Southern hub has bounced back from economic slump

Ho Chi Minh City has experienced a swift recovery from the economic downturn, officials said in a report published Friday.

According to the report on the government's website, all of the city's key sectors saw good growth rates in the first eight months.

Retail sales increased 31.9 percent compared to the same period last year to reach VND236.6 trillion. Industrial output was up 13.8 percent and foreign tourist arrivals saw a 14 percent jump. Officials also said inflation pressure continued to ease in August as consumer prices declined 0.25 percent from July for the second month this year.

Nguyen Thanh Tai, deputy chairman of HCMC People’s Committee, said the city is likely to meet or even top its economic targets for 2010.

Chairman Le Hoang Quan said the city is now aiming at an annual economic growth of 11.5-12 percent. If this target is reached, the average annual growth rate for the metropolitan economy during the 2006-2010 period will be 11.5 percent, he added.

Minh into World Badminton Championships round 3 in Paris

Vietnam’s badminton champ Nguyen Tien Minh booked a third-round berth at the 2010 World Badminton Championships in Paris after a straight-set win over Estonian rival Raul Must on Wednesday.

It took the eighth-ranked Vietnamese player 42 minutes to overcome his Estonian opponent, who is 34 places lower than Minh in the world rankings.
Minh, the only Vietnamese player to enter the world top 100, had little difficulty before cruising to a 21-14, 21-10 victory.
Minh, who beat the 70th-ranked Ukrainian Valeriy Atrashchenkov the day before, started strong and was in the lead all the way into the first set.
The Estonian got close (12-10 for Minh) but, from there, the Vietnamese galloped home winning the set 21-14.
After taking a big loss in the first set, Must caused Minh some hardship early in the second.
However, Minh, who slid one spot to eighth in the world rankings after failing to defend his title at the Yonex Chinese Taipei Grand Prix Gold early this month, proved his ranking with a 21-10 victory in the second round.
Minh aims to advance to the quarterfinals at the August 23-29 event in Paris. At the World Badminton Championships in India in 2009, Minh lost 21-13, 21-17 to the Malaysian world champion Lee Chong Wei.

Source: Thanh Nien

Vietnam PM call for overhaul of social-security, welfare

The Vietnamese prime minister has announced that the government will strive to expand health coverage, lower Vietnam’s poverty rate and close the income gap over the course of the next decade.

In an article published on a government website on Wednesday, PM Nguyen Tan Dung said that guaranteeing social security and well-being is necessary to meeting development goals.
Thus, he wrote, social security will serve as the main thrust of Vietnam’s ten year Socio-economic Development Strategy.
PM Dung said that Vietnam made “great strides” over the last ten years, particularly in poverty alleviation, job generation, insurance development, and public access to social services.
The rate of poor households dropped from 29 percent in 2002 to around 10 percent in 2010. More than 1.6 million new jobs were created every year, PM Dung wrote, and the unemployment rate in cities dropped from 6.42 percent in 2000 to around 4.6 percent in 2010, according to figures cited in the article.
The PM added that, although Vietnam has achieved a great deal, the nation’s social safety net has suffered from poor management.
Going forward, Vietnam will strive to provide universal health insurance coverage for all people. Poverty must decline by 2-3 percent every year, and people’s real income must rise to 3.5 times the 2010 rate.
To realize the goals, PM Dung said the country should develop a flexible, and stable social welfare system. This system should focus on poor people and vulnerable segments of society, especially disadvantaged children.

Source: Thanh Nien 

Weaker dong enhances inflation threat: experts

Relatively low incremental increases in prices over the last few months have lulled consumers and others into a sense of false security, experts say, warning that inflation continues to be a serious threat in the coming months.

The recent devaluation of the dong against the dollar only enhances the threat, they add.

Production enterprises dependent on imported materials have to bear higher input costs and are likely to increase prices.

The State Bank of Vietnam on August 18 set the daily reference rate of the dong two percent lower at 18,932 to a dollar, the third devaluation since last November, in a move aimed at reducing the trade deficit.

The dong was little changed at 19,485 per dollar as of 9:10 a.m. Thursday in Hanoi, compared with 19,490 a week ago, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Dao Duy Kha, deputy general director of the Vietnam Plastics Corporation, said up to 90 percent of materials for the country’s plastic production was imported, thus the lower value of the dong was a big blow.

The gasoline price hike early this month had already pushed up their production costs and the higher dollar prices now make an increase in selling prices “unavoidable,” he said.

Some association members have already increased their prices, while others will do so soon, with an average increase at 1-2 percent, he added.

Kha said firms have not increased their prices sharply because current purchasing power in the market was still low. “However, the prices will continue to rise in coming months when the demand for products goes up.”

Tran Trung Hieu, general director of Hanoi Investment and Footwear Export-Import Company, which imports materials for footwear production and sells them to local producers, said he will increase prices to match the dollar hike.

However, he cannot raise prices under contracts signed months ago that are due to be delivered now. “We are suffering losses from the contracts,” he said. His company imports materials worth US$100,000-200,000 each month.

Meanwhile, the price hike has also affected a number of customers. “Some customers have cancelled their orders, while others have cut their buying volumes,” Hieu said. His company has had to lower its profits significantly to keep their traditional customers, he added.

The increase in costs of imported materials has also prompted many supermarkets to announce plans to increase their retail prices.

Nguyen Thanh Huyen, public relations manager for the Big C supermarket chain, said some distributors have proposed to raise their products’ prices by 5 to 10 percent.

Another supermarket chain, Maximark, has received proposals from over 100 distributors on increasing, by 3 to 10 percent, prices of 500 kinds of products, mainly food, cosmetics and home appliances.

The price increases have sparked inflation fears.

Vietnam’s consumer price index rose 8.18 percent in August from a year earlier, and 0.23 percent from a month earlier, the General Statistics Office said. In July, the index rose 8.19 percent from a year earlier.

“A very important implication is that the outlook for inflation is likely to be affected by the devaluation. The devaluation, of course, is going to raise the risk of imported inflation in the months ahead,” Bloomberg quoted Tai Hui, head of Southeast Asian economic research at Standard Chartered Plc in Singapore, as saying.

The dong will trade near 19,500 per dollar for “at least the next several weeks,” he said.

If inflation accelerates or the trade deficit deteriorates, “you may see more selling pressure on the dong. But, of course, that’s very much down to the upcoming data that we expect to see at the end of the month,” he said.

Vu Dinh Anh, deputy head of the Institute of Market and Price Research, said: “Inflation control should be the most important target for the end of this year. There is now a subjective complacence as consumer prices have only seen small hikes in recent months.”

The government aims to cap inflation at 8 percent this year, though many local analysts say that will be difficult to achieve.

Firms should carefully watch for changes in the exchange rate. They should prepare sources of the greenback to repay dollar loans on schedule, and use other foreign currencies, which have lower exchange rates, Anh said.

Obama approves additional $12 mln for Da Nang dioxin cleanup

US President Barack Obama has approved US$12 million for an ongoing project aimed at cleaning up dioxin that has contaminated the soil and water in and around the Da Nang Airport.

The announcement was made by congressman Eni Faleomavaega (D-American Samoa) on August 26, during a three-day visit to Vietnam.

Faleomavaega's visit was aimed at discussing the two countries’ relationship, including cooperative efforts to mitigate Agent Orange contamination in Vietnam.

Last year, the Obama administration dedicated $3 million to dioxin cleanup efforts in the central city of Da Nang, where the airport was listed by scientists as one of several “hotspots” throughout the country.

Da Nang Airport was once used by the US Air Force as a base of operations. During the war, US forces untold quantities of defoliant chemicals loaded onto planes to be sprayed over the countryside. 

It is believed that US forces sprayed over 12 million gallons of defoliats in Vietnam throughout the course of the war.

The chemicals were meant to deprive Vietnamese forces of "food and cover." The campaign ended up having long-term effects on US soldiers and millions of Vietnamese civilians.

The substance has been linked to increased instances of birth defects and at least 12 chronic diseases - including Spinal Bifidia and several types of cancer.

Mindulle death toll climbs to 11 in Vietnam

As of Thursday, at least 11 people have been killed and 72 have been injured by typhoon Mindulle in Vietnam.

The Typhoon, the third to hit the East Sea this year, made landfall late on August 24 in Vietnam’s central coast, according to the National Committee of Search and Rescue.

Nghe An province lost six residents while Quang Binh and Ha Tinh provinces reported two and three dead, respectively.

Before calming on Wednesday, Mindulle destroyed over 64,500 hectares of rice paddies between Quang Ngai and Thanh Hoa.

Over 47,000 houses, meanwhile, were damaged and 34 boats were sunk, the committee said.

Mindulle also brought a whirlwind to Hanoi’s Me Linh District Wednesday, injuring five people, according to Le Thanh Hai, vice director of the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting (NCHMF).

The adjacent province of Hung Yen also suffered Tuesday, Hai added. It was estimated that 20 local students and teachers were injured as a whirlwind toppled more than 3,000 trees and trashed over 300 houses.

In July, Typhoon Conson, the first storm of the season, left at least one dead in Vietnam after killing 68 in the Philippines.

In the meantime, NCHMF Thursday said that a low pressure zone hovering over the Pacific has strengthened into a tropical depression which will upgrade into a storm within the next one to two days.

Another low pressure zone has been recorded near the Philippines’ Luzong Island and is heading for the East Sea, the center said.

Source: Thanh Nien, Tuoi Tre 

German bank denies pulling the plug on natural preserve

A German banking group has denied media reports alleging that they have suspended funding for a preservation effort in the Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, a UNESCO world natural heritage site, in Quang Binh Province.

“Current reports by local and Internet media claiming that the funding of the project has been suspended are wrong,” Dr. Charis Pöthig, KfW Bankengruppe’s Press Officer told Thanh Nien Weekly via email. “The funding of the project is going on as planned.”
Pöthig did confirm a recall of EUR200,000 in June. Local officials have admitted that implementation of the plan, so far, has been poor. The two sides say they are now cooperating to appoint new project managers and ensure that the massive ecological problem goes forward without a hitch.
The Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park covers 85,000 hectares and contains Asia’s oldest limestone mountain range. It was recognized as a world heritage site by UNESCO in 2003.
The park also offers an ideal site for researchers and explorers of grottoes and caves. In 2005, British explorers discovered a new cave which they claimed was the most magnificent in the world.
In September 2008, an ambitious resource management project was launched under an agreement between Vietnam and Germany. Philanthropists set aside EUR15.77 million for the project, of which EUR9.8 million was deemed nonrefundable assistance and EUR4.6 million was considered low-interest loans. The rest is money supplied by the Vietnamese government.
The project area covers portions of 13 communes in the province’s Bo Trach, Minh Hoa and Quang Ninh – a total area of 225,000 hectares. The project will establish another 30,000 hectares of strictly protected land and seek to involve local residents in planting and managing new forest areas.
The project management unit has proved sluggish in carrying out the goals, authorities said, leading to the KfW recall.
“Recalling EUR200,000 in funding was a purely administrative measure, prescribed by the disbursement regulations that do not allow funds to be kept in project accounts for too long,” Pöthig said, adding that the funds are still available for later disbursement in the project.
Meanwhile, the People’s Committee of Quang Binh Province is rushing to get the project back on the right track.
During a provincial government meeting held on August 12, Nguyen Huu Hoai, chairman of the Quang Binh People’s Committee, admitted that the project management board had proven incompetent.
The provincial People’s Committee will either assign a new director to the project management unit or take the managing role from the provincial Department of Planning and Investment, Tuoi Tre newspaper cited Hoai as saying in a report issued on August 17.
On August 18, Nguyen Viet Thao, director of the project management unit, told the paper that they would follow through on their commitments to KfW, cease the use of controlled bushfires to clear the forest floor, and step up park enforcement.
The KfW had expressed concerns to Vietnamese authorities about possible poaching and illegal logging, particularly along National Road 20. Thao said those concerns are being looked into.
Thao added that park authorities are in the process of implementing a tree planting plan outlined in the KfW’s 2010 budget.
Pöthig also said they would prepare a review of the progress shortly.

This information taken from http://www.hindustantimes.com/

France's crackdown on Romas continues, hundreds deported

France today deported hundreds more Roma in defiance of growing domestic and international criticism of its crackdown on travelling minorities. Two specially chartered planes carrying Roma men, women and children left Paris's Charles de Gaulle airport and Lyon in east-central France and touched down in.

Bucharest mid-afternoon. "The police told us we could choose between leaving now, on our own accord, or be expelled by force later," said one young Roma man, who declined to be identified. "So we agreed to leave."

"For three months I could find no job, so I decided to come back to Romania," another man arriving in Bucharest, Ion Stancu, 52, said. "But, my God, what will I do for a living now, with eight grandsons to feed?" he added, tears in his eyes. Amid a country-wide crackdown that began this month after Gypsies attacked a police station, police in the northern French city of Lille also moved in at dawn to dismantle a Roma tent camp set up under an overhead railway line.

The French government said 283 Roma were being sent back on Friday, bringing the total number of Romanian and Bulgarian Roma deported so far this year to 8,313, against 7,875 expelled throughout last year.

President Nicolas Sarkozy, citing concerns about crime, began the crackdown this month on Roma and other itinerant groups known as Gypsies and travellers which has seen police rounding up foreign Roma and tearing down illegal camps. Forty-eight per cent of French people support the government's campaign, an opinion poll showed on Friday. But critics accuse the right-wing president, whose popularity is at its lowest since he came to power in 2007, of trying to regain the political initiative with a populist and racially tinged law and order message. The crackdown has sparked fierce criticism at home and abroad, with French former prime minister Dominique de Villepin saying Sarkozy's policies had left a "stain of shame" on the French flag and were a "national indignity."

A United Nations panel this month warned of mounting racism and xenophobia in France, citing the Roma evictions, and the European Union is reviewing whether the crackdown is legal. The Vatican has also criticised it. Human rights body Amnesty International joined the international condemnation on Friday, saying Sarkozy risked fuelling stigmatisation of the minority group.

This information taken from http://www.hindustantimes.com/

Viet Nam resolves to fulfil its role as chair of ASEAN

Ha Noi — Viet Nam would do its utmost to accomplish the role of ASEAN Chair in 2010, President Nguyen Minh Triet told the heads of ASEAN delegations at a reception to celebrate the success of the summit in the capital city yesterday.

President Triet expressed his high appreciation of the achievements of the association over the last four decades and more.

"ASEAN, as a common home for all its ten member states, is an important factor in ensuring peace, security, co-operation and development in the region. ASEAN has become a closely bonded and comprehensive regional organisation, winning high prestige internationally," he said.

"The association has entered a new period of development - to become an ASEAN community by 2015 with the ASEAN Charter as the guiding legal framework.

"The vision and objectives as well as the specific roadmap from now until 2015 have already been agreed by member states. The only remaining issue now is to turn signed documents into a reality", said Triet.

"In order to do this, it requires the absolute political determination and great efforts of all members".

He said in order to turn the idea of ASEAN Community into a reality, all member states must work together to enhance the specific traditional values of the association. These values are the strength and basis ensuring the continued success for the association.

Triet asked all member countries to do their best to consolidate the solidarity and unity within the association and to harmonise each country's interests with that of the bloc.

He also called on the association to be pro-active in the settlement of regional issues and in organising dialogue and co-operation in the region, to enable partners outside the region to participate and contribute to the handling of challenges to peace, security and development in Southeast Asia and the Asia-Pacific region.

"Viet Nam has enjoyed quite a few benefits since it became a member of ASEAN and the same is true for ASEAN. Viet Nam has become a part of ASEAN. A strong and unified ASEAN has an important role and position in the world, in conformity with Viet Nam's basic and long term interests. It is also the country's priority in its foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, multi-lateral and diverse relations and good neighbourliness", said Triet.

On behalf of the ASEAN delegations, the King of Brunei Haji Hassanal Bolkiah thanked the Vietnamese Government and people for their special hospitality given to them during their stay in Viet Nam.

He also took the occasion to send his best greetings to Viet Nam on the occasion of the 1,000th founding anniversary of Thang Long-Ha Noi. — VNS

General Giap's 100th birthday draws tribute

Vo Nguyen Giap is acknowledged as one of history's great generals and in honour of his 100th birthday today, Viet Nam News publishes excerpts written by Viet Nam People's Army Colonel Ho Ngoc Son that help explain his military genius.

General Giap's renown can be attributed to five major reasons:

His status as an expert in people's wars of national liberation in both Viet Nam and the world.

The war policy of the Communist Party of Viet Nam and the Ho Chi Minh Military Policy emphasised the importance of launching a comprehensive and long-lasting people's war of resistance.

People's war requires the building of an armed force consisting of guerrillas, a local army and regular army with the regular army playing the key role.

Weapons are the most important factor, yet personnel and politics are also decisive. It is important to launch guerrilla warfare combined with conventional war with tactics that use the weak to fight the strong; a small force to fight a big force, and an elite force to fight a major force.

Gen Giap conducted the people's war in Viet Nam in a very creative way. He gave the political training of his soldiers special attention. A deep love of their homeland and loyalty to the revolution ideology made the soldiers ready to sacrifice their lives for national freedom.

In addition, the solidarity between the soldiers and people was akin to that of water and fish.

Gen Giap successfully combined the military struggle with the political, economic, diplomatic and cultural struggle to achieve victories on two fronts – the war of resistance and national construction.

At the front, the Viet Nam's People's Army deployed the strategy of military and politics; armed attacks with the political struggle of the people, and agitation among enemy troops.

President Nguyen Minh Triet, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Phu Trong yesterday wished General Vo Nguyen Giap good health and longevity on his 100th birthday. The leaders showed their deep gratitude for the general and his contributions to the struggle for national liberation and re-unification, as well as national construction and defence. They affirmed the Party, State and people's determination to build the country and reach the goal of a prosperous people, a strong nation, and an equitable, democratic and civil society.

The battle could take place anywhere: the mountains, the deltas or urban areas. In the rear, the focus was on building a strong foundation for the front. The Vietnamese people's war reached a peak of the military arts. One of its major victories was that it defeated and foiled the many war strategies of the strong 20th-century imperialists.

Gen Giap's scientific ideology for the building of the armed forces was very special, creative and comprehensive.

Starting from zero, Gen Giap formed many fighting and logistics units in a poor, backward country. He was successful in gathering around him many talented people from the rank and file who were able to perform their duties well in any circumstances. Gradually, these units were built into the elite Vietnamese people's armed forces. It was the general who initiated the idea of building the Truong Son Trail, also known as the Ho Chi Minh Trail, as well as the "sea route" between northern and southern Viet Nam.

Armed forces units walked thousands of kilometres to the battle fronts. Communications and transport were very rudimentary. People were the means of supplying logistics and ammunition from the rear to the front. The logistics of the Middle Ages defeated the modern logistics of the United States and France.

Gen Giap's judgement in selecting the enemy's weakest point for attack was acute.

Gen Giap was very careful about comparing enemy strengths with that of the revolutionary forces.

He never underestimated enemy strength. His tactic was to begin with small-scale attacks. He identified the enemy's greatest weakness was that their war was unjust. They were not used to Viet Nam's climate; their knowledge of the country's geography did not match that of revolutionary forces and they did not have the support of the people. In a people's war, every one, including the old and the young, are freedom fighters. Rudimentary weapons, ranging from a piece of wood, bamboo and even paddy leaves, can be used to attack the enemy. Gen Giap always forced the enemy to change their tactics and follow his way of fighting.

The world's acknowledgement of Gen Giap as a teacher of military strategy and tactics.

Gen Giap never made mistakes in his military strategy in more than 30 years as military commander. Acting in accord with the leadership of the Communist Party of Viet Nam and directly from President Ho Chi Minh and the Politburo, he forced 10 French and US generals to commit strategic errors that led to their defeat.

The seven French generals were Philippe Leclerc, Ea'tienne Va LLuy, C. Blaijot, M. Cargentier, Delattre de Tassigny, Raoal Salan,and Henri Navarre, and the three US generals were W.C. Westmoreland, C. Abrams and F.C. Weyand.

Gen Giap studied the military doctrine of the proletarian and capital classes as well as the Soviet Union's Great Patriotic War; China's war against Japan; Clausewitz's military theory and Napoleon's battles. He successfully applied the results of his studies to the wars against the French colonialists and the US imperialists. His military and literary works have helped the world's military historians understand people's war and identify why the French and the American invaders were defeated.

Gen Giap did not attend any military schools. He learned from reality. His judgements were based on facts. His theory of "the decisive battle" in military doctrine has drawn the special attention of military strategists and researchers.

He said "We could defeat the enemy when it had large numbers of well-equipped troops. We could also defeat the enemy even when they thought that they would win the battle if we had adopted sounds tactics based in reality." His doctrine "decisive battle" at Dien Bien Phu in 1954; the "Dien Bien Phu of the air" in 1972, and the Ho Chi Minh Campaign in 1975 proved the success of his tactics.

Gen Vo Nguyen Giap's very special characteristics.

For Gen Giap homeland, the nation and the Party are the most important. He has always been alert to difficulties and challenge.

He has always put the interest of the nation and the people above all. He has done his best to narrow the divergence and contradictions so as to overcome mistakes and errors that might harm his homeland and the nation.

He is a general with genius military talent and virtue that has won him high prestige among the army and people. He has won the hearts and minds of the people, cadres and Party members.

He is a very modest man.

His contribution to the nation cannot be measured, but he has never talked about himself. He has instead spoken highly about the achievements of the people, the armed forces, the Party and President Ho.

During his reception for visiting Indian Field Marshal Me'hra in February, 1989, his guest was full of praise for him. But Gen Giap replied: "If there was no good and clear-sighted collective leadership, the people and the heroic army, we – the commanders – cannot make victories ourselves no matter how good we are."

Following President Ho's moral example, Gen Giap has lived a very simple life. His guest room is the place where he has received many important foreign delegations, yet the furniture is very simple. He takes the train to his native village and visited the Dien Bien Phu battle field by a commercial flight. He is a close friend to the people, military officers, soldiers and the people.

In the military arena, he is a decisive man, yet very democratic and humane.

In difficulty situations, Gen Giap always exhibited his intelligence and bravery and always said that on the battlefield, soldiers were the key factor in deciding victory. That's the reason he holds high the spirit of democracy. He is an active listener and respects other people's opinions. All this has helped him create strong solidarity and invincible strength in the people's war.

He is a disciplined man, but very kind and generous. He considers the soldiers and army officers as family members. He shared the sadness and happiness with his men and with the people during war. Many times he told his officers "War is not something that you can make an adventure. You should not win victory at any cost. A good commander is the one who can defeat the enemy at the lowest cost in lives. People's lives are invaluable."

Directed by President Ho and the Politburo, the Vietnamese people and their armed forces and the Vietnamese people led by Gen Giap won many resounding victories against invaders.

These victories helped change the third world and led to the collapse of old and new colonialism.

The people of five continents know Vo Nguyen Giap as a legendary general. His military genius will stand for all time.

He is an excellent disciple of President Ho, a general of the people and the eldest brother of the Viet Nam People's Army. — VNS

American photographer to exhibit Vietnam in US

American photographer Lawrence D’Attilo will hold two art exhibitions with Vietnam as their subject from August 26 to October 9 in the US.
The five art projects in the exhibitions include photography and collaborative cross media installations with music. They were put together by Lawrence D’Attilo and fellows from Vietnam and America during the artist’s four years in Vietnam from 2006 -2010.
The first exhibition’s three projects, including Time for New Women – photography with mixed media, The New Women Entrepreneurs – photography, and Hanoi Windows, as exhibited in Milan, Italy in 2007, will show in RedLine Milwaukee Time from August 26 through September.
Two other projects, Hanoi: A Portrait of a City – After One Thousand Years of History; and Ha Giang, Vietnam – Ethnic Minorities and Water Issues, will run from Sept. 7 to Oct. 9 at Crossman Gallery – UW Whitewater.
“Hanoi Windows: Inside Looking Out, Outside Looking In” was first presented in Campus Hanoi in 2006. It identifies Hanoi’s iconic life at night. Lawrence’s negative film photos about Hanoi with the city’s street sounds are displayed while music by US violinist Pamela Foard and Vietnamese composer Vu Nhat Tan plays in the background. The exhibit will feature hanging transparent photos with the accompanying sounds and will be set in a large tubular room.
Viewers can best enjoy the installation by walking through the structure so that their bodies can relate to the forms and sounds.
Ha Giang - Ethnic Minorities and Water depicts the relationship between the terrain, the weather and the water supply, which have a huge influence upon the living conditions of the tribal ethnic minorities in the mountainous province of Ha Giang, bordering China in the north.
People in the province have electricity, satellite TV, and motorbikes, but the local economy is weak. The weather is one factor that greatly influences the economy. Vietnam has two seasons: rainy and very dry. Meanwhile, productive farming in the area requires a continual supply of water throughout the year.
At high altitudes, like those of the mountainous province of Ha Giang, irrigation and water reservoirs are almost impossible, creating difficulties for farmers.
A lack of water year round means fewer crops per year. Farmers struggle to grow enough crops. There is no surplus they can sell, and therefore no income to spend on other needs.
Lawrence D’Attilio is a fine arts photographer whose work has featured various locations all over the world. He has taught various photography courses over twenty-five years at several institutions including UW Madison, Cardinal Stritch College, The Milwaukee Center for Photography, and The Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts.
His photography has been exhibited in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Milan, Chicago and Milwaukee.

Rendezvous, Rendezvous

Hanoi is a city that lends itself easily to lyrical waxing.
Voted one of the top ten winter destinations in the world by US-based Huffington Post, its calm, magnificent lakes – around 20 of them – give the city its special allure.
And there is no place more alluring than Ho Tay (West Lake) and its surroundings.
This is true even today, although the once quiet, serene place of great beauty that awakened the muse of legions of poets, music composers and painters has become a wistful memory.
For every aspect of the West Lake that has changed or disappeared over the years in the modernization rush of the last few decades, there are others that have remained unchanged.
Covering around 500ha, the West Lake continues to be home to villages growing flowers and bonsai (the Quang Ba Village, for instance); its famous old pagodas and temples are still havens of peace; and a few handicraft villages have survived.
Most of all, it has the atmosphere only places that attract people from all walks of life can have. Not too long ago, as the sun began its daily descent in the horizon, the West Lake was the place to meet for young lovers, whose locked embraces became sculptures lining the lake’s shores.
Even today, the West Lake is the most popular rendezvous in Hanoi, not just for lovers, but also for friends and family.
The lake can be “sensed” from afar, with the capital city’s charms unfolding as we approach it – the light yellow French colonial villas on Hoang Van Thu Street in Ba Dinh District and the cool breeze from the lake that releases us from the heat of the burning summer as we pass by Uncle Ho’s mausoleum.
Part of growing up
For natives, the West Lake is dearly attached to every childhood memory, every single spring, summer, autumn and winter.
In the days before every Tet (Lunar New Year), like other friends, I would go to the Quang Ba Village looking for some canh dao (cherry blossom branch) with my father. Sometimes we spent hours under the shade of the cherry blossoms talking about plans for the New Year. Traditionally, no Tet is complete without a canh dao with flowers, young leaves and buds, so that the branch continues to produce new flowers for the two weeks following Tet.
During the summer young people get together at Phu Tay Ho Temple, snack on steamed snails and pray at the temple for a fruitful new school year.
The Thanh Nien Street, which separates West Lake and the Truc Bach Lake, always teemed with dating young couples, hand in hand, deeply in love. I sometimes think the West Lake and its environs are steeped in the romantic stories of millions who have dated, hugged and kissed on its shores.
Autumn, when Hanoi acquires a magical beauty, was the time to go rowing on the lake until the sun set, and during winter, Hanoians warmed themselves up with barbequed dishes to keep the winter chill at bay.
That holiday feeling
Given its immense popularity, the West Lake area has numerous cafes, restaurants, bars and other gathering spots. Vietnam’s equivalent to Starbucks, Trung Nguyen Café, is located on a white boat floating on the lake, and there are other boats that offer dinner cruises as well.
The place gives the sense of a holiday spot far away from the city, enjoying the sun and breeze, watching people fishing on the lake’s shores, and observing the stylish attires sported by most guests.
Besides the cafés and bars, the West Lake area is also home to special dishes, like pho cuon, fried goose and many seafood dishes that the Nguyen Khac Hieu Street has become well known for.
Pho cuon is a new dish created recently by a Hanoian who was fed up of making the same bowl of pho every day. Instead of cutting the flour into long thin strips to make the noodles, he kept it like a sheet and stuffed it with beef stir-fried with garlic, mint and other herbs to make a roll served with sweet and sour sauce. Pho cuon is now served by families all around the Truc Bach Lake.
Eating a delicious, satisfying meal under willow trees, watching love birds return to their nests and listening to the bell ring in the nearby pagoda... such precious moments stay with you forever in memory.
In recent years, the area has also begun to host luxurious, up market events and establishments. On special occasions like weddings, many Hanoians choose to have guests picked up by boats and transported to the other side of the lake for a party.
A dinner for two at the InterContinental Hanoi Westlake Hotel’s Milan Restaurant gives the feeling of being in Venice, as it juts into the lake and gives you a clear view of the small boats that travel to and fro.
Watching the twilight from the 19th floor of Sofitel Hanoi with a bird’s eye view of the West Lake, the Truc Bach Lake and the Hong River is another special experience that does not come cheap. The restaurant serves oysters, barbecued meat and ice cream.
It is said that the West Lake was created when the Hong River changed its course. Later, the big lake was divided with the Thanh Nien Street running through it, creating the Truc Bach Lake.
The jewel in Hanoi’s crown, the West Lake continues to charm residents and visitors alike. Love stories are still being written on its banks, sunsets continue to enchant and in season, the lotuses cast out their enticing fragrance.

Trash, trash everywhere

It saddens me to address this issue but I don’t believe things will get better on their own. The nation’s litter problem has improved in cities but elsewhere, Vietnam’s garbage problem only seems to be getting worse.
My wife says litter and trash were discussed in class when she was a school girl in Da Nang 35 years ago! Over the years, I have witnessed some government efforts to address this matter through public information campaigns but it seems to have made little difference.
We were recently at a "resort" on Cat Ba Island and the trash on both sides of the road ran half a meter deep; even the otherwise beautiful beach sat addled with rubbish. We have a home in Hoi An and the road from the ocean in to the town is just awful with litter everywhere.
I saw a news feature on television last February about all the garbage in the water at Nha Trang. The report featured footage of tourists videotaping the trash float by. I'm sure they have never seen anything that bad before in their lives.
Given the way that the Vietnamese government is organized, the tools to solve this problem seem to be already at hand. Local Peoples' Committees have the means to organize folks to spend an odd day bagging this trash.
Perhaps the government ought to organize small-time criminals into "chain gangs" to be taken out, under armed supervision, to clean up this litter. Also, for minor offences or in lieu of monetary fines, the government may want to consider sentencing offenders to "community service" to perform work such as this.
I have loved your country and admired the Vietnamese people for their many good qualities for 45 years now, but this is one glaring issue that demands to be resolved.

Hoi An-Japan festival to feature PARO robot

The world’s most therapeutic robot PARO, produced by Japan, is expected to be presented at the Hoi An – Japan Festival 2010 held in the ancient town on August 21-23.

Visitors to the festival will have chances to carry and talk with the baby harp seal robot, which can interact with humans via tactile, light, audition, temperature and posture sensors.

Sold commercially since 2004 and certified the World's Most Therapeutic Robot by Guinness World Records, PARO was designed to have calming effects on and elicit emotional responses in patients at hospitals and nursing homes.

It also aims to help reduce stress and improve relaxation.

PARO will attend the annual festival together with two dance groups from Japan.

The seventh edition of the annual event will include a instruction session on the traditional Japanese folk art of folding papers (origami), and also offer visitors the chance to try on the traditional summer kimono (Yukata).

Vietnamese professor awarded for Austrialin defense research

A group of scientists led by Vietnamese Professor Vo Ba Ngu have won Australia’s Eureka Prize 2010 for their innovations in the field of national security.

On Wednesday, the professor accepted 10,000 AUD (US$8,960) from the Australian Ministry of Defense on behalf of a research team from the School of Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering at the University of Western Australia.

Professor Robert Clark, Australia’s chief defense scientist, said the team includes Vietnamese professor Vo Ba Tuong has developed new algorithmic methods for tracking multiple objects of interest, using less demanding computing power than traditional tracking methods.

“I congratulate Dr Ba-Ngu Vo and his colleagues for this outstanding development. It has the potential to contribute significantly to Australia's defense and national security, by making more tractable the challenges of detecting the large numbers of objects that modern sensors may typically detect,” Clark was quoted in an Australia’s Defense Department press release as saying Wednesday.

Clark said the invention, which was honored as “Outstanding Science in support of Defense or National Security,” would bring many benefits, like an increased capacity for identifying objects at longer ranges, in hazardous urban environments and for the protection of ships, aircraft and vehicles.

The invention will also prove useful in civilian applications such as traffic management, sports analysis and biomedical research, he said.

It was sponsored by the Defense Science and Technology Organization of the Defense Department.

Navibank plans to list 100 million shares in Hanoi

Nam Viet Commercial Joint-Stock Bank, the Vietnamese lender known as Navibank, plans to list 100 million shares on the Hanoi Stock Exchange as early as next month, Chairman Nguyen Vinh Tho said.
Navibank had planned to list shares on the Hanoi bourse in late June, Dau Tu Chung Khoan magazine reported April 16, citing Chief Executive Officer Le Quang Tri. The Ho Chi Minh City-based lender traded as high as VND11,000 Monday in the over-the-counter market, according to FPT Securities Joint-Stock Co.
The Southeast Asian nation’s benchmark VN Index declined 1.5 percent today to 447.92, the lowest since Dec.18. It has dropped 9.3 percent this month, the worst performance among 93 benchmarks tracked by Bloomberg.
“The outlook for the Vietnamese stock market is more positive for September than this month because earnings of listed companies in the third quarter are expected to be better,” Tho said Monday in a telephone interview.
Navibank forecasts pretax profit will double this year to VND400 billion ($20.5 million), according to Tho. Total assets may rise to VND30 trillion from more than VND19 trillion last year, he said.

Philippine typhoon death toll rises to 53

The death toll from a typhoon that hit the Philippines rose sharply to 53 Saturday, officials said, warning the number of dead could go up further with dozens of others missing days after the disaster.
In some rare good news, three fishermen were plucked by passing colleagues from waters off the Bicol region, after Typhoon Conson destroyed their boat on Tuesday, an army statement quoted survivor Victor Bordeos as saying.
“Our boat capsized and (was) torn in half during the height of the storm,” Bordeos said.
Eight other members of the crew are among 43 people still missing in the typhoon-prone waters southeast of Manila, regional army spokesman Major Harold Cabunoc said.
Air force helicopters and navy aircraft are combing the calming seas to find the missing, he added.
Conson struck the main island of Luzon including the capital Manila with surprising ferocity overnight Tuesday after state weather forecasters incorrectly predicted that the typhoon would hit further north.

Transaction tax may cool China housing: PBOC adviser

Higher taxes on property transactions would do more than a property tax to curb speculation, an influential Chinese policy maker said in an editorial published on Saturday, in which he advocated maintaining current cooling measures in the second half.
Xia Bin called for a continuation of measures imposed in the first half of the year, in order to counter “suspicion” in the market over whether China is firmly committed to current policies, in an op-ed in the Financial News.

Apple chief says iPhone issues overblown

Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Computer Inc., speaks during a press conference regarding the Apple iPhone 4 reception problems at the Apple headquarters, on July 16.

 

Apple chief executive Steve Jobs said that reception problems with the new iPhone 4 have been overblown but apologized to buyers who experienced issues and offered free cases as a fix.
Jobs, speaking at a press conference for a select group of journalists at Apple headquarters, said other smartphones have antenna problems similar to those reported with the latest iPhone model.
“We’re not perfect,” Jobs said. “Phones aren’t perfect either.”

The New Hanoian and Infoshare offer expat arrivals to the capital a road map to the essentials

Elliot Price meets with the managing director of Club Opera. The restaurant’s management hopes to be featured in The New Hanoian. Price, a 35-year-old American, co-founded this popular online forum in 2005, where users can post free job listings, classified ads and write their own reviews of favorite spots around town.

In 2004, Elliot Price left an English language teaching job in Taiwan and came to Hanoi. He was impressed with the city’s glut of booming businesses, but he didn’t know which ones to go to.
In general, he found the city lacking in online English-language resources for new-arrivals.
He wanted a directory of destinations popular with locals and long-time residents. At the time, all that was available were tourist handbooks like Lonely Planet...

Thao wins Youth Olympics taekwondo silver

 
Taekwondo martial artist Nguyen Thanh Thao won silver in the girls’ 55kg category at the first Youth Olympic Games in Singapore, losing to Briton Jones Jade on Tuesday.
The 17-year-old martial artist from Wales led three to one after the first round of the final contest, but Thao, also 17, fought back to draw level after the second round.

German bank backs out of Vietnam preservation project

 

The sponsor of a project to preserve the Phong Nha – Ke Bang reserve with world-famous caves has asked for its money back because of poor management.

German banking group KfW had pledged 12.6 million euros (US$16 million) to preserve and manage natural resources at the Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, a UNESCO world natural heritage site in the central province of Quang Binh, for a project that opened in October 2008.

Bill Gates' favorite teacher

FORTUNE -- Sal Khan, you can count Bill Gates as your newest fan. Gates is a voracious consumer of online education. This past spring a colleague at his small think tank, bgC3, e-mailed him about the nonprofit khanacademy.org, a vast digital trove of free mini-lectures all narrated by Khan, an ebullient, articulate Harvard MBA and former hedge fund manager. Gates replied within minutes. "This guy is amazing," he wrote. "It is awesome how much he has done with very little in the way of resources." Gates and his 11-year-old son, Rory, began soaking up videos, from algebra to biology. Then, several weeks ago, at the Aspen Ideas Festival in front of 2,000 people, Gates gave the 33-year-old Khan a shout-out that any entrepreneur would kill for. Ruminating on what he called the "mind-blowing misallocation" of resources away from education, Gates touted the "unbelievable" 10- to 15-minute Khan Academy tutorials "I've been using with my kids." With admiration and surprise, the world's second-richest person noted that Khan "was a hedge fund guy making lots of money." Now, Gates said, "I'd say we've moved about 160 IQ points from the hedge fund category to the teaching-many-people-in-a-leveraged-way category. It was a good day his wife let him quit his job." Khan wasn't even there -- he learned of Gates' praise through a YouTube video. "It was really cool," Khan says.
In an undistinguished ranch house off the main freeway of Silicon Valley, in a converted walk-in closet filled with a few hundred dollars' worth of video equipment and bookshelves and his toddler's red Elmo underfoot, is the epicenter of the educational earthquake that has captivated Gates and others. It is here that Salman Khan produces online lessons on math, science, and a range of other subjects that have made him a web sensation.

Khan Academy, with Khan as the only teacher, appears on YouTube and elsewhere and is by any measure the most popular educational site on the web. Khan's playlist of 1,630 tutorials (at last count) are now seen an average of 70,000 times a day -- nearly double the student body at Harvard and Stanford combined. Since he began his tutorials in late 2006, Khan Academy has received 18 million page views worldwide, including from the Gates progeny. Most page views come from the U.S., followed by Canada, England, Australia, and India. In any given month, Khan says, he's reached about 200,000 students. "There's no reason it shouldn't be 20 million."
His low-tech, conversational tutorials -- Khan's face never appears, and viewers see only his unadorned step-by-step doodles and diagrams on an electronic blackboard -- are more than merely another example of viral media distributed at negligible cost to the universe. Khan Academy holds the promise of a virtual school: an educational transformation that de-emphasizes classrooms, campus and administrative infrastructure, and even brand-name instructors.
Quick, free, and easy to understand
Distance learning and correspondence courses have been around since the invention of mail. And private, for-profit schools flourish; the University of Phoenix has half a million students enrolled, most of them online. Other private operations, like the Teaching Co., specialize in amalgamating "great courses" from nationally known teachers: the 12-hour Game Theory in Life, Business, and Beyond, from one academic star, costs $254.95 on DVD.
What's remarkable about Khan Academy, aside from its nonpareil word of mouth and burgeoning growth, is that it's free and prizes brevity. Remember your mumbling macroeconomics teacher whose 50-minute monologue in a large auditorium could bore the dead? That isn't Khan. He rarely cracks wise -- if you want shtick, check out Darth Vader trying to teach Euclidean geometry on YouTube ("The Pythagorean theorem is your destiny!") -- but in less than 15 minutes Khan gets to the essence of the topics he's carved out.

0:00 /4:35Mickelson tees off better teaching

Online critics question whether he amounts to a dilettante who's turning learning into pedagogical McNuggets. But while you obviously don't learn calculus in one session -- the subject is divided into 191 parts, which doesn't include 32 more in precalc -- Khan's components seem to hit the sweet spot of length and substance. And he covers an astonishing array. There are the core subjects in math -- arithmetic, geometry, algebra, trigonometry, calculus, and statistics -- and the de rigueur science offerings, like biology, chemistry, and physics. But Khan also gives lessons in Economics of a Cupcake Factory, the Napoleonic Wars, and the Alien Abduction Brain Teaser.
The seeds of education
Like so many entrepreneurial epiphanies, Khan's came by accident. Born and raised in New Orleans -- the son of immigrants from India and what's now Bangladesh -- Khan was long an academic star. With his MBA from Harvard, he has three degrees from MIT: a BS in math and a BS and a master's in electrical engineering and computer science. He also was the president of his MIT class and did volunteer teaching in nearby Brookline for talented children, as well as developed software to teach children with ADHD. What he doesn't know he picks up from endless reading and cogitation: His gift, like that of many teachers, is being able to reduce the complex. "Part of the beauty of what he does is his consistency," says Gates. Of Khan's capacity to teach, Gates, who says he spends considerable time trying to help his three kids learn the basics of math and science, tells Fortune, "I kind of envy him."
In the summer of 2004, while still living in Boston, Khan learned that his seventh-grader cousin, Nadia, in New Orleans was having trouble in math class converting kilograms. He agreed to remotely tutor her. Using Yahoo Doodle software as a shared notepad, as well as a telephone, Nadia thrived -- so much so that Khan started working with her brothers, Ali and Arman. Word spread to other relatives and friends. Khan wrote JavaScript problem generators to keep up a supply of practice exercises. But between their soccer practices, his job, and multiple time zones, scheduling became impossible. "I started to record videos on YouTube for them to watch at their own pace," Khan recalls. Other users tuned in, and the blueprint for Khan Academy was created.
Khan continued to work for the small hedge fund he had joined after Harvard, Wohl Capital Management. He said he took away "under $1 million" before the Silicon Valley-based hedge fund wound down, and briefly started his own fund in mid-2008, which didn't really get off the ground because of the financial crisis. ("I called it Khan Capital," he says, "but it never got much beyond 'Khan's Capital.'") He used his nest egg to buy a house with his wife, Umamia, a rheumatology fellow at Stanford Medical School, and as a reserve when he gave up his investment career. On a typical day he tapes a few tutorials, answers posts from students, calls experts when he's stuck on how best to explicate a concept, and fields queries from curious potential backers.
He maintains he has no interest in monetizing the operation by charging subscriptions or selling ads. "I already have a beautiful wife, a hilarious son, two Hondas, and a decent house," he declares on his website. But that hasn't stopped the inquiries, the most notable from John Doerr, the Silicon Valley venture capitalist, and his wife, Ann. Not long ago a PayPal donation on Khan's site came in for $10,000 (a typical gift is $100). Khan e-mailed the donor. Her name was Ann Doerr. He knew of a John Doerr but just assumed the name was more popular than he realized. He e-mailed her to say thanks. She suggested lunch.
When they met, Ann Doerr told him she couldn't believe hers was the largest donation. "This is, like, criminal," she said. "I love what you're doing." When he got home, he found a message from her: "There's $100,000 in the mail."
Khan is using that money to pay himself a salary. Later, he met John Doerr and has since relied on both Doerrs for entrée to others in the philanthropic establishment. After Gates mentioned Khan in Aspen, John tweeted it to his Silicon Valley legions. In July the academy received another $100,000 -- from John McCall MacBain, a Canadian entrepreneur who made a fortune in publishing. "If I had a million dollars," Khan says, he'd fund software development of more automated problem sets and extensive translations of his videos. Gates, whose foundation spends $700 million a year on U.S. education, plans to talk to Khan soon as well.
An academy or a library?
Khan has his skeptics in the education business. They don't doubt he means well and is helping students, but they question the broad impact of any tutorial that doesn't test performance or allow student-teacher discussion. "It's a solid supplemental resource, particularly for motivated students," says Jeffrey Leeds, president of Leeds Equity Partners, the largest U.S. private equity firm specializing in for-profit education. "But it's not an academy -- it's more of a library."
But Khan intends nothing less than "tens of thousands" of tutorials offering the "first free, world-class virtual school where anyone can learn anything." The advances envisioned by Leeds and others wouldn't hurt either. The education industry can use all the innovation it can find. 

State tax hikes could go too far

The teacher who spends $1,000 on her kids

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Vicky Halm spends a $1,000 a year out of her own pocket to equip her Brooklyn classroom. She buys star stickers to help motivate her students, but she also spends a great deal on basic supplies -- such as pencils and paper -- that the parents in her area cannot afford.
In years past she would get some of that reimbursed from the Teacher's Choice fund. But this year, the New York City Council hacked the pot back to just $9.2 million, down almost 30% from last year's allocation. That breaks down to just $110 per teacher -- or roughly $4 per student per year.

"Even before the cut, the amount was a joke," said Halm, who has been a special education teacher for nearly three decades. "But knowing me, I'll spend more of my own money. But it's getting tough, and I may have to cut back because we haven't gotten a raise in a few years, and things are tight."
Halm is not alone. A whopping 97% of teachers frequently dip into their own pockets to purchase necessary classroom supplies, according to a national survey conducted by Kelton Research.
Last year, teachers spent more than $350 on average from their own income on school supplies and instructional materials, according to the National School Supply and Equipment Association, and experts say that number could jump as teachers embark on the new school year with fewer funds to spend.

What 6 teachers spend on their students

Shriveled budgets have pushed government officials to make cuts so deep that the remaining teachers are digging deeper into their own pockets with hopes that their students won't feel the pinch.
"The downfall of the economy has meant severe reductions in education across the board, including resources devoted to classroom activities," said Al Campos of the National Education Association. "They're not required to, but teachers will pay out of their own pockets to make sure their students have the supplies they need to receive a quality education."
The fact that New York City teachers are getting even $110 is shocking to some, considering that the Teacher's Choice fund was slated for elimination all together.
"In once sense, I'm proud to say we were able keep $9.2 million despite this being a terrible economic year the city," said council member Daniel Dromm, who was an elementary school teacher in Queens for 18 years before being elected to council last year. "But as a former teacher, I empathize with them. The council knows the amount is not even close to how much teachers need, but we want to show that we appreciate everything they layout."
Parents are also strapped for cash, so asking them to buy extra supplies isn't an option either, said Ruby Sheets, a third grade teacher at a dual language school in Brooklyn.
"In areas that are more affluent, teachers can get away with asking parents to pay for school trips, or supply paper and tissues for the classroom," said Sheets, who has been a teacher for 10 years. "In our neighborhood and in this economy, the situation is more difficult, and we can't ask our students to supplement what we can't provide."
Sheets spends about $1,000 each year to ensure there are enough resources for her students, but also applies for grants at online charity DonorsChoose.org, which allows individual donors to funnel money directly into classroom supplies.

0:00 /1:56New teachers see fewer openings

Teachers are also having to decide whether they can pay for textbooks and field trips because a majority of schools across the country are not buying news books right now and are eliminating field trips, according to a study by the American Association of School Administrators, which surveyed more 450 school administrators across 45 states.
"This recession has had disastrous effects and is limiting our ability to adequately ready our children for the future," Campos said. "Teachers will continue to pay out of their pockets to provide their students with a quality education, but it will become more challenging as budgets continue to dwindle and salaries and benefits are cut."
In Alabama, school districts are trying to cut costs elsewhere to help teachers through the crisis. In this state, teachers will go a second straight year without a stipend for classroom supplies, which last stood at $400 per teacher.
"We cut everyone's budget at the central office building by half and said the teachers need this help," said Nez Calhoun, spokeswoman for Alabama's Jefferson County school district.
Still, overall supply budgets at those schools remain tight, and teachers continue to spend their own money.
"Students are distracted by televisions, gaming systems and computers at home, so as their teachers, we're competing for their attention and have to find creative ways to make them enthusiastic about coming to school and learning," said Kathy Casaday, a first grade teacher at the county's Gardendale Elementary who spends about $400 on her classroom.
Gardendale Elementary has delayed replacing student computers and purchasing multimedia projectors and interactive white boards for classrooms for two years, said principal Ellen Andrews, who also spends about a $1,000 year from her own paycheck to help her school's teachers out with classroom supplies and materials.