The Foreign Ministry has confirmed that in response to public concern, official agencies are evaluating the contents of certain social websites.

The Foreign Ministry’s spokeswoman Nguyen Phuong Nga.

At a press briefing on December 3, the Foreign Ministry’s spokeswoman, Nguyen Phuong Nga, was asked on if “it is true that Vietnam is blocking Facebook and a number of other social websites?”

Ms. Nga replied that the State has created favorable circumstances for the Internet in Vietnam and it has developed strongly. Nearly 22 million Vietnamese, more than 25 percent of the population, access and use it. This is higher than the Asian average. There are more than four million bloggers.

However, according to the Ministry spokeswoman, just as in other countries, rules out Internet uses that affect habits and customs, social virtue, public order and national security. That, she explained, is consistent with international conventions on human rights, in particular the UN Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

“Recently, many people in Vietnam have been upset that a number of social websites have been misused to convey information with contents that oppose the Democratic Socialist Republic of Vietnam in contravention of Vietnamese law, threatening information security and causing a bad influence on Internet users. Responsible [Government] agencies will examine and evaluate the incidence of violations in order to apply appropriate measures in conformity with the stipulations of the law,” Ms. Nga said.

Chinese Ambassador queried

Ms. Nga also announced that a representative of the Foreign Ministry met the Chinese Ambassador on December 2 and asked him for clarification of a December 1 report by the online press service ‘Phuong Hoang’ to the effect that China is organizing air service for taking passengers and reporters to the Hoang Sa (Paracel) Islands. “If this report is correct, this is a serious violation of Vietnamese sovereignty,” Ms. Nga emphasized.

Xuan Linh