Hanoi in autumn

The chaos of lies sometimes make people think that the ‘soul’ of Hanoi has been lost; however, in reality, the capital city’s soul can be still recognised in the simple people, streets, houses and even rows of trees.

There have been thousands of books on Thang Long’s culture as well as the personality of Hanoians: self-respect, prestige and elegance. There have also been debates about ‘original Hanoians’ as the capital has been always been the gathering place of residents from all over the country. Hanoi consists of many strata of people, including intellectuals, entrepreneurs, small traders and manual workers. However, the life of ordinary workers has left strong impressions on visitors. Despite the hardships and chaos, they spend time improving their spiritual lives, creating special features of the capital city. That can be the sound of a flute played by Nguyen Quang Chau, an old female worker, by Hoan Kiem Lake bringing joy to everyone or even by a seafood seller. That can be cups of lotus seed and longan sweet soup prepared carefully by an old woman in a small alley of Hang Khay street and her stories about Hanoi in the past and present.

Pham Anh Hao, a taxi driver, has been also famous as a ‘dictionary of Hanoi streets’. His knowledge of Hanoi can surprise all visitors and customers. Hao remembers all streets, even those which were gone, and can tell coherently the length of old tram lines and streets they passed through in the past. He also remembers the commencement and inauguration day as well as height, width and depth of Hanoi Opera House and Long Bien bridge.

Hao was born and grew up in Ma May – the street combined from two old streets: Hang Ma and Hang May. Perhaps so, with the ups and downs in his life, the simple person still preserves the ‘substance’ of Hanoi.

All people who love Hanoi’s culture know Dinh Le street which has been called ‘book street’. The first people who formed the book street were the couple Luy – Mao. Many people called them ‘ancestor’ of the book sale trade in the street. Right at the entrance to Mao bookstore at No.5 Dinh Le street, there is a very small bookshop owned by a special woman Vu Thuy Hoa. She has been invited to many launching ceremonies for new books of well-known writers. Although the shop is so small that a fat reader has to tilt their bodies among the bookshelves, it has attracted many writers and researchers. The most solemn place in the bookstore was not used for the best seller books but for research books. In addition, there are many different kinds of cultural books, including rare ones. Hoa loves reading very much, so she has a rich knowledge, She can understand many Vietnamese writers, many of which she has never met. Many people admire Hoa’s advice for guests.

It is easy to meet reading lovers in the capital city. Despite hardships in his life, Nguyen The Thanh has tried to save money to buy books. He kept hundreds of valuable books and then opened a book café on Au Co street. The over 30-year-old man Le Van Hop has spent 20 years collecting books and accumulated extensive knowledge on many fields.

Hanoi's population is estimated to reach over eight million. Many people longingly remember the ‘old days’ as the capital was only a beautiful and small urban area. In fact, Hanoi’s culture has changed. However, the city’s ‘soul’ has not been lost. Perhaps, it is just a certain change in the way to approach and express the ‘quality’ of the capital as new generations were born and grew up. For example, young members of ‘My Hanoi’ club have made efforts to organise various activities to inspire and convey beautiful features of Hanoi for decades. The club’s founder was Ngo Quy Duc. He has moved on to a new journey with the Trade Village’s Folklore Club as a way to promote the values of another traditional cultural identity.

The young man Nguyen Duc Loc is also a typical example in preserving the traditional culture. Hanoi has inspired his love for heritage and so he is trying his best to restore ancient costumes.

The ancestors said: the land creates human. Hanoi’s culture has a marvelous power. It seems that the streets, trees, houses and people here, sooner or later, also make people love this land.

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The Party, Government, ministries and agencies of Vietnam have high political resolve to realise the national action plan on fighting money laundering and terrorist financing for 2015-2020, Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue said on November 8.

At a reception for a multilateral assessment delegation of the Asia-Pacific Group on Money Laundering (APG) in Hanoi, Hue said Vietnam’s Anti-Money Laundering Steering Committee met in early September to prepare for the assessment.

He reported that the Supreme People’s Court has issued resolutions guiding the implementation of the Penal Code’s articles on money laundering and terrorist financing, and the Government has also issued relevant decrees.

Hue briefed his guests on Vietnam’s fight against corruption with several big cases, including those related to money laundering, brought to light.

The official expressed his hope that the APG’s assessment will help the country perfect and effectively operate its mechanisms for preventing and countering money laundering and terrorist financing.

Vietnam will continue to perfect it legal system, step up international cooperation, especially judicial assistance, and increase the communication work in this field, he said.

Head of the APG delegation David Becker lauded the Vietnamese side for its thorough preparations of documents and coordination in the assessment.

The APG acknowledges the political determination of the Vietnamese Party and State in combating corruption and money laundering crimes, he said.

Vietnam is a member of the APG which is part of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) - an independent inter-governmental body that develops and promotes policies to protect the global financial system against money laundering, terrorist financing and the financing of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

At the 20th Annual Meeting of the APG, member countries approved a plan on multilateral assessment of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing in Vietnam from November 4-15./.

Tran Thanh Man (C), Secretary of the Party Central Committee and President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee, presents nine houses worth 40 million VND (1,723 USD) each to poor households in Phu Xuan hamlet, Thanh Hoa commune, Phung Hiep district.

The great national solidarity festival has been celebrated in the Mekong Delta province of Hau Giang, the capital city of Hanoi, and the southern economic hub of Ho Chi Minh City.

Attending the festival in Hau Giang on November 10, Tran Thanh Man, Secretary of the Party Central Committee and President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Central Committee, congratulated the province on its socio-economic achievements.

Particularly, the province has gained a lot of good outcomes in poverty reduction and new-style rural areas building, he said.

Man took this occasion to present nine houses worth 40 million VND (1,723 USD) each to poor households in Phu Xuan hamlet, Thanh Hoa commune, Phung Hiep district.

Earlier on November 9, Politburo member and Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Hoang Trung Hai attended a similar event at a residential area in Hang Bai ward, Hoan Kiem district.

He said the locals have joined efforts to implement the campaign “All people unite to build new rural and civilised urban areas.”

The official called on people to continue joining hands to maintain order and security, and keep the environment clean in residential areas, as well as preserve and promote good traditional cultural values of the capital.

The same day evening, Politburo member and Secretary of Ho Chi Minh City’s Party Committee Nguyen Thien Nhan shared joy with over 250 households in ward 12, district 4, on the great national solidarity festival.

He recognised the outcomes in implementing the campaign “All people unite to build new rural and civilised urban areas”, and another encouraging local residents to not litter in roads and canals for a clean city and flooding reduction, over the past year.

The official suggested enhancing public-awareness raising campaigns in environmental protection and waste classification.

On the occasion, he granted gift packages to families that actively participated in campaigns launched in the city as well as those from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The great national solidarity festival was observed in celebration of the 89th founding anniversary of the Vietnam Fatherland Front (November 18, 1930)./.

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Deputy spokesperson of the Foreign Ministry Ngo Toan Thang on November 7 affirmed Vietnam’s consistent policy of ensuring the rights to freedom of speech and information access, which are prescribed in the Constitution and laws and fully enforced in reality.

He made the statement during a regular press conference in Hanoi in reply to reporters’ queries about Vietnam’s response to the Freedom House’s report released on November 5 which alleged that Vietnam is not free in relation to Internet.

Thang completely refuted the report’s assessment about Vietnam and stressed that the State of Vietnam always advocates promoting the development of Internet to serve national construction and development, as well as meet citizens’ demand for information exchange, study and work.

In reality, Vietnam is now one of the leading countries in the world in terms of Internet use and subscription growth. Information technology and social media are being used widely in socio-economic and cultural life.

As of early 2019, Vietnam recorded 60 million Internet users, accounting for over 60 percent of the total population, ranking 16th globally in terms of the number of Internet users. The country also had 55 million social media users, according to statistics./.

Cao Dai temple in Tay Ninh

President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Central Committee Tran Thanh Man has sent his greetings to dignitaries and followers of the Cao Dai sect on the occasion of the 95th anniversary of Caodaism.

In his letter, Man praised dignitaries and followers of the sect for implementing the policies and laws of the Party and State, as well as their active participation in patriotic movements launched by the VFF.

The VFF acknowledges and highly values the great contributions of Caodaists to the country’s development, as well as to promoting unity among religions, he said.

The front official called on them to continue to uphold traditional cultural and moral values, contributing to the nation’s socio-economic development.

The VFF leader wished the sect a happy festival.

Cao Dai is one of the major religions in Vietnam, with 10,000 dignitaries and 2.5 million followers, as well as 30,000 living overseas. The religion has 1,300 places of worship in 37 cities and provinces nationwide./.

Facebook is the most popular social media platform in Vietnam

A legal framework will be built for Vietnam to handle fake news and toxic information spread online, a minister said Friday.
Nguyen Manh Hung, the Minister of Information and Communication, told the National Assembly that fake news and toxic information was a global problem that many countries were grappling with.

The first and foremost factor in preventing the spread of fake news is well developed legal framework, he said.

Vietnam already has the Law on Cybersecurity, which was passed in June last year and requires digital businesses like Facebook and Google to store the data of Vietnamese users in Vietnam and bans internet users from organizing, encouraging or training other people for anti-state purposes.

It also prohibits the spreading of incorrect information which causes confusion among people, damages socio-economic activities, creates difficulties for authorities and those performing their duty, violates the legal rights and benefits of other organizations and individuals.

However, it does not regulate specific sanctions against those spreading fake news and rumors on the internet.

Many countries in the world have already equipped themselves with specific regulations on handling such information and their sources, the minister said.

He cited Singapore as an example, saying those spreading fake news and rumors via websites or social media platforms could face financial penalties up to millions of dollars as well as jail terms.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has already assigned the Ministry of Public Security to work with the Ministry of Information and Communications to come up with a set of regulations on dealing with fake news soon, he said.

Hung went on to say that toxic information mostly came from platforms outside Vietnam.

There are techniques available to detect and eliminate fake and toxic information, he said, "but many foreign firms operating in Vietnam refuse to use them and argue that it is those who spread such news and information that have to take full responsibilities; that they only work to provide the platforms, like a information supermarket."

However, the minister insisted that foreign firms have to play by Vietnamese rules in Vietnam.

'Don’t think you can hide'
Hung said foreign social media platforms in Vietnam will be required to identify their users when necessary.

This will make users think twice before spreading fake or toxic information, he said.

"Don't think that you can hide your identity on the social media."

Ministries, departments and local authorities must equip themselves with technologies that allow them to keep up with what is happening online, the minister said. He suggested that they use the National Cyber Security Center as a tool for data collection and sharing.

Hung also said that his ministry has working with the Ministry of Public Security, the central bank and the General Department of Taxation to identify social media accounts.

Businesses misusing information

Legislators raised questions on businesses "overexploiting" personal information, saying this was against the law.

Hung replied that each person should be aware of protecting their own personal information. He said most people were lax about providing personal information when businesses ask for it, in order to market some service and product.

But he admitted that Vietnam still lacks regulations on how businesses can use their customers' personal information and how they should protect it. The government and related ministries are still working on a decree on this issue, he said.

A report by U.K. research firm We Are Social earlier this year said a Vietnamese spends on average six hours and 42 minutes a day on the Internet, with Facebook being the most popular social media website.

Around 64 million people, or over half of the country's population, are online, it added.

The Hanoi Red Cross Society (HRCS), the Wheelchair Foundation and philanthropists present 160 wheelchairs to the disabled, Agent Orange victims and those living with fatal diseases in Hanoi on November 6

The Hanoi Red Cross Society (HRCS), the Wheelchair Foundation and philanthropists presented 160 wheelchairs to the disabled, Agent Orange victims and those living with fatal diseases in Hanoi on November 6.

The event was concurrent with the 73rd anniversary of the Vietnam Red Cross Society and the 62nd anniversary of the HRCS.

HRCS Chairman Dao Ngoc Trieu said it is an honour for the society to serve as a bridge and a trustworthy address for philanthropists to conduct humanitarian activities.

Founded in 2000, the Wheelchair Foundation has organised trips to present wheelchairs in 156 countries worldwide, including Vietnam. The number of wheelchairs granted by the foundation has amounted to over 1.1 million.

As of October, nearly 2,000 wheelchairs have been presented to the less fortunate in Vietnam./.

More than 120 participants, including international and local researchers, policymakers and experts, discussed human resource development at an international conference that opened on in Hanoi on November 6.

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More than 120 participants, including international and local researchers, policymakers and experts, discussed human resource development at an international conference that opened on in Hanoi on November 6.

The four-day event is being organised by the Foreign Trade University (FTU) in collaboration with the Academy of Human Resource Development and Viettel Academy for the first time in Vietnam.

Speaking at the event, FTU President Bui Anh Tuan said the Fourth Industrial Revolution and digitalisation changed the way the Government, organisations and businesses in Vietnam work with human resource development.

“Increasing globalisation, international integration and especially ever faster technological evolution, however, have changed the roles of human resources. They have also required us to change our approaches, strategies, and methodologies to develop human resources from fundamental to more innovative ones,” said Tuan.

“One of the big challenges for Vietnam’s development in the coming years is the issue of increasing labour productivity,” said Director of the Education and Training Ministry’s Higher Education Department Nguyen Thi Kim Phung at the event.

“Improving and promoting labour productivity, speeding up the country’s process of industrialisation and modernisation and minimising the development gap with other countries in the region are a key task for Vietnam to ensure the goal of fast and sustainable development,” stressed Phung.

Phung said that there was still big gap in labour productivity between Vietnam and other ASEAN countries due to slow process of labour restructuring science, levels of the country’s science and technology, reform and innovation are low, or limits exist in human resource management and quality.

“Reforming higher education is considered one of the key solutions to develop high-quality human resources to meet the needs of rapid and sustainable development in Vietnam,” she said.

Phung said Vietnam has taken various measures in reforming higher education, such as the revised law on higher education, and developing the Overall Strategy for higher education development of Vietnam in the period 2021-2030.

Priorities are also given to train teachers and improve capacity of lecturers and managers of higher education institutions to meet the requirements of fundamental innovation, to increase investment and attract new resources for higher education development and create a mechanism to strengthen internationalisation of higher education for integration and development following international standards.

With the theme "Human Resource Development: Innovation and Evolution in the Digital Era," this is also the first time the conference focuses on traditional issues in human resource development connected to innovation in the context of digitalisation.

During the event, participants will focus discussions on many topics related to human resource development (HRD), including HRD and sustainable development; leadership development; corporate social responsibility and ethics in HRD; and emerging issues and innovations in HRD.

Participants said that human resource development at both national and firm levels was of urgent need in the context of the Fourth Industrial Revolution as it determines productivity, competitiveness, and ultimately sustainable development of nations and businesses. 

According to statistics from the General Statistics Office and Ministry of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs, there are still about 125,000 to 135,000 unemployed labourers out of 5 million workers with university degrees, accounting for about 2.2 to 2.5 percent of total university-level workers. In particular, limited professional and foreign language skills are the main causes leading to the unemployment of university-level workers.