Three children drown in central region

Rescuers yesterday, June 3, recovered the bodies of two of the three children who were drowned on Friday in Dinh River of My Dong Ward, Phan Rang - Thap Cham City.

The children, two seven-year-olds and one ten-year-old, called each other to go swimming at the river. One body was recovered later that day.

The incident echoed the warnings that parents and local authorities have given regarding the shortage of safe playgrounds for children in summer. More than 200 children have drowned in Viet Nam since the beginning of this year, according to the Department of Protection and Care for Children under the Ministry of Social Affairs, Invalids and Labour.

Investigative journalist attacked in Phan Thiet

A Ho Chi Minh City Law Newspaper correspondent in Binh Thuan Province was hospitalized on Friday, June 1, after being zapped by a stun gun and beaten by two unknown men.

The journalist, whose pen name is Nam Phuong, was attacked at about 11 pm Monday when he left an eatery on Pham Van Dong Street, Binh Hung Ward, Phan Thiet City, where he had entertained his colleagues on the occasion of his birthday.

Witnesses said a tall and big man suddenly approached Phuong and then zapped him in the neck. Phuong fell to the ground and was brutally beaten by the shooter and another man.

The attackers also shot at a bystander in the face and beat him when he rushed to the scene to prevent the assault.

The attackers then escaped on a motorbike. Locals called police and took Phuong to a local hospital.

The two unknown men had ambushed for Phuong for hours in front of the eatery, some residents told police.

Phuong Nam has been known as a self-motivated reporter who has written various articles exposing the reality of illegal forest exploitation and uncovering underworld activities related to a number of discos in Phan Thiet City, said Senior Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Van Nhieu, deputy head of the city Police.

Finland makes grant to equip firefighters

The Ministry of Public Security's Fire Fighting and Prevention Department will be equipped with fire fighting tools, thanks to financial aid from the Finnish Government.

The equipment includes 17 fire engines, 1,000 fire-fighter suits and gloves and 18,000 fire fighting pumps, worth a total of $4 million.

Finance firm director detained over $1.8 mil loss

Police in Hanoi have arrested Hoang Xuan Quyen, former general director of Lien Viet Securities Joint Stock Company (LVS), for wrongdoing that caused a loss of more than US$1.8 million to the firm last year.

Quyen was detained and indicted on May 30, 2012 for abusing power when he was holding the post at Lien Viet Securities, police said.

Huynh Ngoc Huy, chairman of Lien Viet Securities Management Board, said Quyen carried out a financial transaction that has never been allowed by the Board.

In April 2011, Hanoi-based LVS found out that Quyen, who was a member of the Board, approved the receipt of a volume of over-the-counter (OTC) shares, which are unlisted shares, as mortgages, Huy said.

This unallowable transaction caused a total loss of VND38 billion, or US$1,824,000 at the current exchange rate.

On June 1, 2011, the Board issued a resolution to remove Quyen from the post of general director and membership of the Board, and reported his wrongdoing to police.

Before working for Lien Viet Securities, Quyen had held many important posts at various foreign firms. He was once financial director at Motorola in Chicago, US; chief accountant at Comvik and Kinnewik Telecom Group in Sweden; and sales manager at Ringer Media Group, also in Sweden.

Quyen has obtained a doctoral degree in Business Administration from a university in the US and a Master’s degree in Finance in the UK.

France Volontaires launches volunteer space in Vietnam

France Volontaires, a French voluntary organization, has launched a Vietnam-Laos volunteer space in Hanoi.

This is the second office that has been opened in Asia after the first one in Cambodia.

The Space is the place to welcome volunteers and provide information on international voluntary activities.

M.Remy Hallegouet, Chief Representative of France Volontaires in Asia said the France Volontaires Network includes 40 member organizations, operating in activities related to the sending of volunteers abroad. The main task of the network is to promote and affirm the value of volunteerism to society.

The network has set up 14 volunteer spaces across the world and plans to bring the number to 20 by the end of 2012.

According to Nguyen Thanh Hang, Chief Representative of France Volontaires in Vietnam and Laos, the organization works closely with the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union in Vietnam. It currently has eight volunteers working in Vietnam and five in Laos.

Embassy staff equipped with Japan’s quake preparedness

The Vietnamese embassy in Japan took part in earthquake preparedness training on June 2.

Embassy officials and staff were provided with information about earthquakes and basic skills, including evacuating, to be used in case of emergency.

As Japan is prone to earthquakes and tsunamis, such training for foreign diplomats is very necessary, said Naoya Fujita, chief of Yoyogi police station in Shibuya district, central Tokyo.

The training created an opportunity for the Vietnamese embassy staff, local authorities and the Japanese people to increase mutual understanding and strengthen bilateral friendship.

Ambassador Doan Xuan Hung thanked the Japanese agencies for organizing such a useful training and said he hopes the embassy will have more chances to cooperate with the local authorities and people, not only in emergencies but also in daily activities.

The Vietnamese embassy is the second, after the US embassy, that has cooperated with local Japanese authorities in organizing training on earthquakes.

Japanese scientists have forecast that a strong quake of magnitude 7.3 on the Richter Scale could possibly rock the centre of Tokyo in the near future.

Essay contest about Japan held in Vietnam

Four students have won first prizes of an essay writing contest and will travel to Japan shortly to explore the country of the Rising Sun.

The contest, jointly organized by the Ministry of Education and Training and the Japan Network for International Education (JAFSA), aims to promote friendship and mutual understanding between Vietnam and Japan.

The organizing board received nearly 2,500 entries in both the Japanese and Vietnamese languages, telling about the contestants’ future dreams, their favourite Japan and Vietnam-Japan relations, as well as connections between the two nations.

They also awarded 16 second prizes and 22 third prizes to individuals and team prizes to schools that sent in the highest number of entries to the contest.

The event was part of the activities to mark the 40th anniversary of Vietnam- Japan diplomatic relations.

A Japan education exhibition also took place in Hanoi on June 3, showcasing nearly 90 universities, colleges and academies in Japan.

Visitors to the exhibition were given updated information on incentives for Vietnamese students, as well as the procedures required to study in the country. Japan is considered an ideal destination for Vietnamese students because of its diversified culture, natural beauty, social security and reasonable tuition fees.

Vietnamese students in Japan act as a bridge linking the culture of the two countries and opening up a new charter for bilateral ties.

Blue-ear pig disease hits 6 provinces

Six provinces have still confirmed outbreaks of blue-ear pig disease, which has yet to pass the 21-day period required to be free from the disease.

In two communes of Lang Son province, 186 pigs were confirmed to have the disease and 11 were culled, according to provincial Department of Animal Health.

The Department has coordinated with local authorities to sterilize the infected areas and provided 10,000 doses of the vaccine to help local communes prevent the spread of the disease.

In Quang Ninh, the provincial People’s Committee held an urgent meeting on June 2 to deploy measures to prevent blue-ear pig disease, which is currently spreading across Dong Trieu district.

Quang Ninh has set up four checkpoints to monitor and prevent the illegal transportation of pigs and allocated nearly 2,684 liters of disinfectants for Dong Trieu district.

All communes in Dong Trieu district have been affected, with a total of 6,088 sick pigs, 1,962 of which have died and 2,427 have been culled.

So far, the disease has been reported in six northern provinces, namely Dien Bien, Bac Ninh, Quang Ninh, Lai Chau, Hoa Binh and Lang Son.

France Volontaires launches volunteer space in Vietnam

France Volontaires, a French voluntary organization has launched a Vietnam-Laos volunteer space in Hanoi.

This is the second office that has been opened in Asia after the first one in Cambodia.

The Space is the place to welcome volunteers and provide information on international voluntary activities.

M.Remy Hallegouet, Chief Representative of France Volontaires in Asia said the France Volontaires Network includes 40 member organizations, operating in activities related to the sending of volunteers abroad. The main task of the network is to promote and affirm the value of volunteering to society.

The network has set up 14 volunteer spaces across the world. It plans to bring the number to 20 by the end of 2012.

According to Nguyen Thanh Hang, Chief Representative of France Volontaires in Vietnam and Laos, the organization works closely with the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union in Vietnam. It currently has eight volunteers working in Vietnam and five in Laos.

VNN/VOV/VNS/Tuoi Tre