Smoking causes 40,000 deaths, costs $1 bln

Every year Vietnamese spend over US$1 billion on cigarettes while the country suffers 40,000 deaths from smoking-related diseases, the Medical Examination and Treatment Department reported.

Besides, hundreds of thousands of others are treated for smoking-related diseases every year, it said.

With 15.3 million smokers, or 23.8 percent of its population of 86 million, Vietnam is among the 15 countries with the highest smoking rate, Dr Luong Ngoc Khue, head of the department, said.

A further 33 million people are passive smokers, with the exposure rates at home and the workplace reaching 67.6 percent and 49 percent respectively.

The exposure rate is 70 percent among women and 50 percent among children.

Cigarette prices in Vietnam are among the world’s lowest, so many people get easy access, Khue said.

The draft Law on Prevention and Control of Harmful Health Effects of Smoking proposes the tax rate on cigarettes be raised to 65 percent on retail prices, 23 percent higher than the current rate.

If passed by the National Assembly, the law will take effect on January 1, 2013.

Official dismisses accusation about S. Korean pilot

There is yet any evidence to prove Vietnam Airlines’ S. Korean pilot Kim Tae Hun had made false statements about his work experience as accused by S. Korean media, said Lai Xuan Thanh, deputy chief of Vietnam’s General Department of Civil Aviation (VDCA).

After previewing the pilot’s archives, VDCA confirmed Kim has a total of 680 hours of flight time experience while S. Korean media had previously accused him of having only 1 hour, which isn’t enough to make him qualified for his post.

However, in response to the media, VDCA promised to ascertain his flight time with airport authorities in Indonesia who issued his license as well as with some airlines for which he had worked before coming to Vietnam Airlines.

Thanh said Kim could be charged if he was found guilty.

In a report to VDCA, Vietnam Airlines (VNA) confirmed that Kim Tae Hun, the deputy pilot, had difficulties landing the VNA flight numbered VN970 from Ho Chi Minh City to S. Korea at the Busan airport on April 26, 2010.

The Vietnamese chief pilot Vuong Dinh Hue then had to take over the plane and landed safely.

Airport authorities in S. Korea later asked VNA to investigate the issue. VNA found that Kim Tae Hun didn’t violate any flight rule. As the deputy pilot, he was entitled to landing the airplane and in case of any problem, the chief pilot would regain control.

But VNA also asked the flight crew to prove their flight time experience. However, Kim Tae Hun asked VNA’s permission to go to Indonesia where he had worked before to complete some necessary documents.

However, he didn’t return and is now no longer working for VNA.

According to a senior official of VDCA, all foreign pilots at VNA have enough flight time experience to control airplanes. VNA is hiring around 150 foreign pilots.

According to VNA’s flight regulations, besides civil airplane driving licenses, pilots must also meet flight time experience requirements. VNA will then submit their cases to VDCA for a working license.

Reverse alchemy as foreigners trick jeweler

Two foreigners scammed a gold shop in Pleiku city last Tuesday, stealing 15 ounces apparently by using some sleight of hand.

Cuc, the shop owner, said two well-dressed foreigners, who introduced themselves as Turks travelling in Vietnam, came to her shop at 9am on November 1 and asked to buy 15 taels (1 tael = 37.5 grams) of SJC gold bullion.

They said they did not have enough money and had to withdraw cash from an ATM.

They gave her VND80 million, put the gold in a paper bag which they put in a box and locked the box and gave it to Cuc.

But they did not return for a long time.

After waiting until 2pm Cuc called a locksmith to break open the box and discovered there were only some lead pieces inside.

She complained to the police who are investigating.

Cuc had been lulled by the fact the two men had done a similar thing a few days earlier.

They had asked to buy five taels, put it in the box, and handed her the key.

They went to withdraw money and came back after an hour looking angry, saying they could only get VND100 million and could buy just two ounces.

When they unlocked the box, the gold was still there, and they paid Cuc for the two ounces.

Hanoi reviews five years of corruption prevention and control

On November 3, the Hanoi municipal Party Committee held a conference to review five years of implementing the Party Central Committee’s resolution and the municipal Party committee’s action program to enhance Party leadership in combating corruption and wastefulness.

Over the past five years, Hanoi has urged Party organizations at all levels and social organizations to fight corruption and include anti-corruption measures in administrative reforms.

During that time, the city dealt with more than 14,000 complaints and denunciations, including 400 petitions exposing corruption, and uncovered cases of illegal activity resulting in a loss of more than VND1,000 billion.

However, the battle against corruption still has some weaknesses because disseminating information about controlling and preventing corruption and detecting corruption in agencies and organizations is still limited, and some cadres and State employees continue to create trouble for businesses, organizations and citizens. Action plans are also not implemented effectively, and corruption cases are handled slowly.

Do Ngoc Toan, a permanent member from the Hanoi Steering Committee for Corruption Prevention and Control, said Hanoi will continue to consider fighting corruption one of its key tasks for the future and step up communication and raising public awareness about the need to fight corruption as well as strongly promoting the campaign to “Study and follow Ho Chi Minh’s moral example”.

USAID to help Vietnam respond to HIV/AIDS epidemic

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) has said it will provide two -year programs to support Vietnam in implementing a sustainable response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

According to the November 3 announcement, USAID will grant US$45 million to FHI 360, a US-based nongovernmental organization, to carry out a program on strengthening the sustainable management of national HIV/AIDS action in Vietnam by 2016.

The program aims to maintain the delivery of quality HIV prevention, care and treatment services in critical areas in the future.

USAID Mission Director Francis Donovan highlighted Vietnam’s recent achievements in addressing HIV with support from USAID.

The US agency will also award US$25 million to Research Triangle Institute (RTI) to boost the capacity to work with the Vietnamese government on the implementation of the national HIV/AIDS strategy.

The program will cooperate with networks of people living with HIV to help increase their participation in the HIV response at all levels.

USAID assistance will be focused on preventing HIV transmission among the most-at-risk populations, including needle injecting drug users and their partners, female sex workers and their clients, and same sex partners.

Since 2000, USAID has contributed US$510 million to development and relief activities in Vietnam.

Canadian friendship delegation visits Vietnam

A delegation of the Canadian Friendship Force is on a visit to Vietnam, aiming at strengthening friendship between the two countries’ people.

During its two-week stay in Vietnam, the delegation was received by Vice President of the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations (VUFO) Tran Dac Loi, in Hanoi on November 3.

Loi briefed his guests on Vietnam’s socio-economic achievements over the past 25 years of implementing the renewal process and introduced VUFO’s operations.

The Friendship Force of Canada is a member of the Friendship Force International’s Friendship Force Clubs.

Their current Vietnam visit is to learn the country’s history, culture, customs and life of the Vietnamese people, contributing to increasing friendship among peoples.

The delegation plans to stay in local houses, visit the Van Canh Friendship Village to explore the aftermath of war and voice support for the Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange/dioxin, as well as touring Hanoi National University.

Enhancing supervision of enforcing gender equality law

A conference on increasing the capacity for supervising and enforcing the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the Law on Gender Equality was held in Danang City on November 3.

Delegates presented an overview of the CEDAW, the Law on Gender Equality, and the Government Decree on gender equality related administrative punishment.

They also devised next year’s plan for inspecting the enforcement of the gender equality law and shared experiences in implementing Party and State decrees and guidelines in this field.

Promoting gender equality and ensuring women’s rights has always been one of the top priorities in Party and State policies, being regulated in the first 1946 Constitution and revamped in subsequent revised constitutions.

Vietnam made a strong commitment to promoting gender equality and women’s advancement by joining the (CEDAW) in 1980.

The Vietnamese National Assembly (NA) approved the Law on Gender Equality in 2006, marking a step towards ensuring gender equality in the country.

The Vietnamese Government has also asked the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs to function as a state management agency for gender equality.

After the conference, inspectors from local and municipal Departments of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs will work out specific plans to integrate inspecting and monitoring the enforcement of the gender equality law into the their annual tasks and report their plans to the Government.

France helps Vietnam manage water resources

A seminar on a project to support the management of water resources in Vietnam was held in Hanoi on November 3 by the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment in collaboration with the French Loire-Bretagne and Seine-Normandie water agencies.  

At the seminar, French experts introduced their hands-on experience and issues related to managing water resources in the pilot project underway in the Dong Nai River basin, as well as a plan to improve the quality of the water and the process of establishing a management board.

They also gave a presentation on approaches to and methods for managing water resources, focusing on water for daily use, agriculture and industry, along with river management.

Deputy Head of the Department for Water Resources Management, Chau Tran Vinh, appreciated the practicality of the French operational model, adding that the implementation of the project and planning should be in line with the laws, especially the revised Law on Water Resources, and Vietnam’s human resources so it is carried out effectively and the model can be expanded to other river basins in the country.

The pilot project is scheduled to be completed in March next year.

Plant found dumping untreated wastewater

The Hai Phong Thermoelectric Plant located in the northern port of Hai Phong City's Thuy Nguyen District was found to be releasing untreated wastewater and oil into Bach Dang River earlier this week, following a snap inspection.

According to the city's Environment Police, wastewater and oil were being dumped into the river via three pumps with a total capacity of up to 2,160 cubic metre per day.

Two water samples have been sent to authorities for analysis.

Company ordered to treat exhaust fumes

Dong Nai Province's People's Committee has instructed bakery and yeast producer AB Mauri Viet Nam to take urgent measures to prevent environmental pollution.

The company has been told to prepare a plan to treat exhaust fumes and submit it to the provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment before November 10.

The agency also asked the company to install an exhaust fume treatment system and put it into operation before November 25.

The department has proposed the committee fine the company VND70 million (US$3,330) for causing pollution.

HCM City truck ban eases traffic
 
Several key roads in HCM City have experienced less congestion and easier traffic flow in the two days that a decree banning trucks from certain roads at certain times took effect on Tuesday, November 1.

Trucks with loading capacities above 2.5 tonnes are not allowed to enter the city through the Sai Gon Bridge and the streets of Nguyen Huu Canh and Ton Duc Thang in District 1 and Nguyen Tat Thanh in District 4 from 6am to 12pm.

Trucks with loading capacities below 2.5 tonnes are also banned on these roads from 6-8am and 4-8pm.

A report on the ban in the Sai Gon Giai Phong (Liberated Sai Gon) newspaper quoted Bui Xuan Cuong, deputy head of the Department of Transport, as saying that it was one of the solutions that would, step by step, ease traffic congestion in urban areas.

To enter the Sai Gon Port now, the trucks have to take belt roads under a plan that was approved by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in 2007.

This means that the trucks are allowed to enter the city through some streets and six corridors for six hours from 9am to 4pm.

Some of these entry points include: the section of Kinh Duong Vuong Street from Highway No.1A to Phu Lam Roundabout in District 6; the section of Vo Van Kiet Highway from Highway No.1A to Thu Thiem Tunnel; the section of Tran Xuan Soan Street from Huynh Tan Phat Street to Rach Ong Bridge in District 7; the section of Pham The Hien Street from Au Duong Lan Street to Ba To Street in District 8; and the section of Nguyen Huu Tho Street from Nguyen Van Linh Street to Kenh Te Bridge in District 7.

Moreover, the city has made some changes to existing limitations on trucks from particular areas, the report said without citing the new timings.

Some of the areas where the limitations on truck traffic have been adjusted include: the section of Highway No.1 from Thu Duc Crossroads to the roundabout at the junction of Highway No.1 and Nguyen Van Linh Street; the section of Ha Noi Highway from Thu Duc Crossroads to Cat Lai T-junction-Lien Tinh Lo 25B; and the section of the Eastern belt road from Lien Tinh Lo 25B street to Phu My Bridge and the flyover linking the Nam Sai Gon residential area with Phu My Bridge-Nguyen Van Linh Street.

VN gets serious about gender equality

The Deputy Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, Nguyen Thanh Hoa, yesterday urged inspectors to enhance the implementation of laws on gender equality.

The minister, speaking at a workshop in Da Nang City, said inspectors in provinces and cities should make regular, annual checks and report the results to the ministry.

"Gender equality and assured women's rights are a goal humans have striven to achieve for many decades," Hoa said.

While the Government was strongly committed to equality, there were still significant shortcomings. For example, he said discriminatory conditions could still be seen in labour recruitment advertisement columns.

Government Decree 55/2009/ND-CP which guides the Gender Equality Law and stipulates fines for violations has been in force for two years, but no cases have been treated.

Participants at the workshop emphasised the importance of the United Nations' Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.

"An important point is to raise people's awareness about gender equality," said the ministry's chief inspector, Nguyen Van Tien.

He said the matter required suitable policies and specific programmes at all levels, plus information campaigns.

The workshop was sponsored by the Spanish Agency for International Development Co-operation and Paz y Desarrollo, a Spanish international non-governmental organisation for peace and development.

Paz y Desarrollo kicked off a US$2.3-million programme to promote gender equality in political participation in Viet Nam in May.

Screening key to combating diabetes
 
Communal screening for diabetes should be strengthened to discover and treat the disease in a timely fashion, the head of the HCM City Nutrition Centre has said.

Speaking to the media in the city yesterday, Dr Do Thi Ngoc Diep said it was one of the most effective ways to combat a disease considered as one of the four "epidemics" of the 21st century.

WHO figures showed that 135 million people around the world had diabetes in 1995, but the number had ballooned to 221 million by last year.

The number would rise to 300 million by 2025.

In Viet Nam, more than 4.5 million people have been diagnosed with diabetes since 1990.

Diep said more than 65 per cent of them had not known they had the disease until the diagnosis.

More screening programmes should be organised in the community, and plans for counselling, care, and treatment should be made based on this.

Since 2003 many diabetes prevention programmes, including screening, had been held in HCM City.

In 2010 more than 5,300 people had been screened for the disease in 10 wards in Districts 1,3, 10, and Binh Thanh and at Nguyen Tri Phuong Hospital in District 5 and the HCM City Nutrition Centre.

Some 8.7 of them had diabetics but had not been aware of it.

Another 15.8 per cent had been in a pre-diabetic state.

Nguyen Van Tien, head of the National Hospital of Endocrinology, told the media briefing yesterday that if diabetes was not treated in time, it caused many complications like heart failure, blindness, amputation of legs due to blockage of blood supply, kidney failure, and nervous disorders.

Nearly 80 per cent of people with diabetes died due to these complications.

Diep said diabetes was a socio-economic burden since the cost of treatment paid for late-discovered cases accounted for around 6 per cent of the entire health sector budget.

Besides screening, improving awareness of proper nutrition and physical exercise was also key.

People with diabetes should eat many small meals a day — maybe three main meals and two or three snacks — and many kinds of food, Diep advised.

They should not wait until they became too hungry because this slowed down insulin secretion or made them eat too much, leading to rising blood sugar levels.

They should also limit consumption of foods that increase sugar levels, like bread, potatoes, sweet fruits, fruit juices, cakes, and soft drinks.

They should not eat fried, grilled, and ground food.

Drinking six to eight glasses of water a day was imperative for diabetics to keep sugar levels down.

Diep also unveiled a list of diabetes prevention programmes for this year.

As usual, it focuses on information dissemination, screening and counselling.

World Diabetes Day, November 14, will be marked by a celebration in Phu Nhuan District on November 12 that an estimated 2,000 people will attend.

Media award to promote child nutrition launched

A media award on infant and young child feeding was launched early this week by the Alive and Thrive, the United Nations Fund for Children and the Ministry of Health's Health Communication and Education Centre.

The award aims to improve awareness of mass media, community on child feeding and care as well as to strengthen engagement of policy makers toward the issue through products of mass media.

Printing, radio, e-media or TV reporters want to compete for the award by sending their products that issued from June 15 to December to 15, 2011, to the centre at 336 Doi Can Street, Ha Noi.

The National Nutrition Institute says that around 17.5 per cent of under-5 children are malnourished.

Hearing disadvantaged children given hearing aids

More than 640 hearing aids were donated yesterday to poor patients living in central and southern Viet Nam.

The donation was funded by Siemens, Americans Helping Asian Children (AHAC) and the Consular Club in HCM City, which acted through the city's Sponsoring Association for Poor Patients (SAPP).

The number of disabled children up to 16 years old in Viet Nam is estimated at about 1 million, with the hearing impaired accounting for 12 per cent, according to the SAPP.