Vietnam to host 8th UNESCO World Congress

Vietnam will host the 8th Congress of the World Federation of UNESCO Clubs, Centers and Associations (WFUCA) in Hanoi, a Vietnamese official announced.

At a press conference in the capital yesterday, Nguyen Xuan Thang, Secretary-General of WFUCA and President of the Vietnam Federation of UNESCO Associations (VUFA), said the Congress will take place at the My Dinh National Convention Center from August 18 to 22.

The event, which will also mark the 30th anniversary of the WFUCA, is expected to be attended by about 300 international delegates from non-governmental UNESCO movements from more than 100 countries, Mr. Thang said.

As 2011 has been designated as International Year of Youth by the United Nations, youth issues would be on top of the agenda of the upcoming Congress, he said.

The VUFA has selected Tran Nguyen Uyen Linh, a 23-year-old singer, as an ambassador for youth issues at the event, he added.

Corrupted official indicted in Phu Yen

6 officials of Provincial Natural Resources and Environment Department in Phu Yen province were indicted Thursday following charges of misappropriating from a development project sponsored by the Swedish government.

Tran Thi Na, 43, Ha Thuong Truc, 52, Vo Van Dung, 33, Nguyen Van Man, Phan The quoc and Luu Pham Ba are all senior officers and managers of the Strengthening Environmental Management and Land Administration (SEMLA) project that was implemented in Phu Yen from 2007 to 2009.

The first three suspects are also to be detained for four months, police said.

Prior to this, police carried out an intensive search at the suspects’ houses and offices, discovering forged financial documents that they used for embezzlement purposes.

In the three-year implementation, the project received VND 13.5 billion (US$646,000) in funding including a non-refunded amount of VND 12.9 billion (US$618,000) from the Swedish government and VND 668 million (US$ 32,000) from the local government.

Out of the funding source, an alleged VND 2.8 billion (US$ 134,000) was misused, causing a loss of VND 540 million (US$ 25,900) to the state budget.

The case brought down Nguyen Kim Phuc, director of Phu Yen’s Natural Resource and Environmental Department who was removed from his position and expelled from Communist Party last year.

The SEMLA project sponsored by Swedish government supports economic growth and poverty alleviation, sustainable development and environmental protection, and strong local governance and participation of the population in decision making processes in Vietnam.

Cop assaults driver for…not jumping red lights

A senior police official took a taxi and when the driver refused to cross the red lights, threatened to shoot and attacked him …

Can Tho City Police’s directors today began to discuss the reported case of a traffic official of Hau Giang Province assaulting a taxi driver, a source from the municipal police agency said.

Major Bui Minh Thang, deputy chief of Hau Giang Province’s Road and Rail Traffic Police department, is accused of threatening to shoot and attacked Do Quoc Thai, a taxi driver of Mai Linh Corporation in Ho Chi Minh City.

Earlier, the related individuals, including officials of the Can Tho Road and Rail Traffic Police department, had submitted their reports to the department chief.

According to Thai, at 8:10 on Sunday night he picked up a passenger from Cai Khe Island who attacked him from behind when they neared the access road to Can Tho Bridge.

At the Hung Thanh Ward police station in the city’s Cai Rang District, Thai said the passenger twice asked him not to stop at the red light and when he refused to obey, seized the steering wheel from the back seat and threatened to shoot him.

They had a clash in which the passenger used a belt to attack him and injured him on the head, he said.

As the incident happened in front of the Hung Phu traffic police station, the police invited Thai and Thang to come in for enquiries. Here, Thang threatened the police and asked one official in the room to kneel and apologize to him.

Colonel Bui Hoang Bao, director of Hau Giang Province Police, also confirmed the case, saying the board of directors would take appropriate administrative measure against Thang and would carefully check to verify the taxi driver’s statement.

Da Nang cracks down on polluting, daredevil trucks

Da Nang City’s police deployed their forces on main traffic routes this morning to inspect all dump trucks and give penalties to those infringing upon traffic and environmental regulations.

The action was taken after many residents voiced their concerns about pollution problems and serious traffic accidents caused by dumpers that ran at high speeds and neglected traffic rules.

Five joint police teams have set up check points on such streets with high traffic density like Hoa Cam, Hoa Khanh, Hoa Nhon and Hoa Hai.

At Cach Mang Thang 8, Au Co and 2-9, the traffic this morning became more ordered than in previous days.

Nguyen Xuan Kim, deputy head of the Hoa Nhon Traffic Police Post, the number of dumpers that carried soil and stones to construction sites dropped suddenly this morning, possible 80 percent less than before.

It was said that many drivers appeared to know in advance about the “raid” of the local police.

Most of the drivers of dumpers examined this morning were given penalties for their violations of regulations on load, number plate, body shells, etc.

According to senior Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Den, head of Da Nang City Traffic Police Department, most dumpers are a terrible nightmare to other vehicles as well as to residents living along streets through which the huge trucks travel.

In the first 3 months of this year, 4 serious accidents were caused by trucks and dumpers in Da Nang, killing 3 people and injuring three others, the official said.

New scam: ‘renting’ a car and receiving interest

Many locals in Tien Xuan Commune, Thach That District, Hanoi have lost substantial amounts of money after agreeing to ’rent’ cars from fraudsters who promise to pay them monthly interest on the payment and refund the principal to them when the contract expires. These cars later turned out to be of dubious origin, either stolen property or cars that should remain in police custody for investigation.

Dinh Cong Canh, a farmer in Go Chua Hamler, September last year ‘rented’ a Honda Civic at VND600 million (US$29,000) from his neighbor Nguyen Trong Hoan who promised to pay him 1.5 percent monthly interest on the sum. To win the farmer’s trust, Hoan paid the first month’s interest right after receiving the money.

Two months later, Canh was enticed to sign additional agreements, with Hoan as a ‘broker’, with Nguyen Quang Tuyen, a supposed director of a company in Hanoi. In all, he ‘leased’ 4 more cars at a total cost of VND2.45 billion ($118,500), enjoying a similar 1.5 percent monthly interest.

After paying the interest for a few months, Tuyen took back 3 of the cars and refunded Canh with VND1.45 billion ($70,000). He did not return for the last car, however, disappearing with the remaining principal and the promised interest. Hoan was similarly nowhere to be found in the area.

Another victim is Vu Dinh Thuc, in Go Choi 1 Hamlet, who together with his friend ’rented’ a Mazda 3 from Hoan at VND400 million ($19,300), earning a 2 percent monthly interest.

Hoan then recommended Thuc to ’lease’ another car (a Toyota Innova) from Tuyen at VND300 million ($14,500).

Again, the duo dumped their cars, stopped paying interest after one month and never gave Thuc back the principal.

There are many other similar ‘brokers’ like these two in Tien Xuan Commune, a local policeman said.

The cars are stolen property, all being exhibits that should be kept in police custody for investigation of criminal cases, local authorities said.

Kieu Luong Thien, chief of Tien Xuan police, revealed that around seventy locals have lost their money this way, and some thirty cars have been seized by police for investigating purposes.

Dozens of people in neighboring communes like Dong Xuan and Binh Yen have also fallen victim to the scheme, Thien said.

Hanoi police have initiated its investigation into this form of fraud.

Academics dissect ‘college spirit’

Universities should be more than merely places that train people to earn a living, academics, education officials, and others said at a conference titled College Spirit held Tuesday in Ho Chi Minh City.

Dr Nguyen Xuan Xanh cited a foreign educator as saying that this is the difference between universities and vocational schools, and the former should train students to reason.

Awareness, academic studies, knowledge, and science should be the focus of higher education, he added.

The hundreds of students at the meeting agreed vociferously when philosopher Bui Van Son Nam said universities were originally meant to set an ideal for people to try to achieve.

Dr Bui Tran Phuong, president of Hoa Sen University, said there should be complete academic freedom in universities, allowing scientists to freely express themselves regardless of their position in an institution.

Dr Doan Le Giang, dean of the literature and language faculty at the host school – the University of Social Sciences and Humanities – said while social sciences and humanities are now becoming popular, the jury is still out on the quality of the studies.

Asked about interaction in class given the low lecturer-student ratio, Phuong said if the credit-based system is run properly, students will have enough time for discussions in class.

But many universities have yet to run it properly, she admitted.

She complained that the administration of higher education in Vietnam is too bureaucratic and ineffective, which can lead to a breakdown of the “spirit.”

Asked if the “college spirit” also includes a link between universities and research institutes, Xanh said universities should place a strong emphasis on research activities and be in close contact with universities around the world.

However, Phuong was less sure, saying many countries have adopted a model where the two are not closely linked.

Unpredictable weather causing diseases in children

Many children have fallen ill in Ho Chi Minh City ever since the weather changed unpredictably in the last few days.

Dozens of children lie in the narrow lobby of the Respiratory Division of Children Hospital No. 1 and Children Hospital No.2, in Ho Chi Minh City, waiting to be admitted. A doctor said that the division has only 100 beds but it has received more than 200 toddlers so far. Medical workers were fretting as many children suffered from serious pneumonia. Yesterday, the children’s hospitals examined over 3,500 kids and found that 40 percent were suffering from respiratory diseases.

Not just respiratory diseases but also other illnesses like measles, rubella, chicken pox and foot-and- mouth diseases were showing recurring signs. Medics said that this was the peak season for measles in the country. Meanwhile, dengue fever patients have increased, even though this is not the season. Medical workers were aware of the many severe complicated cases as dengue fever soared in children.

According to the hospitals, most of the child patients in district 8, Tan Binh and Thu Duc districts received treatment in hospitals. The Center for Preventive Health said the city has nearly 1,000 dengue fever cases, up by twice the number in the same period last year. Moreover, the disease was spreading quickly in crowded places like schools, offices and factories.

Medical experts have advised people to inject vaccine and keep their environment clean, while nutrition experts are telling people to have nutritious meals to help the body fight against diseases.

73,000 cooking violators yet to be punished

More than 73,000 food producers and traders violated regulations on food hygiene safety and last year but they were only given warnings, not penalties, the Health Ministry has said.

The violators account for 16 percent of the total number of food establishments that were inspected last year, the ministry said at a recent conference on reviewing performance of the 2006-2010 national target program on food hygiene and safety.

Of the 53,000 samples of food tested last year, 16 percent did not meet required standards.

Main violations by food producers and traders included using banned additives, producing food with lower-than-required levels of protein, using unhygienic containers for food processing, and making liquor with excessively high methanol content.

Last year, there were 42 deaths from food poisoning, 33 percent of which come from drinking liquor containing industrial alcohol or an extremely high methanol content, 23 percent from eating toxic mushrooms, and 16 percent from eating puffer fish.

However, the death toll from food poisoning last year is lower than the average rate of the past five years – 52.

VN top model indicted for smuggling from Aus

Ho Chi Minh City’s People Supreme Procuracy today officially commenced criminal proceedings against top male model Vinh Thuy for allegedly smuggling electronic items by plane from Australia into Vietnam.

Pham Tien Trung, 29, and Thai Anh Tien - both residing in Ho Chi Minh City - were also indicted on the same charge.

The court also indicted and detained 36-year-old man Do Thanh Lam, who used to live in Australia, for smuggling.

However, Vinh Thuy, Trung, and Tien have not been detained.

According to an unconfirmed source released by VnExpress Wednesday, Vinh Thuy claimed that last year he ran a electronic shop and out of carelessness, bought some products without origins from Australia.

The 24-year-old model entered Top 15 Mister International and won Mr. Photogenic International in 2009.

9 months ago, Nguyen Duc Vu, a ground services officer working in the Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City, and Nguyen Minh Hoang living in HCMC, became the first persons to be arrested in this case.

According to police, Vu is suspected of receiving smuggled goods including Apple iPhone, laptops, cell phones, and other consumer goods without license worth around VND6.3 billion and more than US$34,000 from Lam in Australia while Hoang is convicted of consuming these illegal items.

Bank cashier prosecuted for pocketing $141,000

A cashier of DongA Bank’s branch in Mong Cai City, central Quang Ninh province, have been prosecuted for abusing trust to appropriate nearly VND1.5 billion and 41 taels of gold, local police said yesterday.

Earlier, after receiving a report from the bank about the great loss, up to US$141,000 in total, local police launched an investigation and then detained Hoang Kieu Dung, 30, on suspicion of appropriating the assets, on Wednesday.

After his arrest, Dung, a resident of the city’s Hai Hoa ward, only gave back to the bank the money he had appropriated, not the gold.

Previously, after taking in these assets, Dung deliberately did not record them into the cashier’s books, the investigators said.

The police have urged Dung to return the gold to the bank and are expanding their investigation into the case.

80-kilo giant grouper caught and served

Hang Duong Restaurant, located in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 4, has bought an 80-kilogram giant grouper and sold half of it in just a day.

Hieu, the restaurant’s owner said he bought the fish for VND250,000 (US$11.9) a kilo hours after it was caught offshore in Vung Tau City on Wednesday.

He is now charging his customers twice as much for a kilo of the fish.

Giant groupers, known scientifically as Epinephelus lanceolatus, are the largest bony fish found in coral reefs. They can grow as large as 2.7 meters long and weigh up to 600 kg.

Job training helps rural people

Community-based job training was helping rural people improve their skills and income, said General Department of Vocational Training director Nguyen Tien Dung.

“Community-based training for rural Economic Empowerment” (CB-TREE) was a pilot project implemented in central Ha Tinh Province since 2009 with European Union funds and co-ordination by the International Labour Organisation, central and local authorities and civil organisations. It encouraged the participation of farmers, social and economic agencies.

Formal job training in Viet Nam’s vocational schools faced difficulties in meeting market demands but informal training of rural people faced more challenges due to their limited skills and awareness, Dung said.

Nguyen Van Son, director of the Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs of Ha Tinh Province, where about 400 people in two local communes benefited from the project, said 65 per cent of the beneficiaries claimed their income increased after they took training courses and then became self-employed or sold their products to companies involved in the project.

“Following the CB-TREE approach, local authorities and project co-ordinators first made comprehensive survey about training need of local people as well as market demand for potential products. Then, we offered suitable courses about skills, business and confidence building,” he said.

The participation of local authorities, civil associations and companies was the key to the success of the project. Farmers could now take extra jobs to earn more money in their home towns instead of moving to urban areas or abroad to look for jobs.

One of the beneficiaries, Tran Thi Thanh, from the province’s My Loc Commune, said she learnt to make lanterns and sold them to a company for about VND20,000 (US$1) each, which gave her a stable income and the opportunity to stay home and take care of her family.

“Many people, mostly women in my commune, went to Thailand to work, Thanh said, so we hoped lantern making would be a good solution to attract local workers and those who are working overseas,” she said.

Thai Dai Phong, director of Duc Phong Company, a bamboo/rattan handicraft producer, based in central Nghe An Province, said that since 2001, the company had offered job training to thousands of rural households, providing them with skills, materials and designs and then bought their products for export.

“Investing in skills development, knowledge building and training are key issues for the competitiveness of Viet Nam,” said Rie-Kieldgaard, director of the ILO Office in Viet Nam.

“The quality of human and the social capital determines economic performance. Skills and knowledge are engines of economic growth and social development.”

Rie-Kieldgaard said the CB-TREE method had been applied globally but it had had to adapt to localities’ socio-economic situation, demand and policies.

In Viet Nam, it had satisfied an urgent need to match qualified job seekers with employers’ requirements through a partnership with public and private sector institutions, she said.

Unusual rains to shower southern Vietnam

Unusual rains and rainstorms are forecast to affect the southern region of Vietnam in 2-3 days while northern Vietnam will be hit with a new cold spell and likely rains from Saturday evening.

Raining across Vietnam in the past couple of days has been judged abnormal as the raining season in the nation only starts at the earliest from the end of April or May till October.

Coastal region from Binh Dinh to Ca Mau and Kien Giang is expected to have rains and strong winds, according to the Southern Hydrometeorology Station’s vice chief Nguyen Minh Giam.

The rains are resulted from the cold spell in the north, he added.

East Sea and the Gulf of Tonkin may have strong winds blowing at 62-88kph.

In the past couple of days, southern localities like Ho Chi Minh City, Ca Mau, Dong Thap, and Kien Giang had unusual rains with rainfall measuring up to 40mm.

7 men jailed over 43 years for assault and battery

People’s Court of Buon Ma Thuot city in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak today sentenced seven employees of a local farm to 43 years and 6 months in prison for their assaults and battery that left two victims in serious health loss.

The organizer of the case Nguyen Trung Dung, 25, was given a 7 year and 6 months sentence while the six others were jailed each from 4.5 years to 7 years for the same count of crime.

In March 2009, two men Nguyen Huy Hoang and Nguyen Van Tho rode a bike on a local road at night and they got lost to a private big farm of coffee plantation where the seven men were rented to guard the property.

Recognizing the two strangers riding in their farm, Dung and one of his fellows Nguyen Truong Thi, 24, got on a bike and chased after the lost men.

On catching them, Dung held the bike saddle but Hoang kept on speeding up to run away for fears and made Dung fall down with minor injuries at knee.

Then Dung and Thi returned to their guard locations and urged five of their fellows lock up the entrance door of the farm and traced down the two lost men.

After a while, they rode the lost men back to their collective camp in the farm and beat up the two men into unconsciousness. Then, they rode the victims out of thier farm and dropped them lying on ground until they were discovered and hospitalized by local passers-by.

Health examination confirmed that Tho suffers a permanent disability rating of 65 percent and Hoang 10 percent.

The seven men have to also pay their victims VND148 million (US$7,000) for healthcare costs.

The five other men include Phan Van Tuat, 41; Nguyen Quang Son, 20; Le Van Xuan, 25; Le Phu Thang, 30; and Nguyen Dinh Son, 37.

Bac Lieu under flood water again

The coastal Bac Lieu city in the Mekong Delta province Bac Lieu has been under unusual flood water from Wednesday after sea water spreads over an under-construction dike.

Different residential quarters and government offices in the city have become isolated by flooded water as bikes and cars couldn’t work on inundated streets.

Unusually rising sea water has also caused erosion, especially along the concrete-built dike in Nha Mat ward, and caused heavy damages to Cao Van Lau street – one of the main roads in the city.

It is predicted that the flood in these three days has resulted from a coincidence of the periodic peak of tide and recent turbulence of strong winds and other weather phenomena in East Sea.

Before, the city was flooded many times by rising sea water. Last month, flood water destroyed crops of 2,200 households in the locality, causing a damage of almost VND1 billion (US$47,600).

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Robbers of courting couples nabbed in Binh Duong

Police of Di An district in the southern province Binh Duong today arrested the last robber in a four-member gang who used knives to rob courting couples in desolate places during the past months.

The gang robbed at least five cases this year in Binh Duong and Ho Chi Minh City, targeting at courting couples who prefer dating at night at deserted locations along streets or parks, a policeman said.

The latest robber caught is Nguyen Van Hai, 19, from the central province Nghe An. He was the man who escaped police chase five days before.

On March 20, police patrolled Binh Duong’s Thuan An district, discovered the gang in action, and intervened to nab three of them after a long chase.

They are Vi Van Hoan, 26, Le Van Dung, 21, and Le Van Son, 21. All come from Nghe An.

Investigation is going on.

Big tree falls, hurts 8 students in Khanh Hoa

Eight 10th graders from Nguyen Hue city High School based in Khanh Hoa central province were injured after a tamarind tree measuring 0.8m diameter fell on them.

The incident happened when they were drinking water in front of the school gate.

Three of them are now in critical condition. Nguyen Thi Dieu Hang and Tran Viet Tuan are suffering brain injuries while Tran Thanh Binh’s chest was stabbed by the tree branch.

Binh’s life is in danger.

All of them are receiving emergency treatment at Khanh Hoa General Hospital.

The tree has grown for 30 years before falling down, probably due to heavy rains recently.

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2 die in three-truck crash in Quang Ngai

A truck early this morning (00:15am) crashed into two others on National Highway 1A located in Mo Duc district in Quang Ngai central province, killing two persons on the spot.

24-year-old Nguyen Kim Khanh hailing from Hung Yen northern province, who was heading to the South, suddenly drove onto the opposite lane and smashed into another truck traveling on the opposite direction, causing the vehicle to fall into a rice field nearby.

Khanh’s truck continued to hit another truck bearing number plate 17K-0251.

Khanh and his driver assistant Nguyen Van Khuong, 38, also from Hung Yen died on the spot while all the three vehicles were badly damaged.

Quang Ngai police arrived at the scene shortly after the incident and are investigating.

Foot, mouth vaccine to be imported

Viet Nam plans to import 100,000 doses of vaccine against foot and mouth disease type O/Mya98/BY2010, with the help of China, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The Animal Health Department will be responsible for the pilot implementation of the vaccine in northern Viet Nam.

If the vaccine works, the ministry will consider importing more of the vaccine. The disease has broken out in 29 provinces and cities._

Kuwaiti help for Ha Tinh

The Kuwaiti Government will provide US$14.6 million in loans through the Kuwait Fund to help central Ha Tinh Province develop its infrastructure.

The loans contract was signed in Ha Noi yesterday by Deputy Finance Minister Tran Xuan Ha and Kuwait Fund Deputy General Director Hesham Al-Waqayan.

Addressing the signing ceremony, Ha said this indicated the increasing development of close economic co-operation between the two countries.

The Finance Ministry said that through the Kuwait Fund, the Kuwaiti State had funded nine projects in Viet Nam with a total loan of $140 million.