Grand ceremony prays for fallen war combatants; Overseas VN youth join summer camp; Conjunctivitis hits Hanoi; Gas blast kills two Chinese workers at power plant; Buddhist family camp held in the south

Grand ceremony prays for fallen war combatants

A grand ceremony was held in the southern province of Tay Ninh on July 17 to pray for the peace of souls of those fallen in the former battle fields in Vietnam’s southwestern border area and Cambodia.

Addressing the event, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan affirmed that the Party, the State and the people always keep in mind the sacrifices and devotion the fallen combatants, war invalids and disabled soldiers have made for the nation.

The State and people are obliged to take care of the fallen combatants’ resting places as a way of paying tribute to them, the government leader said.

He emphasised that the Vietnamese and Cambodian government have over recent years paid special attention to repatriating remains of those Vietnamese soldiers fallen in Cambodia and will continue to do this in the coming time.

The ceremony was co-organised by the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs, the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha’s Central Committee, and the Tay Ninh provincial People’s Committee at the Hill 82 Martyrs’ Cemetery, a resting place of more than 10,000 fallen combatants nationwide.

It was also attended by representatives of government ministries and agencies and the Cambodian provinces of Kampongcham, Svayrieng and Svayveng, overseas Vietnamese students, monks and nuns, and families of the martyrs./.

Overseas VN youth join summer camp

Some 150 overseas Vietnamese aged 16-23 from 30 countries and territories are taking part in the annual Summer Camp that kicked off yesterday at the Independence Palace in HCM City.

The 20-day bus and train trip, spanning through 10 provinces and cities across the southern, central and northern regions of Viet Nam, is an opportunity for young overseas Vietnamese to learn about their cultural and historical roots, said Nguyen Thanh Son, deputy minister of foreign affairs.

A series of activities will take place during the trip, including offering incense and paying tribute to those who sacrificed their lives for the independence of the nation.

The youth will visit World Cultural Heritage sites like historic Hoi An, the royal capital of Hue city and Ha Long Bay, as well as other historical and cultural relics.

They will participate in an exchange with youth of Da Nang, Nghe An and Tuyen Quang provinces, and take part in a live TV programme linking Ha Noi, Vientiane and Paris on July 31 that will mark the 1,000th anniversary of Thang Long-Ha Noi.

The trip, first organised in 2004 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese, departed from HCM City for the first time.

The trip will end at the Tan Trao historical relic site in northern Tuyen Quang on August 4.

Conjunctivitis hits Ha Noi

The Central Eye Hospital in Ha Noi has received about one hundred patients a day suffering from conjunctivitis, with doctor’s forecasting numbers would increase.

Hoang Cuong, a doctor at the hospital’s Examination Department, said that conjunctivitis usually broke out in the city and its neighbouring provinces at this time of year, before peaking in September when the rainy season arrived in the north.

At present, children have proven particular susceptible to the eye allergy, sometimes due to misdiagnoses, confusing their eye complaints as symptoms associated with fevers and sore throat, which prolong the treatment time, Cuong said.

Patient Ngo Van Thi, 27, from Cau Giay District said that despite his left eye becoming red, and then his right, but he had no idea how he had become infected.

Hot weather and dirty air created favourable conditions for the development of the infection, with many patients claimed they had contracted the problem after swimming in pools or the sea.

Another doctor, Pham Thu Minh said that conjunctivitis could easily spread to other people before and after the patients had visible symptoms including reddened, irritated and watering eyes.

Thu noted that people were vulnerable to contracting the infection even through talking with patients.

Da Lat ready for the 28th ASEAN Ministers on Energy Meeting

The central highland province of Lam Dong has made thorough preparations for the 28th ASEAN Ministers on Energy Meeting (AMEM 28) and associated events scheduled for July 18-23.

Banners and posters for the event were seen at many major centres in provincial districts and cities, especially along the highway from Lien Khuong airport to Da Lat. Nineteen flags from 18 countries (including the 10 ASEAN nations and eight partner countries) were hung in four main places including Lien Khuong airport, the provincial party committee head quarters and the Sai Gon-Da Lat and Sammy Hotels.

48 cars were mobilised to serve delegates during the meeting and security and social orders for the meetings have also been ensured.

In addition, the province has arranged a sightseeing programme for delegates to visit places in Da Lat such as Dalat Hasfarm, (Southeast Asia’s leading flower growing company), XQ Da Lat (Vietnam’s largest embroidery painting company), and Da Lat Flower Forest Biological Joint Stock Company (the leading enterprise producing flowers for exports).

Buddhist family camp held in the south

A Buddhist family camp called “Chanh Tri Camp” is taking place in Long Quang Pagoda in the Mekong delta city Can Tho city from July 15-17, drawing the participation of over 700 Buddhist followers from southeast and southwest provinces.

This is a key activity to serve a seminar entitled “Vietnamese Buddhists’ role in the period of integration and national development”, which is also being held by the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha in Can Tho city at the same time.

The camp offers a good chance for southern Buddhists to exchange experiences in developing Buddhist families in localities in accordance with Buddhism’s principles and State law.

During the three-day camp there are various activities, including art performances, exchanges, games, contests on Buddhist dogmas and an exhibition of handicraft products made by Buddhist teenagers.

Three seminars have also been held, focusing on southern Buddhist families in the integration period, the formation of Buddhist families in provinces and cities and how to stabilise and develop Buddhist teenagers in the future.

Formed over 60 years ago, the Buddhist Family Camp movement has developed strongly in central provinces like Quang Tri and Thua Thien Hue.

Gas blast kills two Chinese workers at power plant

A gas explosion at a thermo-electric power plant in Tam Hung commune, Hai Phong city’s Thuy Nguyen district, killed two Chinese workers and seriously injured two other work-mates.

The cause of the incident is mow under investigation.

The Hai Phong power plant, which is still under construction, has resumed the operation of its first turbine group since June this year after a suspension due to technical problems.

HCM City may boost child protection

HCM City children welfare authorities and workers yesterday discussed measures to expand the network of child-protection agencies in communities around the city.

The Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs said the public and authorities at all levels should be encouraged to work towards protecting children.

Phan Thanh Minh, head of the department’s children protection and care office, said people’s awareness of children’s protection and care remains low.

Kids continue to face difficulties in approaching or getting help from support services, she said, though the number of children who suffered sexual abuse last year was lower than in 2008.

The city has a population of more than 1.6 million children aged 16 and under.

Of them, more than 70,000 children are orphaned, abandoned, homeless, and disabled and many of them suffered from abuse at the workplace.

Thus, it is very important to expand the network of child protection agencies in communities, Minh said.

The network was set up under a pilot programme by the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs in 2007.

Nguyen Thi Tuyet Nhung, the department’s deputy head, said it has so far been carried out in five city districts – Binh Thanh, Tan Phu, Binh Tan, and Districts 1 and 6.

It should be expanded throughout the city as well as around the country to protect children, she added.

Skyscraper boom adds to HCM City traffic problem

The mushrooming of high-rise buildings in HCM City’s central districts is causing severe traffic problems, experts warn.

In the last five years 63 housing complexes were developed in the city centre. Since 2007, around 85 office buildings, hotels, and shopping malls with a total area of nearly 1.1 million square metres have been licensed.

Around 40 high-rises were built in the city just this year, half of them in District 1, 3, 4, 5 and 11.

Many shopping malls like Diamond Plaza, Parkson, Kumho Asiana Plaza, and Vincom are in close proximity to each other in the city centre, which causes roads in the area to get clogged, especially during rush hour.

Most high-rise buildings, which also house places of recreation, have come up on streets that were already congested – like Cao Thang, Vo Van Tan, Nguyen Dinh Chieu and Nam Ky Khoi Nghia Streets, all of which are in District 1 or 3 or both.

Many streets leading to the downtown area, such as Cong Hoa, Truong Chinh, Cach Mang Thang Tam, Vo Thi Sau, Dien Bien Phu, and Xo Viet Nghe Tinh Streets are extremely congested during rush hour.

The Department of Transport says it is necessary to assess the impact of high-rise buildings on traffic in an area since the city’s roads are still poor and need upgrading.
Traffic infrastructure needs to keep pace with the construction of high-rise downtown buildings, it says.

Dr Khuat Viet Hung, deputy chief of the Institute of Transport Management and Planning, said it is vital to develop public transport before building high-rise buildings in the central districts to ease traffic.

Dr Nguyen Xuan Vinh, a lecturer at Ton Duc Thang University, said the best way to ease traffic congestion in the city centre is by minimising construction of high-rise buildings in the area and on streets leading there.

HCM City, which has nearly eight million residents, is one of the most densely populated cities in the country.

PV