Social News 28/6 Fire at night kills 4 in Dong Nai Four members of a family including two children died in a fire early this morning in the southern province of Dong Nai. The tragedy occurred in Tân Biên Ward, Biên Hoà City. Witnesses said the fire started at around 2.30am when an explosion was heard in the house of 59-year-old Ðoàn Th? Liên. The house was also the location of the Hi?p Anh Nh?t Trade and Service Company Ltd, which reportedly traded in refrigeration products. Many washing machines, fridges and air-conditioners are said to have been stored in the property. With buildings densely packing the area, the house had just one exit, it is reported. When the fire broke out, there were six people inside: Liên, her son, daughter in law and three children. The son and one of the children escaped via the roof top, but the others perished in the fire. Neighbours said they tried in vain to help. “When we ran towards the explosion, we saw her house engulfed in flames,” a witness said. “We tried to break open the door to rescue the people inside but failed,” he added. The city’s fire police arrived at the scene immediately and the fire was extinguished after two hours. The house was completely destroyed in the fire. So far, the cause of the fire is unclear. Vietnam, Cambodia provinces to open more border gates   Moc Bai international Border Gate in Tay Ninh. An agreement to open four more pairs of auxiliary border gates has recently been signed between authorities of the southern province of Tay Ninh and its neighbouring Cambodian province of Svay Rieng. The new pairs of border gates are Vam Trang Trau-Dong, Long Phuoc-Prey Ta Ey, Phuoc Chi-Brasat, and Hoa Hiep-Khser Dek. The two provinces will submit their request on the opening of these auxiliary border gates to their relevant agencies for approval. Tay Ninh and four border provinces of Cambodia have to date opened two international border gates on the common borderline, namely Moc Bai and Xa Mat, four main and 14 auxiliary border gates. About one million passengers pass through border gates between Tay Ninh and Cambodian provinces each year. Toll booths to be fined for long delays Toll booths across the country that force drivers to suffer through long delays will face fines starting August 1. The fines are called for in a new decree, number 46/2016/NÐ-CP, specifying administrative fines on roads and railways and issued by the Government last month. Accordingly, toll booths will be subjected to a punishment of VNÐ8-10 million (US$350-450) if 100 to 150 cars are in line waiting to pay their tolls, or the queue reaches 750 to 1,000 metres long. The punishment will also be enforced if drivers report they have to wait ten to twenty minutes to pay tolls. In case the line of vehicles is more than 2km long, or there are more than 200 vehicles lined up or the waiting time is over thirty minutes, the highest penalty of VNÐ30-40 million ($1,350-1,800) will be collected from the toll both management board. The fining of toll collectors aims to reduce traffic jams at toll booths on many routes, especially those which are heavily used in Vietnam. Despite having taken several measures, such as investments in road expansions, opening more gates to collect fees or mobilising more workers at toll booths, the situation does not seem to have improved. Further, manual fee collections might longer be feasible, since the number of vehicles travelling on highways has significantly increased. Transportation experts suggested installing non-stop toll systems or electronic toll collection (ETC) systems to help end delays and reduce costs. The transport ministry plans to install ETCs at all toll booths nationwide starting in 2020. ETCs have been installed at three toll stations, in Qu?ng Bình, Ngh? An and Ð?k L?k provinces, on a trial basis. Phu Yen asked to focus more on industrial development President Tran Dai Quang suggested Phu Yen continuously expanding industry and construction, as determined in its economic restructuring plan developed for this year. He heard that in the first six months of this year, industry and construction grew to account for 36.1 percent of the southern central coastal province’s economy during a working session with local authorities in June 27. Noting the locality’s advantageous 200km coastline, the President advised the authorities to turn tourism into a spearhead sector, through broader connectivity with other regional localities. The locality should give more support to small and medium-sized enterprises as well as handicraft production facilities and trade villages and speed up the construction of transport infrastructure, he said. Phu Yen should exert more efforts to make Nam Phu Yen economic zone one of the major industrial centres and sea ports in the southern central and Central Highlands regions, the leader stressed. He encouraged the application of scientific and technological advances into increasing the quality of agro-forestry and fishery products and the development of value chains, initially in the fishing of tuna. Besides investing more in agriculture and rural areas in line with the building of new-style rural development, Phu Yen should also mobilise resources for the construction of irrigation and water supply systems serving production and daily use, especially in areas affected by drought and saltwater intrusion, he added. President Tran Dai Quang asked Phu Yen to pay heed to building the transparent, effective and friendly political system and modern administration, while continuing realising the Party’s resolutions on Party building and studying and following President Ho Chi Minh’s moral example. The province should also strengthen communication work on the protection of national sovereignty over sea and islands, associating it with the implementation of projects to upgrade offshore fishing boats and fishery logistics ships. Phu Yen recorded a GDP growth of 8.4 percent in 2015 and 7.9 percent in the first six months of this year. The locality’s average per capita income reached 32.8 million VND (1,467 USD) in 2015. Ethnic minority groups have been offered effective support policies, while social security and defence have been ensured. During the working session, Phu Yen leaders proposed that the Government design specific support policies for the province to attract more investments and help local fishermen engage more in the protection of sea and islands. They also asked for more assistance in implementing defence-security projects in line with socio-economic development, as well as more central investments in climate change response and natural disaster prevention and relief. E-portal helps strengthen Vietnamese community in France Foyer Vietnam, also known as “Vietnamese House” – a venue for many Vietnamese cultural events in Paris, opened its e-portal on June 27. Addressing the launching ceremony, President of the Foyer Vietnam Association Nguyen Binh said Foyer Vietnam is a familiar destination for Vietnamese and French friends who love the Southeast Asian nation. He noted that the initiative to turn Foyer Vietnam into an offline and online gathering venue has been realised after three years. The portal will update information about events and projects regarding the Vietnamese community in France, and other relevant associations, while guiding how to getoptain a visa, among other functions. Binh said the portal will continue to perfect its software to become a forum for the Vietnamese community in France. Around 300,000 Vietnamese people are living and working in the country. Hung Yen: Forum targets safe life for children Up to 200 children in the northern province of Hung Yen sent messages on a safe life at a forum held on June 27 by the municipal Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs. Through plays and photos, the children, representing 300,000 of their peers in the locality, expressed their desire for a life filled with love. They also raised questions regarding food safety, environmental hygiene, school violence and traffic accidents for heads of the local departments and agencies. Hung Yen province aims to reduce the rate of accidental injuries among children to 150 per 100,000 kids and deaths caused by accidents to 10 per 100,000 kids by 2020. Accidental injuries among children is a pressing problem around the world, especially in Vietnam, where the rate of accidental injuries and deaths is among the highest worldwide. By 2020, the Vietnamese Governments wants at least 90 percent of children to use buoyancy aids while travelling on waterways, and public pools and beaches to have safety licences. Gia Lai Province celebrates National Family Day The Pleiku City Women’s Union and Department of Culture and Information held a cooking competition in the central province of Gia Lai to celebrate Việt Nam’s National Family Day which falls on June 28. The Gia Đình Cùng Vào Bếp (Whole Family Cooks Together) cooking competition drew the participation of 24 families representing households from 23 communes in the city. Each contestant cooked a nutritious meal for ten people at a total cost of less than VNĐ400,000 ($18). One first prize, two second prizes, two third prizes and 18 consolation prizes were awarded to groups of participants. Hội Phú Commune’s Women’s Union won the highest prize. The event promotes Việt Nam’s National Family Day and fosters relationships among family members, helping to build well-off, equal, progressive and happy families. Nearly 13,000 volunteers join hands to support university entrants The Hanoi Municipal Youth Union on June 26 launched the 2016 Exam Season Support Programme, attracting nearly 13,000 volunteers throughout the city. The volunteers will be present at bus stations, train stations and 104 exam venues across the city to provide optimal conditions for exam candidates and their family members. They will provide university entrants with travel maps and useful information on the exams and cheap lodgment as well as distribute free meals and drinks. They will also support functional agencies to maintain social order and traffic safety at exam venues. Supporting activities will be held from June 29 to July 5 and from August 30 to September 5, as new students are starting the new school year. Hanoi city is scheduled to welcome 75,000 entrants and their family members during the 2016 national university entrant examinations. Vietnamese culture introduced at German festival Vietnam’s traditional long dress and conical hat dance appeared as part of the “Parade der Kulturen” (cultural parade) which aimed to establish a connection between different cultures in Frankfurt, Germany on June 25. Those stellar performances, made by the Vietnamese association in Mainz and Vietnamese students association in Frankfurt, nudged a hospitable and peaceful Vietnam closer to the international friends. A large-sized map affirming Vietnam’s ownership over Truong Sa (Spratly) and Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelagos also accompanied Vietnamese delegation during the parade. The “Parade der Kulturen” has been organised by the Frankfurter Judendring together with its 29 youth associations and other 100 organisations since 2003. Along with helping German people get a deeper understanding of other cultures, the event also creates cultural diversity in the city, making it easier for foreign residents to deeply integrate in various realms in the host nation. US hospital helps Hanoi counterpart in professional training The US’s Mayo Clinic will help Hanoi-based Saint Paul General Hospital with training in applying stem cell transplant to cure a number of conditions under a recently signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The MoU was inked during a working trip to Vietnam by a group of US medical professors, led by Patrick B. Johnston from Mayo Clinic’s Hematology Department. Under the MoU, US professors will give lectures in Vietnam while Saint Paul’s doctors and nurses will be sent to study in Mayo Clinic. Along with helping Vietnam to set up an international standard stem cell transplant centre, the US experts will transfer techniques on stem cell transplant application to hematology and blood transfusion, orthopedic and neurosurgery. The two sides will also work together in the fields of screening, medical check-ups and giving treatments in Hanoi. Patients will also be examined and sent to the US for treatment. More satellite hospitals to be built The Ministry of Health has approved the inclusion of several more hospitals to the ‘Satellite Hospitals’ project in the period of 2016-2020, as heard a conference on implementing the project in Hanoi on May 25. New hospitals to join the list are the National Hospital of Endocrinology, the Thong Nhat Hospital and the hospitals of HCM City and Hanoi Medical Universities. With the addition, the number of nucleus hospitals in the project increased to 22 with 98 satellite hospitals. The Hanoi-based Bach Mai Hospital has the most satellite hospitals, 23. Associate Prof. Dr.Luong Ngoc Khue, Head of the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment under the MoH, recommended nucleus hospitals to review recommendations from satellite hospitals in order to reach agreement on contents for assistance in terms of professional training in the period 2016-2020. Khue emphasized the importance of the project to reducing overloads at central-level hospitals and improving medical services in localities, saying it is the health sector’s top priority. Korean coach shares experiences in training young footballers Head of the technical committee in the Korea Football Association (KFA) Hwangbo Kwan is to talk with representatives from football clubs on June 27-28 in Hanoi to discuss orientations for training young footballers in Vietnam. The event co-hosted by the Vietnam Football Federation(VFF) and the Viettel Sports Centre aims to help developthe Vietnam football among young people in a professional and scientific manner.   During the seminar, Mr Hwangbo Kwan will present a roadmap to develop young talents from Song Lam Nghe An (SLNA), Hoang Anh Gia Lai (HAGL), PVF and Viettel and also share practical experiences in selecting and training young footballers. Mr HwangboKwan was born in 1965 and once famed former footballer in the Republic of Korea. He used to participate in the World Cup 1990 and scored a goal for the RoK team in a match against Spain. After leaving his football career 20 years ago, he has worked as a football coach and currently holds the post as the head of the technical committee in the KFA. Concert celebrates President Ho Chi Minh's journey for national salvation A concert will be held on Nguyen Hue Pedestrian Street in downtown Ho Chi Minh City on July 3 to mark the 105th anniversary of President Ho Chi Minh's journey abroad to seek ways to liberate the country (June 5) from French colonialists and the 40th anniversary of the day when Saigon-Gia Dinh named  after Ho Chi Minh President. A large number of artists across the nation will gather at the big-scale art program, such as Meritorious Artist Thanh Thuy, Anh Bang, Phuong Thanh, Thu Minh, Ho Ngoc Ha, Duc Tuan, Ho Trung Dung, Vo Ha Tram and among. The event will also include a Ao dai fashion show by designer Thuan Viet. The music show will be broadcast live on channels, HTV9, HTV1, and HTV4 by the Ho Chi Minh City Television. Hanoi pays supervision to private medical clinics To tighten management on activities of private medical clinics in Hanoi, city Health Department yesterday asked these facilities must publicize the practical certificates of doctors and nurses. The list of the private institutes’ doctors and nurses as well as the Department of Health’s hot line (043.998.5765) must be placed in easy-to-see position in the clinics where health inspectors and patients can see. The local health agencies will check how private medical clinics to carry out the Health Department's requirement. Since now on, the department will pay regular visits to these private medical clinics which are located near public hospitals. Additionally, health officials will check private medical rooms in doctors’ house, pharmacies and pharmaceutical companies. Through supervision, health inspectors will address and instruct private clinics to observe regulation in providing treatment and selling medicine. Moreover, inspectors will issue penalties such as administrative fines, revoking practical certificates, business certificates if they detect violations. Director of the Department of Health Nguyen Khac Hien said that currently, Hanoi has 29 private hospitals and 2,736 medical clinics and thousands of pharmacies. These facilities provided treatment to patients accordingly helping reducing pressure on public hospitals. However, last time some of them violated regulations causing threats to patients’ lives. Workshop held to set-up environmental monitoring for Hanoi The Hanoi municipal People's Committee organised a workshop themed ‘Building environmental monitoring for Hanoi’ on June 26, with the participation of leading experts on environmental treatment from Germany. Hanoi currently has two groups which are building monitoring systems for the Nhue and Day Rivers, and which are soon to be handed over to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment; in addition to six monitoring stations. Recently, Hanoi has invested in vehicle mobile, air monitoring and wastewater monitoring stations, located in the solid waste treatment area in Nam Son District, Soc Son District and Xuan Son District, Son Tay town. Over the next period, 20 air monitoring stations automatically fixed and sponsored by the France will be received. It is expected that from 2017 to 2020, Hanoi will continue to invest in gas effluent monitoring stations, automatically at the industrial parks and zones. Addressing the workshop, Chairman of Hanoi People’s Committee Nguyen Duc Chung said that Hanoi will offer priority for solutions synchronizing and improving basic environmental conditions, as well as tight management solutions for dealing with the environment in the locality on the field of socio-economic development. Chairman Chung suggested the German environmental expert group to help build monitoring systems for automatic monitoring air and water as well as provide support in human resource training. He affirmed that Hanoi will consider mechanisms to mobilize investments. "This is one of the urgent tasks of Hanoi, that must be done this year, so that these systems can offer synced solutions for the City, and provide practical solutions to specify how to ensure the Capital's clean environment and sustainability," he stressed. On behalf of the German group, Doctor Friedhelm Schroeder affirmed that the group will spend one month to survey Hanoi’s environment. Binh Thanh district protects century old villa from demolishment The People’s Committee of Binh Thanh district, Ho Chi Minh City has asked the owner of a century old villa in No Trang Long street to stop demolishing it after receiving information from an official. Mr. Pham Tran Hai, deputy head of Urban Management Department under the HCMC Institute for Development Studies, has telephoned the committee and the Sai Gon Giai Phong (Liberation Saigon) Newspaper to inform the case. The beautiful villa is fully deserving of being ranked among group 1 of villas with outstanding architectural values in need of preservation, he stated. According to regulations at the city People’s committee's Document 3606 on October 19, 2006, demolishment of old villas must be approved in writing by the commitee's chairman. Arriving at the villa, SGGP saw it completely unroofed and some walls demolished. Fortunately, skillfully carved pillars have been untouched. Local citizens said that the villa has been sold to a new owner who rarely comes there. Twenty years ago, HCMC leaders assigned a group of architects led by Dr. Le Quang Ninh to study and select architectural works in need of conservation in the city. Afterwards, they selected 108 works including many villas built during the time of French domination. The city’s leaders at that time offered a certificate of merit to the group for their excellent work, Mr. Ninh told SGGP. However the study has stopped at a scientific document on the city’s architecture. The villa preservation continued to be debated with many ideas in 2005. However everything just halted at study level, said associate professor Nguyen Trong Hoa, former head of the institute and former director of the city’s Department of Planning and Architecture. Many seminars and meetings were hosted to build norms to estimate and classify old villas in April last year. The norms have been sent to get opinions from authorized agencies and experts. They will be submitted to the city People’s Committee for approval in the next 1-2 weeks. Statistics by the Department of Construction show that HCMC now has over 1,000 old villas. Because there have no estimation norms, demolishment of each villas must be approved by the city People’s Committee chairman. The process is tight but handling result is asynchronous and sometimes raises queries and complaints from related individuals and organizations, said Mr. Hoa. Czech man builds veggie garden on HCM City rooftop A Czech man has been renting a rooftop of a building in Ho Chi Minh City to set up his own green vegetable garden. Honza Frinta, who is from the Czech Republic, spends an average of eight hours on a daily basis taking care of a veggie garden which he has built on the rooftop of the Fablab Saigon building on Nguyen Van Dau Street, Binh Thanh District. Frinta first came to Vietnam in 2010 to work for a multinational corporation. His ‘office’ was moved to the little garden in early 2016. Renting a space about four square meters in area, the foreigner started his business as a vegetable farmer with two systems of hydroponics that grow several types of greens, tomatoes, cucumbers, and beans. Honza Frinta takes care of his vegetable garden on the rooftop of a building in Ho Chi Minh City. Staring his usual working day at 9:00 am, Frinta replaces the water of the farming system, checks the temperature, pH level, and content of solutes in the water, and nurtures his plants while performing his office tasks mainly on the phone. Gardening is a hobby and joy, the foreign farmer said, adding that it is great to see the plants grow each day. Frinta stated that his farming method does not require much space and water while minimizing the amount of waste. He initially contacted several professional businesses to help him build his hydroponic systems but later decided to construct everything himself due to the high cost. After researching online, Frinta purchased necessary items and built a homemade version of the system. The first structure took the Czech man nearly a month to establish while the second set only took five to six days, he recalled, adding that he spent VND10 million (US$451) on the material, half of what he would need to pay if hiring a firm. Frinta is very meticulous in his work, evidenced by a notebook in which he jotted down specific items and volumes of minerals in the water. His plants are grown in plastic pipes placed in many levels, with water being pumped from a container into the pipes. Cucumbers and tomatoes are grown on the top rows enjoying plenty of sunrays while pipes at the lower levels are used to plant vegetables with fewer requirements for daylight. Several plants have turned yellow, Frinta stated, before adding that he would figure out the reason. This would not frustrate him, the ‘farmer’ said, as gardening always brings him peace. Frinta expressed his hope that all rooftops in Ho Chi Minh City would one day be covered with the green color of veggie gardens similar to his. Vietnamese fishermen find pilot's seat from missing fighter jet Vietnamese authorities have confirmed that an object salvaged by local fishermen is the pilot's seat from the Su-30 MK2 fighter jet that went down off Vietnam's central coast. On June 26 morning, fisherman Nguyen Van Son and his crew found the object in waters between the provinces of Thanh Hoa and Nghe An caught in their nets near the sea bed. “The object looked like the missing Su-30 pilot's seat so we sent it to the commune’s People Committee” fisherman Son said. Chairman of the Hai Ninh People's Committee Le Dinh Phuong said that at 10 a.m., representatives of Ministry of National Defense's Regiment 923 had confirmed it was Lieutenant Colonel Tran Quang Khai's seat, who was found dead at sea after the incident. His body was recovered by a border guard vessel on June 17 after a four day search off Vietnam's central coast. On June 23, search teams said they had pinpointed the exact location of the crash site 10 days after it went missing. Speeding, overloaded trucks terrorize northern Vietnamese province In recent months, highways across the northern province of Hai Duong have become inundated with high-capacity trucks using the roads to detour away from toll collection stations while they barrel through at breakneck speeds. Truckers aiming to avoid toll collection stations are wreaking havoc on localities across Hai Duong City, the heart and hub of the province. Traveling through the densely populated neighborhoods at breakneck speeds, the drivers are forced to make sudden sharp turns as they weave through residential areas, thus putting lives of fellow drivers, motorcyclists, and pedestrians at risk. When the trucks pass by, cars and motorcyclists have to come to a sudden halt in order to avoid getting hit. Five fatal accidents occurred on 391 Provincial Highway in the first four months of 2016, leaving four area residents dead and a fifth injured. There were no accidents on the road during the same period last year. To curb the accidents, local authorities have banned trucks from accessing the road during rush hour, but it seems to have been a futile attempt. Nguyen Van Hieu, 70, residing in Thach Khoi Ward, lamented that the recklessly speeding trucks terrify both children and adults, forcing parents to keep their kids away from playing on the sidewalks. He added the bedrooms on his second floor have not been used for several months due to the tremors triggered by the rumbling vehicles, leading his entire family to crowd into the living room on the first floor for sleeping space. “The speeding vans often skid to an abrupt halt at night, causing a ruckus and waking everyone from their sleep,” said Hieu’s wife, who has experienced considerable weight loss due to sleep deprivation brought about by the thunderous trucks. The number of passing trucks has skyrocketed from a few to a thousand each day since the drivers discovered this alternative route, Hieu observed. Arteries sustaining the most damage from the increase in trucks include National Highway 38 (the section from National Highway 5 leading to the northern province of Bac Ninh), Provincial Highway 391, October 30 Avenue (in Hai Duong City) and roads No. 206, 179 and 379 in the neighboring province of Hung Yen. Dang Thi Hoanh, a 56-year-old resident in Hai Tan Ward, complained that the monstrous vehicles have disrupted her family’s life for the past six months. Meanwhile, locals in La Giang Hamlet in Tu Ky District, where Provincial Highway 391 snakes through, still distinctly remember a tragic accident which killed a pregnant woman, and another in which a tractor trailer was turned upside while trying to bend a sharp curve. “If not for a large pothole that forced the truck to decelerate, we don’t know what would have happened to houses near the road. An elderly woman got hit and had her leg broken while walking in the street in another incident,” Vu Thi Loan, another resident, said. Locals also have to leave their doors and windows closed both day and night to avoid dust sent into the air from construction materials that fall off the trucks using the roads. Their houses are victims of the ‘terror strikers’ that rumble past, with many cracked by constant shaking and noise. Shops lining the roads, particularly eateries and beverage stalls, have suffered heavily due to the thick layers of dust which re-form shortly after being cleared away. Vu Thi Thuy, whose ceiling has been riddled with cracks, filed her complaint with the People’s Committee of Hung Thinh Commune in Binh Giang District several months ago but has yet to receive a response. Vu Ngoc Luan, 70, said he and others have repeatedly lodged grievances at local authorities, to little avail. In early June 2016, more than 100 outraged inhabitants flocked to National Highway 38 in Cam Giang District and staged a sit-in along the road in an attempt to stop trucks from entering the neighborhood. They refused to back down until the local government intervened. Shops lining National Highway 38, particularly eateries and beverage stalls, have suffered heavily from thick layers of dust which form shortly after being cleared away According to Nguyen Ta Duan, chief inspector of Hai Duong Province’s Department of Transport, Hai Duong City has seen soaring truck traffic on the Hanoi-Haiphong direction of National Highway 5, a route used by many drivers to dodge toll collection stations. Approximately 10 trailer trucks traveled round the clock on Provincial Highway 391 in 2015. The number has now risen to a staggering 1,500 and the overwhelming lorry volume has also wreaked havoc on the roads. The Provincial Highway 391 is only designed to withstand 3,000 car arrivals per day and night, yet the artery is now burdened with threefold its designed traffic capacity, or 9,000 car arrivals every 24 hours. Similarly National Highway 38, which is undergoing repairs, has not fared any better, buckling under the weight of the rocketing traffic volume that is well over its design capacity. “We’re in no position to ban transport businesses from taking the roads. All that we can do is ensure truck drivers abide by the load limit regulations,” Duan said. Pham Van Phuong, deputy chair of the provincial People’s Committee, suggested fees on National Highway 5, and Hanoi-Hai Phong Expressway should be slashed as a long-term measure to stop large-capacity trucks from intruding on residential neighborhoods. Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper reporters’ investigation showed that each large-capacity truck saves around VND400,000 (US$18) each time if it manages to dodge toll collection stations on National Highway 5. A detour to avoid toll collection stations on Hanoi-Haiphong Expressway can save nearly VND800,000 (US$36) each trip. On April 1, 2016, fees on National Highway 5 were raised by 50%, while rates on the Hanoi-Haiphong Expressway saw a 25% rise. VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/TT/TN/Dantri/VNE