vocational training is far lower than that of men,   accounting to a mere 24.7 per cent, and even lower in the southeast regions at only 9 per cent.

The Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs said it plans to set up vocational training programmes so as to create more new jobs and help women earn higher incomes.

These new jobs will cover professions such as haircutting and household assistants. The ministry confirmed that more jobs for female labourers will be added to the programme.

In addition, participants at the meeting expressed concern in rise in domestic violence, which is on the increase despite the law against   domestic violence.

Representatives from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said that Vietnamese family traditions are weak due to outside influences.

At present the ministry is building a strategy to develop happy Vietnamese families, in a campaign during the period 2011-2020 with a vision for 2030.

The ministry applauded the campaign to build happy families by raising standards of living, eliminating poverty, saying no to social evils, not giving birth to the third child, no malnutrition babies, no domestic violence, and clean streets and alleys.
 
Unchecked mining of Titanium in Central Province  

Despite all efforts by Binh Dinh Province authorities to prevent illegal mining of titanium, for the last two years, rampant mining of titanium continues unchecked in Phu Cat District, most of which is being transported to ports in Quy Nhon City and makes its way to overseas markets.

Many people wonder why local authorities cannot find measures to deal with the problem while the country is losing a valuable natural resource.

In February this year, titanium was lying piled up along the 639 road in Cat Thanh Commune. Hundreds of motorbikes belonging to illegal titanium miners could be seen parked alongside the road.

Nguyen Van Thanh, head of Chanh Thien village said the whole village including children are involved in illegal titanium mining at any given time.

At VND700-1,000 per kilogram of raw titanium, each person can make a profit of VND100,000-300,000 per kilogram per day.

Illegal exploiters temporarily stop only when local authorities come to check, and often they mine titanium even at night.

Illegal titanium mining began in 2007 in Cat Thanh, Cat Khanh and Cat Hai Communes of Phu Cat District. At that time, the local authorities implemented measures to stop the exploitation, but only for a while.

Early last year, the BIMAL Company stopped titanium mining when their licence expired, and handed the mine back to the province.

Since then, illegal mining caught on with now over 400-500 people, someday even 1,000, flocking to mine titanium and sell to buyers, for easy money.

In October 2011, the People’s Committee in Binh Dinh Province asked related departments to implement measures to stop the illegal mining.

Thanh complained that local authorities did not penalise violators so illegal mining has continued.

According to the provincial People’s Committee, people flock to exploit titanium for easy profits and as of February 2012, there are 27 titanium magnates who are buying the raw titanium.

Pham Dung Luan, deputy head of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment in Phu Cat District, has sent instructions to stop selling raw titanium out of the province and any illegal purchases. However, all titanium from the province is being bought by magnates and transported to Quy Nhon City. Therefore, to stop illegal mining, the province authorities need to take stronger measures by penalising miners and arresting illegal buyers and smugglers.

Ministry targets prevention of prostitution in 2012  

The Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA) held a conference in Hanoi on March 1 to discuss the key targets for prevention of prostitution and drug rehabilitation in 2012.

This year MoLISA is planning to cover 50 prime areas in its efforts to prevent prostitution, streamline related policies to be able to revoke licences of businesses acting as front for prostitution, and reduce prostitution hot spots to 30 per cent,  said Pham Thi Hai, Minister of MoLISA.

Even though the whole nation is implementing  ‘Programme to Prevent Prostitution in the Period 2011-2015’ as per Prime Minister’s decision, the situation seems to worsen day by day, especially in metropolitan areas and large industrial zones in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Vung Tau, Can Tho, and also in smaller places like Do Son, Sam Son, Cua Lo. People fret about the present situation, said Le Duc Hien, deputy director of the Department for Prevention of Social Evil.

Statistics show there are approximately 14,802 official prostitutes nationwide, 73,000 escort services with more than 48,000 waitresses, 3,212 of whom are suspected to be prostitutes. As a result, there is an alarming rise in HIV/AIDS infection due to unsafe sex, particularly in the southwest regions of the country.

The Ministry of Health reported that the rate of HIV/AIDS infection from unsafe sex in 2011 was 76 per cent in this area, while years ago, the highest rate was of drug addicts.

According to the Department for Prevention of Social Evil, the most troublesome issue is that prostitution rings are becoming more and more professional and sophisticated, fully exploiting both high technology and the Internet. Moreover, prostitutes are getting younger and more diverse, from models, singers, actresses to students.

Le Duc Hien said that in 2012, the government will provide 41 provinces and cities with a fund of VND25 billion (US$1.2 million) from the national budget to support them in effectively preventing this social issue. Meanwhile, the   ‘Programme to Prevent Prostitution in the Period 2011-2015’ will receive VND600 billion ($28.8 million) for the next five year period, to successfully implement the programme.