Taxation desperation in Vietnam
23.07.2017 By David Hutt (Asia Times) - ... While taxation from standard taxi firms accounts for annual revenue of US$91.7 million, according to local media reports, the app-based businesses have contributed a mere fraction of the total tax haul. Grab paid US$250,000 in taxes last year in Vietnam; Uber paid about US$1.7 million. ...

South Vietnam flag still flies high
23.07.2017 By Helen Clark  (Asia Times) - Buried at the bottom of a detailed account of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s trip to the G-20 Summit were a few lines on his meeting with Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc. “In his discussion with Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, the Vietnamese leader raised concerns about five local councils in Australia that reportedly support the flying of the ‘yellow’ flag, which was the flag of the former government of South Vietnam,” reported Fairfax media. ...

With TPP’s demise, Vietnam looks to Europe for free trade
23.07.2017 By David Hutt (Asia Times) - Vietnam and the European Union are tentatively set to agree to and ratify a wide-ranging free trade pact, known as the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement, or EVFTA, by early 2018. ...

Pollution de l'air : le Vietnam veut interdire les deux roues à moteur à Hanoï
22.07.2017 (Sud Ouest) - Initiative radicale au Vietnam pour lutter contre la pollution de l'air : le 4 juillet, les autorités ont annoncé leur volonté d’interdire les mobylettes et motos d’ici à 2030 à Hanoï. ...

VIET NAM: Immediately release labour and land rights defender Tran Thi Nga
21.07.2017 (The Observatory & VCHR) – GENEVA-PARIS - Vietnamese authorities must drop all charges against labour and land rights defender Tran Thi Nga and immediately release her, the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (an FIDH-OMCT partnership) and the Vietnam Committee on Human Rights (VCHR) urged today. ...

Vietnam pollution fight hits supplier to global fashion brands
21.07.2017 Mai Nguyen (Reuters) - HANOI - Vietnamese villagers blockading a textile plant that serves global fashion brands are seeking the permanent closure of the factory due to pollution concerns, highlighting a growing readiness in Vietnam to campaign over environmental issues ...

VIET NAM: La défendeuse des droits sociaux et des droits à la terre Tran Thi Nga doit être immédiatement libérée
21.07.2017 (L’Observatoire & VCHR) – – Les autorités vietnamiennes doivent abandonner toutes les charges qui pèsent contre la défendeuse des droits sociaux et des droits à la terre Tran Thi Nga et immédiatement la libérer, ont pressé aujourd’hui l’Observatoire pour la Protection des Défenseurs des droits de l’Homme (un partenariat FIDH-OMCT) et le Comité Vietnam pour la Défense des Droits de l’Homme (VCHR). ...

Can Vietnam’s Military Really Mind Its Own Businesses?
20.07.2017 By Nguyen The Phuong (The Diplomat) - The land disputes that surfaced recently in Dong Tam and the debate over whether or not to use the notorious Tan Son Nhat golf course to expand the highly overloaded Tan Son Nhat International Airport has ignited another sensitive but interesting issue within Vietnam: the role of the military in economic activities. ...

Whose line is it anyway? The growing threat of China’s maritime presence
20.07.2017 by Joanna Eva (Global Risk Insights) - China sent its first ever deployment of troops to its military facility in Djibouti on the Horn of Africa this week, under the guise of anti-piracy operations and humanitarian missions in the region. ...

The South China Sea seven years on
19.07.2017 Author: Michael McDevitt, CNA (East Asia Forum) - This month seven years ago at the Hanoi ASEAN Regional Forum, then secretary of state Hillary Clinton made a very public, and — for the Chinese — surprising, intervention into the South China Sea (SCS) disputes. ...

Gemüse aus Asien mit wahren Giftcocktails an der Grenze abgefangen
19.07.2017 (Blick) - Gemüse aus Asien enthält mitunter wahre Giftcocktails. Kritisch waren vor allem Produkte aus Thailand und Vietnam wie Koriander und Chilis. ...

Jakarta disregards Beijing, renames part of South China Sea
18.07.2017 Erwida Maulia (Nikkei Asian Review) - JAKARTA -- Citing a decision last year of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in Europe that has been ignored by China, Indonesia has renamed its exclusive economic zone in the southwestern part of the South China Sea. ...

Vietnam to reduce number of military businesses
18.07.2017 Jon Grevatt (IHS Jane's Defence Weekly) - The Vietnam government has announced a commitment to complete the restructuring of the businesses owned by the country’s military, vowing the divest stakes in the majority of companies. ...

Vietnam: Künftige Reporter in Kriegseuphorie
17.07.2017 Dieter Herrmann (web.de) - Dass das vietnamesische Fernsehen sich wieder bei mir gemeldet hat, hat einen sehr speziellen Grund - und es ist ein hochpolitischer. ...

Trinh T. Minh-ha: Gedanken aus dem Zwischenraum
16.07.2017 Interview Julia Grillmayr (derStandard) - "Grenzen sind leider ein extrem wichtiges Thema geworden": die Kulturwissenschafterin über ihre Arbeitsweise zwischen Kunst und Wissenschaft und die politischen Verwerfungen in den Vereinigten Staaten. ...

Asserting sovereignty, Indonesia renames part of South China Sea
15.07.2017 (The Asahi Shimbun) - JAKARTA -- Indonesia renamed the northern reaches of its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea as the North Natuna Sea on Friday, the latest act of resistance by Southeast Asian nations to China's territorial ambitions in the maritime region. ...

Doi Moi II: Rule of Law and State Legitimacy in Vietnam
14.07.2017 By Le Vinh Trien and Kris Hartley (The Diplomat) -“Vietnam has the opportunity to define a next-generation model of liberalized development.” In Vietnam, growth facilitated by aggressive exploitation of cheap and idle resources is nearing an end, and the country must now plan for lower economic growth rates. ...

FDP Wirtschaftspolitik - Zusammenarbeit mit Vietnam vertiefen
14.07.2017 (FDP) - In Zeiten von Abschottung und Protektionismus setzen sich die Freien Demokraten für mehr internationalen Austausch und Freihandel ein. In Rheinland-Pfalz etwa engagiert sich Landeswirtschaftsminister Volker Wissing für eine vertiefte Zusammenarbeit mit Vietnam. ...

Report: Asia facing dire future toll from climate change
14.07.2017 (AP) - A report by the Asia Development Bank says Asia will endure extreme heat, rising sea levels, growing losses from severe weather and increasing food insecurity in coming decades as climate change raises temperatures and alters weather patterns across the globe. ...

Unwetter tobt in Vietnam - Überschwemmungen fordern 13 Todesopfer
12.07.2017 (n-tv) - Im Norden Vietnams sind bei schweren Überschwemmungen mindestens 13 Menschen ums Leben gekommen. ...

Vietnam reports outbreak of H5N1 bird flu in north - OIE
12.07.2017 (Reuters) - PARIS - Vietnam has reported an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu among backyard birds in the northern province of Ha Nam, the Paris-based World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) said on Wednesday ...

Vietnam Plans Talks With Catholic Officials Over Monastery Dispute
11.07.2017  HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnamese authorities plan to hold talks with a Catholic monastery and church officials to resolve a land dispute that prompted a violent scuffle last month, a provincial government body said.
Land disputes are common in Communist-ruled Vietnam ...

Vietnam: Wer ist "Mutter Pilz"? Bloggerin zu zehn Jahren Haft verurteilt
11.07.2017  von Hai Tran & Thach Duong (Forum Vietnam 21) - Eine prominente Bloggerin ist in einem eintägigen Prozess am vergangenen 29. Juni wegen Propaganda gegen den Staat zu zehn Jahren Haft verurteilt worden. Unter dem Vorwurf, gegen Artikel 88 oder Artikel 258 des vietnamesischen Strafgesetzbuchs verstoßen zu haben, werden Kritiker zum Schweigen gebracht. ...

Mother Mushroom: how Vietnam locked up its most famous blogger
09.07.2017 Bennett Murray in Hanoi (The Guardian) - One of Vietnam’s most influential political bloggers, given a courage award by Melania Trump, faces a decade behind bars for her ‘reactionary’ work. “Each person only has a life, but if I had the chance to choose again I would still choose my way.” ...

G-20 leaders reach deal on trade, struggle on climate
08.07.2017 (The Asahi Shimbun) - HAMBURG, Germany--Leaders of the world's top economic powers reaffirmed their support Saturday for free trade but tempered their statement by acknowledging countries could defend their home companies and markets against unfair practices. ...

Vietnam police detain blogger for anti-state propaganda, mother says
07.07.2017 (Reuters) - HANOI - Vietnamese police have arrested a blogger for posting anti-state material on the internet, his mother said on Friday, as part of a crackdown on critics of the country's Communist rulers. Tran Hoang Phuc, 23, was arrested in Hanoi ...

G20 Summit: 40 NGO call for release of 3 Vietnamese human rights defenders
06.07.2017 (VETO!) - On the occasion of the G20 Summit in Hamburg (Germany) 40 human rights and civil society organizations in Europe, USA and Asia call the Vietnamese Prime minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc to immediately and unconditionally release three prominent human rights defenders from three different religious communities and all other prisoners of conscience detained in Vietnam. ...

Vietnam singer Mai Khoi adds a youthful tone to aged politics
06.07.2017 Rodion Ebbighausen (DW) - The Vietnamese singer and activist Mai Khoi is an outspoken advocate for human rights and freedom of expression in Vietnam. After her performance at the Global Media Forum she spoke with DW about her political activism. ...

Conviction of Vietnamese Blogger
06.07.2017 (VOA) - A Vietnamese court recently sentenced blogger and human rights activist Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh to 10 years in prison."We are deeply concerned," said State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert, "about the conviction of. . .peaceful blogger, Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh."Also known as “Mother Mushroom,” she was the recent recipient of a 2017 International Woman of Courage Award at the State Department. ...

Vietnam Detains Young Activist Over Critical Facebook Comments
05.07.2017 (RFA) - Vietnam has arrested a young activist for posting material critical of the government on social media, his mother told RFA's Vietnamese on Wednesday.
Ho Chi Minh City native Tran Hoang Phuc, 23, was detained on July 3 on the accusation of "possessing materials, producing and posting videos on internet critical of the government" under article 88 of Vietnam's penal code, she said. ...

MUSHROOM AND BEAR - “Why did the fish die?”: The questions and Facebook posts that led Vietnam to imprison a mom blogger
05.07.2017 Visen Liu (Quartz) - With a blue fish painted on her cheek, a smiling Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh stares out from her Facebook page, where she writes in Vietnamese under the name Mẹ Nấm, or Mother [of] Mushroom. Last week, Vietnam convicted and sentenced her to prison for a decade on charges of “conducting propaganda against the state.” ...

Vietnam Makes Bold Move For Oil In Disputed South China Sea
05.07.2017 By Irina Slav (OilPrice) - Vietnam has allowed a drillship in a contested part of the South China Sea, according to an industry consultant who spoke to the BBC. ...

Terroristen auf den Philippinen töteten zwei vietnamesische Geiseln
05.07.2017 (derStandard) - Manila – Islamisten auf den Philippinen haben zwei entführte Seeleute aus Vietnam enthauptet. ...

Vietnam will Beziehungen zu Deutschland vertiefen
05.07.2017 (Focus Online) - Mainz (dpa/lrs) - Der vietnamesische Premierminister Nguyen Xuan Phuc will die Beziehungen zu Deutschland ausbauen. Das berichtete Bundesratspräsidentin Malu Dreyer (SPD) am Mittwoch nach einem Treffen in Mainz. ...

Vietnam hat einen Regimekritiker ausgebürgert und nach Frankreich abgeschoben
02.07.2017 von Hai Tran (Forum Vietnam 21) - Der Blogger und Regimekritiker Pham Minh Hoang wurde am 24.06.2017, von Ho-Chi-Minh-Stadt, ehemals Saigon, nach Frankreich abgeschoben. Zuvor, am 17.05., wurde ihm die vietnamesische Staatsbürgerschaft durch den Staatspräsidenten Tran Dai Quang aberkannt, mit der Begründung: „Verstoß gegen die Gesetze Vietnams“ ...

Facebook: bloguera condenada a diez años de cárcel por criticar al gobierno de Vietnam
02.07.2017 (El Popular) - Usar su cuenta en Facebook para criticar la política gubarnamental de Vietnam le costó caro a una ciudadana de ese país, quien fue condenada a diez años de prisión. La sanción generó la inmediata reacción de organismos defensores de Derechos Humanos que piden su liberación. ...

UN experts condemn Viet Nam’s jailing of prominent blogger Mother Mushroom
30.06.2017 (OHCHR) - GENEVA – Viet Nam must end what appears to be a pattern of targeting environmental defenders, UN human rights experts* have urged after the jailing of a popular blogger. ...

Vietnam condena a 10 años de cárcel a una bloguera por criticar al Gobierno
30.06.2017 Ismael Arana (El Mundo) - Una popular bloguera vietnamita fue condenada ayer jueves a 10 años de prisión tras ser declarada culpable de criticar al Gobierno y distribuir propaganda contra el Estado, una sentencia que ha provocado las críticas de gobiernos extranjeros y organizaciones internacionales de derechos humanos. ...

Viet Nam: blogger Me Nam sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment
29.06.2017 (PEN) - PEN International condemns the conviction of blogger and government critic Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, also known by her pen name Me Nam (‘Mother Mushroom’), on 29 June 2017. Me Nam, who has been detained since her arrest in October 2016, was convicted of “conducting propaganda against the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam” under Article 88 of the Penal Code and sentenced to 10 years in prison. ...

Vietnam sentences prominent blogger to 10 years in prison
29.06.2017 (AP) - HANOI, Vietnam -- A prominent Vietnamese blogger was sentenced Thursday to 10 years in prison after being found guilty of distorting government policies and defaming the Communist regime in Facebook posts and in interviews with foreign media, her lawyer said. Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, also known as "Mother Mushroom," was sentenced at the end of a one-day trial ...

Prominente vietnamesische Bloggerin verurteilt
29.06.2017 (DW) - Eine der bekanntesten vietnamesischen Bloggerinnen, Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, besser bekannt unter ihrem Pseudonym Me Nam ("Mutter Pilz"), ist wegen Propaganda gegen den Staat zu zehn Jahren Haft verurteilt worden. Die Staatsanwaltschaft hatte die 37-jährige Bloggerin nach Paragraph 88 des vietnamesischen Strafgesetzbuches angeklagt. ...

Vietnam: 10 ans de prison pour une blogueuse dissidente
29.06.2017 (L'Orient-Le Jour) - Une dissidente et blogueuse vietnamienne, connue sous le nom de Me Nam ou "Mère champignon", a été condamnée jeudi à dix années de prison pour propagande antiétatique malgré une campagne internationale appelant à sa libération. Les journalistes de l'AFP n'ont pas été autorisés à assister au procès dans la province de Khanh Hoa, mais d'après les images qui circulaient sur les réseaux sociaux de nombreux policiers avaient été placés autour du tribunal. ...

Vietnam: Zehn Jahre Gefängnis für Bloggerin
29.06.2017 (ORF) - Eine prominente Bloggerin ist in Vietnam wegen staatsfeindlicher Propaganda am Donnerstag zu zehn Jahren Haft verurteilt worden. Die als "Mother Mushroom" bekannte Bloggerin war im Oktober verhaftet worden. ...

Vietnam: une blogueuse dissidente condamnée à dix ans de prison
29.06.2017 (RFI) - Une dissidente et blogueuse vietnamienne, connue sous le nom de Me Nam ou «Mère champignon», a été condamnée jeudi 29 juin à dix années de prison pour propagande antiétatique, malgré une campagne internationale appelant à sa libération. Avant le verdict, Quynh qui est restée calme tout au long du procès, a envoyé un message à ses deux enfants et à sa mère. ...

'Mother Mushroom': Top Vietnamese blogger jailed for 10 years
29.06.2017 (BBC) - One of Vietnam's top bloggers, Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, who is known as Mother Mushroom, has been jailed for 10 years for distributing propaganda against the state. Her lawyer told the BBC she had 15 days to appeal. ...

Vietnam jails prominent activist for propaganda against state
29.06.2017 (Reuters) - A Vietnamese court jailed a prominent blogger for 10 years on Thursday for publishing propaganda against the state, her lawyer said, the latest crackdown on critics of the Communist Party. Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, 37, known as "Me Nam" (Mother Mushroom), was found guilty at a full-day trial by a court in central province of Khanh Hoa ...

Vietnam puts prominent blogger on trial for anti-state acts
29.06.2017 (AP) - HANOI, Vietnam -- A lawyer says a prominent Vietnamese blogger is being tried for her Facebook posts that prosecutors say distorted government policies and defamed the regime. Lawyer Le Van Luan said prosecutors proposed a sentence of eight to 10 years in prison for Quynh, who maintained her innocence in the Thursday morning proceedings.

Vietnam blogger 'Mother Mushroom' on trial
29.06.2017 (dailymail) - A prominent Vietnamese blogger known as 'Mother Mushroom' went on trial Thursday for anti-state propaganda. Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, whose penname derives from her daughter's nickname "mushroom", was arrested in October 2016 ...

In Vietnam beginnt Prozess gegen prominente Bloggerin
29.06.2017 (Salzburger Nachrichten) - In Vietnam muss sich eine preisgekrönte Aktivistin und Bloggerin wegen angeblich staatsfeindlicher Kommentare vor Gericht verantworten. Der Prozess gegen Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh beginne am Donnerstag, teilte die Mutter der Angeklagten am Mittwoch mit. ...

Who is Mother Mushroom? Blogger accused of propaganda against Vietnam goes on trial
29.06.2017 By Divya Kishore (IBT) - Prominent Vietnamese blogger Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, who is accused of spreading propaganda against the state through her Facebook and blog posts, has gone on trial. ...

Vietnam: Free Blogger ‘Mother Mushroom’ !
28.06.2017 (HRW) - New York – Vietnam should immediately free Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh (also known as “Mother Mushroom”) and drop all charges against her, Human Rights Watch said today. “It’s outrageous to put Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh on trial simply for using her right to free expression to call for government reform and accountability,” said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. ...

Pham Minh Hoang: au Vietnam, «nous vivons dans une dictature» [Exclu RFI]
28.06.2017 Par Juliette Gheerbrant (RFI) - Le dissident franco-vietnamien Pham Minh Hoang est arrivé à Paris dimanche 25 juin après avoir été privé de sa nationalité vietnamienne et expulsé du pays par le régime à parti unique. Une mesure qualifiée de violation patente des droits de l'homme par Human Rights Watch. ...

Nations lose every time rights are denied
27.06.2017 By The Nation (The Nation, Bangkok) - In their intolerance of valid criticism, Vietnam and Laos are only hurting themselves. The governments of Laos and Vietnam have only hampered their countries’ progress by, in the first case, slapping three activists with harsh prison sentences and, in the second, stripping a mathematician of his citizenship. In Vietnam, as in Laos (and, yes, Thailand), freedom of expression ought to be a fundamental right, and if given even guarded leeway can bring much benefit to society. Smart leaders know that a country cannot be built except on a foundation of respect for the people. ...

China, Vietnam and hard talk about the Mekong: China Daily columnist
27.06.2017 By Asit K Biswas, Cecilia Tortajada (The Straits Times) - Much has been written about the building of hydropower dams in the upper reaches of the Mekong River and their role in causing droughts in the Mekong delta region in Vietnam. Many environmental and social activists claim Chinese dams have reduced the water flow in the delta, seriously harming rice cultivation and allowing saltwater to seep into soil. ...

The Weak Points in Vietnam's Military
27.06.2017 By Shang-su Wu (The Diplomat) - Despite significant defense investments, some neglected portions of Vietnam’s military are vulnerable to Chinese attack. While Hanoi’s new fighters, submarines, and frigates are not inferior to their Chinese counterparts, other Vietnamese capabilities would be vulnerabilities available for Beijing to exploit. Minesweeping, armored vehicles, and artillery are three major examples. ...

Mar del Sur de China, Hanoi y Beijing en desacuerd
26.06.2017 Thanh Thuy (AsiaNews) - Hanoi - Se terminó abrupta e inesperadamente la visita a Vietnam del gen. Fan Changlong, vicepresidente de la Comisión Militar Central de la República Popular de China (RPC). ...

Vietnam expels dissident blogger to France
26.06.2017 (RSF) - Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is deeply shocked to learn that Pham Minh Hoang, a blogger and champion of the fight for free speech in Vietnam, was expelled from the country of his birth on Saturday night. ...

L’expulsion indigne du blogueur dissident Pham Minh Hoang vers la France
26.06.2017 (RSF) - Figure emblématique de la lutte pour la liberté d’expression au Vietnam, Pham Minh Hoang a été expulsé du Vietnam, son pays natal, vers la France dans la nuit de samedi à dimanche. L’organisation Reporters sans frontières (RSF) est profondément choquée par cette mesure ...

Deported Vietnamese-French blogger arrives in Paris
25.06.2017 (RFI) - A Vietnamese dissident blogger with dual French citizenship arrived in Paris on Sunday after he was stripped of his birth nationality by authorities in the one-party state and deported. Former math lecturer Pham Minh Hoang was put on a plane to Paris late Saturday, weeks after his Vietnamese citizenship was revoked ...

Le blogueur franco-vietnamien Pham Minh Hoang expulsé en France
25.06.2017 (France24) - Le blogueur dissident franco-vietnamien Pham Minh Hoang est arrivé à Paris dimanche 25 juin après avoir été privé de sa nationalité vietnamienne et expulsé samedi par le régime à parti unique. Le Vietnam est un pays où les opposants sont fréquemment emprisonnés, mais cet ancien professeur de mathématiques de 62 ans est le premier dissident de l'histoire récente à se voir retirer sa nationalité. ...

Vietnam blogger Pham Minh Hoang deported to France
25.06.2017 (BBC) - A French-Vietnamese dissident blogger has been deported to France after losing his nationality of birth. Pham Minh Hoang served a jail sentence after being convicted in 2011 over articles that "blackened the image of the country". ...

Un dissident franco-vietnamien expulsé en France
25.06.2017 (Romandie) - Paris - Un blogueur dissident franco-vietnamien est arrivé à Paris dimanche après avoir été privé de sa nationalité vietnamienne et expulsé par le régime à parti unique. ...

La Policía de Vietnam detiene a un activista crítico con el régimen y anuncia su deportación
23.06.2017 (Europa Press) - HANOI (Reuters/EP) - La Policía de Vietnam ha detenido este viernes y deportará este sábado a Pham Minh Hoang, un conocido activista y profesor con doble ciudadanía --vietnamita y francesa-- hasta que el régimen de Hanoi se la revocó el mes pasado, según declaraciones de su mujer. ...

Trump administration fails to call out Vietnam on its dismal human rights record
22.06.2017 (Washington Post) - PRESIDENT TRUMP met with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc last month to discuss trade and security issues. In their public statements about the visit, one topic got short shrift: human rights. This was a glaring lapse. ...

What’s Behind Vietnam’s Rising Violence?
22.06.2017 By David Hutt (The Diplomat) - The rise of physical violence committed against activists is a troubling trend. A recent report by Human Rights Watch, “No Country for Human Rights Activists: Assaults on Bloggers and Democracy Campaigners in Vietnam”, documents the rise of physical violence committed against activists, mainly by plain-clothed “thugs,” some of whom may be police or soldiers, and most of whom target their victims in very public place. ...

Viet Nam: charges against blogger Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh must be dropped
22.06.2017 (PEN) - PEN International calls on the Vietnamese authorities to drop all charges against blogger and government critic Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, also known by her pen name Me Nam (‘Mother Mushroom’), ahead of her trial, which is expected to take place on 29 June 2017. ...

Nixed China-Vietnam Meeting Highlights Illusion of South China Sea Calm
22.06.2017 By Prashanth ThuParameswaran (The Diplomat) - ... On Thursday, news surfaced that a China-Vietnam defense meeting had been unexpectedly canceled, reportedly due to private disagreements over the South China Sea rather than the logistical issues publicly mentioned by Chinese defense industry. ...

Hanoi targets over 13,000 Facebook accounts for tax
22.06.2017 (Nikkei Asian Review) - HO CHI MINH CITY -- Tax authorities in Hanoi on Tuesday advised thousands of social network users to register properly as businesses and pay taxes. ...

Vietnam sacks senior environment official over toxic leak that caused mass killing of fish
21.06.2017 (The Straits Times) - HANOI (AFP) - A senior Vietnamese environment official has been fired for negligence over a toxic waste dump that killed tonnes of fish in a major environmental crisis last year, according to officials and state media. ...

"Politik ist nicht kompliziert"
21.06.2017 Rodion Ebbighausen (DW) - Die vietnamesische Sängerin und Aktivistin Mai Khoi engagiert sich für Menschenrechte und Meinungsfreiheit. Sie trat auf dem Global Media Forum der DW auf. Hier spricht sie über ihr politisches Engagement. Die Deutsche Welle lud die Sängerin und Aktivistin ein, um auf dem Global Media Forum 2017 zu sprechen und den Freedom of Speech Award musikalisch zu begleiten. ...

Vietnam: New Law Threatens Right to a Defense - Revised Penal Code Requires Lawyers Report on Clients, Penalizes Free Speech
21.06.2017 (HRW) - (New York) –  Vietnam should immediately repeal a provision in its revised penal code that would hold lawyers criminally responsible for not reporting clients to the authorities for a number of crimes, Human Rights Watch said today. The revised code also contains a number of changes heightening criminal penalties against criticism of the government or Vietnam’s one-party state. ...

Report: Vietnamese activists under constant threat of violence
21.06.2017 Abby Seiff, Hanoi (DW) - An alarming new report by Human Rights Watch (HRW) details dozens of violent assaults on rights activists and bloggers in Vietnam. State security services are also implicated in contributing to violent repression. ...

China Cancels Military Meeting With Vietnam Over Territorial Dispute
21.06.2017 By Mike Ives (NYT) - HONG KONG — State-run newspapers in Vietnam and China reported in recent days that senior military officials from the two countries would hold a fence-mending gathering along a border where their militaries fought a brief but bloody war in 1979. But Tuesday, the scheduled start of the gathering, came and went without any of the coverage in the state news media that readers in the two countries had expected. ...

Vietnamese-Canadian family's refugee story inspires new Heritage Minute
20.06.2017 By Carolyn Dunn (CBC) - For Sam and Rebecca Trinh, 1979 was the year they ran out of choices.
After the fall of Saigon at the end of the Vietnam War, Sam, a soldier, was slated for re-education at a labour camp in the Vietnamese countryside. ...

Législatives 2017 : qui est Stéphanie Do, REM, la nouvelle députée de Seine-et-Marne ?
19.06.2017 Par Martine Bréson (France Bleu) - Stéphanie Do, La République en Marche, a été élue dimanche députée de la 10e circonscription de Seine-et-Marne avec 56,31% au second tour des élections législatives. Stéphanie Do, 37 ans, est d'origine vietnamienne. ...

Vietnam verweigerte Besuch bei inhaftiertem Menschenrechtler
19.06.2017 Martin Patzelt (martin-patzelt.de) - Mit ausdrücklicher Unterstützung des Deutschen Bundestages habe ich zusammen mit meinem Bundestagskollegen Philipp Lengsfeld als Vertreter des Ausschusses für Menschenrechte und humanitäre Hilfe im Juni 2017 die Volksrepublik Vietnam besucht. Mein Kollege Lengsfeld unterstützt den Rechtsanwalt Le Quoc Quan, der inzwischen aus der Haft entlassen ist, aber nach wie vor unter dem Druck der Behörden steht. Ich persönlich setze mich für den Blogger Nguyen Huu Vinh ein, der nach wie vor im Gefängnis sitzt. ...

Gezielte Gewalt gegen Blogger in Vietnam
19.06.2017 (Die Tagespost) - Die Menschenrechtsorganisation Human Rights Watch prangert systematische Gewalt gegen Demokratie-Aktivisten in Vietnam an. Insbesondere Blogger und Menschenrechtler seien das Ziel körperlicher und verbaler Attacken, kritisierte die Organisation in einem am Montag veröffentlichten Bericht. ...

Rights group condemns attacks on Vietnamese activists
19.06.2017 (Daily Mail) - HANOI, Vietnam (AP) - An international human rights group has condemned attacks on Vietnamese bloggers and activists by unknown assailants and urged the government to carry out impartial investigations and bring those responsible to justice. ...

Vietnam dissidents beaten, harassed by 'thugs': rights group
19.06.2017 (france24) - Plainclothes 'thugs' suspected of having links to Vietnam's government have attacked dozens of dissidents since 2015 in a bid to silence critics in the one-party state, Human Rights Watch and activists said. ...

Vietnam: End Attacks on Activists and Bloggers
19.06.2017 (HRW) - (New York) – Vietnamese bloggers and rights activists are being beaten, threatened, and intimidated with impunity, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. ...

Vietnam : Mettre un terme aux attaques contre les activistes et les blogueurs - Des défenseurs des droits humains sont régulièrement agressés à travers le pays
19.06.2017 (HRW) - (New York) – Des blogueurs et des activistes vietnamiens subissent passages à tabac, menaces et intimidations en toute impunité, a déclaré Human Rights Watch dans un rapport publié aujourd’hui. ...

Vietnam: Angriffe auf Aktivisten und Blogger beenden - Landesweit systematische, aggressive Übergriffe auf Rechtsaktivisten
19.06.2017 (HRW) - (New York) – Vietnamesische Blogger und Rechtsaktivisten werden in einem Klima der Straflosigkeit verprügelt, bedroht und eingeschüchtert, so Human Rights Watch in einem heute veröffentlichten Bericht ...

The new Heritage Minute tells my story as one of Vietnam’s boat people
18.06.2017 By Judy Trinh (The Star) - They fled bombs and death in Syria and have found safety here, but what will the future hold for them in Canada? Their escape reminds me of my family’s journey four decades earlier. ...

Roter Rausch
17.06.2017 Von Frederic Spohr (Die Zeit) - China war gestern, heute boomt Vietnam. Die Wirtschaft wächst rasant, seit sich das kommunistische Land für den Weltmarkt geöffnet hat. Die Löhne steigen, die Ungleichheit auch. Vielleicht haben sich die Kommunisten so die Zukunft ihrer Städte vorgestellt: Im Zentrum von Ho-Chi-Minh-Stadt entsteht derzeit ein neues Viertel, das auf Werbeprospekten den Utopien vergangener Zeiten gleicht ...

Vietnamese cope with EET, face health insurance problem
16.06.2017 (Prague Monitor) - Prague, June 15 (CTK) - The introduction of e-registration of sales (EET) caused no big problems to Vietnamese in the Czech Republic last year, but the minority faced problems with insufficient health insurance of its members, according to an annual report the cabinet approved on Wednesday.
Hanoi's effort to control Vietnamese groups in the Czech Republic intensified in 2016, says the report completed by the government Council for Ethnic Minorities, which cites a representative of the Vietnamese community. ...

Upstream projects risk Mekong Delta disaster
16.06.2017 By Pratch Rujivanarom (The Nation) - FEARS are rising in the Mekong Delta in southern Vietnam about food and social insecurity caused by hydropower dams and water-diversion projects planned or already started further upstream. ...

On The Run, Vietnam's 'Most Wanted' Green Blogger Tells VOA He's Safe
16.06.2017 (VOA) - WASHINGTON — Vietnam’s most wanted human rights and environmental activist, Bach Hong Quyen, is safe and considering taking up residence outside his homeland, he told VOA's Vietnamese service after weeks on the run from authorities who issued a warrant for him in May. ...

Vietnam's solar energy push draws investors
16.06.2017 (Nikkei Asian Review) - Vietnam's TTC Group is planning to sink about $1 billion into solar energy projects in a country still dependent on coal-fired thermal and hydro power for its power needs, with national electricity demand growing faster than 10% annually. ...

Property disputes are Vietnam’s biggest political problem
15.06.2017 (The Economist) - FOR years residents of Dong Tam, a village on the edge of Vietnam’s capital, have fought for the right to continue tending farms on land earmarked for military development. Their patience evaporated in April, when authorities arrested a group of elders whom they had chosen to press their case with the government. ...

Vietnam Extends Detention of Blogger 'Mother Mushroom'
15.06.2017 (RFA) - Vietnamese authorities have extended the detention of activist and blogger Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, often known as blogger Mother Mushroom, and kept her incommunicado, her mother told RFA’s Vietnamese Service on Thursday. ...

Vietnam defends decision to revoke dissident's citizenship
15.06.2017 (Reuters) - Vietnam on Thursday defended its decision to revoke the citizenship of French-Vietnamese dissident Pham Minh Hoang, a former political prisoner who is accused of breaking the law and threatening state security. ...

Vietnam defiende la decisión de eliminar la ciudadanía a un disidente
15.06.2017 (Europa Press) - Vietnam ha defendido este jueves su decisión de anular la ciudadanía del disidente franco-vietnamita Pham Minh Hoang, un ex preso político acusado de infringir la ley y amenazar la seguridad del Estado. ...

Vietnamese Police Pursue Criminal Probe of Dong Tam Villagers in Land Standoff
13.06.2017 (RFA) - Vietnamese police on Tuesday began a criminal investigation of farmers in Dong Tam village, despite a promise by Hanoi’s mayor not to prosecute them as a result of hostage-release negotiations during an April standoff between villagers and the local government, sources with knowledge of the situation said on Tuesday. ...

Jailed Vietnamese pastor punished after US visit
13.06.2017 (UCANews) - An evangelical pastor imprisoned in southeast Vietnam is being held in a cramped confined space as punishment for telling a visiting U.S. diplomatic delegation about abuses he has suffered. ...

Vietnam Formally Charges Blogger Activist Honored by US
13.06.2017 An Hai (VOA) - Me Nam, or Mother Mushroom, the Vietnamese blogger who received the International Women of Courage Award from first lady Melania Trump in March has been formally charged by the Hanoi government for the very activities that earned her the honor, VOA Vietnamese reported. ...

Vietnam entzieht Blogger Staatsbürgerschaft
13.06.2017 (heise) - Pham Minh Hoang wurde vor sechs Jahren bereits wegen regierungskritischer Online-Beiträge zu drei Jahren Haft verurteilt. Nun verliert er die vietnamesische Staatsbürgerschaft. ...

Vietnam, el verdugo silencioso
13.06.2017 Eric San Juan (El Mundo) - Los números publicados por el régimen comunista de Vietnam lo sitúan como el tercer mayor verdugo del planeta, solo por detrás de China e Irán, unos datos mucho más altos de los que barajaban los observadores internacionales. ...

US-Vietnam Defense Ties in the Spotlight with Warship in Cam Ranh
13.06.2017 By Prashanth Parameswaran (The Diplomat) - On June 12, the U.S. Navy announced that a U.S. warship was conducting a port visit to Vietnam’s Cam Ranh Bay for maintenance. The engagement was the latest in a series that demonstrates the progress that Washington and Hanoi are making in their defense relationship ...

Hoa Hao Buddhists Under House Arrest Amid Religious Anniversary
12.06.2017 (RFA) - Several members of an unsanctioned sect of Hoa Hao Buddhism are being kept under de facto house arrest by unidentified men in Vietnam and denied access to social media as they mark the 78th anniversary of their religion’s founding, one of the people targeted in the crackdown said Monday. ...

Counter-Coercion Series: China-Vietnam Oil Rig Standoff
12.06.2017 By Michael Green, Kathleen Hicks, Zack Cooper, John Schaus and Jake Douglas (The Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative / CSIS) - On May 1, 2014, Vietnam detected the Haiyang Shiyou 981 (HYSY 981) oil rig and three Chinese oil and gas service ships heading south from China’s Hainan Province. ...

Chemie-Tanker vor Vietnam havariert
12.06.2017 (Heute) - Vor Vietnam ist am Samstag der Chemietanker "Chemroad Journey" mit einer Fracht von mehreren Tausend Tonnen gefährlicher Chemikalien vor der kleinen Insel Phú Quý auf Grund gelaufen. ...

Vietnamese rice labeled with foreign names sells better than domestic brands
12.06.2017 (UkrAgroConsult) - Vietnamese choose foreign rice not because the latter is better, but because Vietnamese enterprises don’t know how to build their brands, experts say. ...

Vietnam revokes citizenship of French dual-national dissident
11.06.2017 (RFI) - Vietnam has stripped a French-Vietnamese former political prisoner and mathematics lecturer of his citizenship. Pham Minh Hoang is accused of tarnishing the country's image with a series of articles which authorities said were aimed at overthrowing the government. ...

Bad water linked to dialysis deaths in Vietnam, says Health Dept
11.06.2017 (The Star) - Hanoi: Poor water quality used in dialysis machines might have led to eight deaths in the largest fatal medical incident in Vietnam, said the Hoa Binh Province Department of Health. ...

Dieser Mann verwaltet das Glück eines ganzen Landes
11.06.2017 (SZ) - Ha Vinh Tho hat jahrelang Unglück in aller Welt erlebt, bevor er zum Programmverantwortlichen des Zentrums für Bruttonationalglück in Bhutan wurde ...

Dicke Wolken über dem Südchinesischem Meer
10.06.2017 (Philippinen Magazin) Manila, Philippinen – Das Südchinesische Meer wird zu einem neuen Spannungsfaktor in den Beziehungen zwischen den USA und China, schreibt die Zeitung „Iswestija“ am Freitag. ...

What Did the Vietnam Premier’s Japan Voyage Accomplish?
09.06.2017 By Prashanth Parameswaran (The Diplomat) - From June 4-8, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc paid a four-day visit to Japan. Japan has evolved to become Vietnam’s largest source of official development assistance, second largest foreign investor, third largest tourism partner, and fourth largest trading partner. ...

World Bank Approves $53 Million to Improve Urban Infrastructure in Lao Cai and Phu Ly cities
09.06.2017 (World Bank) - The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved today $53 million to support infrastructure development in Lao Cai and Phu Ly, two emerging middle cities in northern Vietnam. ...

Indonesia releases 695 Vietnamese fishermen
09.06.2017 By Ainur Rohmah (Anadolu Agency) - TUBAN, Indonesia - Indonesia on Friday released 695 Vietnamese fishermen who were detained after straying into its waters. ...

Vietnam suspends sending workers to Qatar
09.06.2017 (Nikkei Asian Review) - Political situation sparks concern for over 1,000 nationals in construction, housekeeping - Labor-exporting companies in Vietnam have been asked to suspend sending workers to Qatar after other Gulf nations severed diplomatic ties with Doha. ...

Vietnam’s rice export price hits 3-year high
09.06.2017 (UkrAgroConsult) - The price of Vietnamese export rice has hit a three-year high thanks to increasing import demand and restricted supply. ...

A Hanoï, la vieille usine ferroviaire se meurt
08.06.2017 (L'Express) - Hanoï - L'usine ferroviaire raconte le Vietnam des 100 dernières années: construite par les Français pendant la colonisation, elle sert à fabriquer d'armes pendant la guerre et résistent aux bombardements américains. Mais aujourd'hui, elle est en bout de course. ...

Can Vietnam reform without the TPP?
08.06.2017 Author: Tran Van Hoa, Victoria University (East Asia Forum) - The withdrawal of the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) under President Donald Trump almost immediately after his inauguration has raised a number of national policy and reform issues for its other members, especially Vietnam. ...

Vietnam conglomerate plans US$1b solar parks project
08.06.2017 (The Business Times) - [HO CHI MINH CITY] Vietnam's TTC Group, a sugar, energy, real estate and tourism conglomerate, is planning to spend as much as US$1 billion on an ambitious plan to build one of the country's largest portfolio of solar projects in an effort to capitalize on the nation's growing power needs. ...

Vietnam Is Losing Economic Ground To China Due To Lack Of High-Skilled Worker
07.06.2017 Ralph Jennings (Forbes) - ... Vietnam has grown at an average 6.2% per year since 2000, gaining fame worldwide as a go-to place for export manufacturing, largely because of cheap labor. The lack of more skilled labor has become an increasingly obvious barrier to growth in value-added exports such as high-tech goods, which require advanced studies for mastery. ...

Vandals Target Vietnam Church Known For Anti-Formosa Sentiment
07.06.2017 (RFA) - Two unidentified men vandalized a Catholic church Wednesday in Vietnam’s Nghe An province that has been targeted several times after members of its congregation criticized the government’s handling of a devastating toxic waste spill off the country’s coast last year, sources said. ...

Vietnam : French-Vietnamese blogger threatened with expulsion
07.06.2017 (RSF) - Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is extremely concerned about the Vietnamese government’s declared intention to expel Pham Minh Hoang, an outspoken blogger who has French as well as Vietnamese nationality. RSF condemns this persecution of Hoang and urges the French authorities to give him their support. ...

Mythos "Saigon" verschwindet
07.06.2017 (DW) - Was wäre das frühere Saigon ohne seine französische Kolonialarchitektur? Die heutige Ho-Chi-Minh-Stadt würde zu einer asiatischen Metropole wie jede andere. Genau dieses Schicksal droht der Stadt in Vietnam. ...

Ho Chi Minh City's vanishing architecture
07.06.2017 (DW) - ... Any visitor to Ho Chi Minh City, as Saigon is now known, cannot help but notice the construction cranes dotting an increasingly crowded skyline. They are the most visible symbols of one of Asia's fastest growing economies. ...

Boomland Vietnam
07.06.2017 (Börse-Online) - Nicht nur als Urlaubsland ist Vietnam einer der heißesten Tipps. Auch die Wirtschaft in dem asiatischen Land boomt. Unter Fondsmanagern gelten vietnamesische Aktien als einer der Geheimtipps. ...

The Rich Men Who Drink Rhino Horns
07.06.2017 Sandy Ong (The Atlantic) - The Vietnamese government is now facing fierce international pressure to put an end to the crisis, before rhino populations are devastated beyond repair. But weeding out rhino-horn consumers is a challenge. ...

Vietnam Strips French-Vietnamese Professor of Citizenship: French Officials
06.06.2017 (RFA) - Vietnam’s government has stripped French-Vietnamese professor and former political prisoner Pham Minh Hoang of his citizenship against his will, throwing his right to stay in his home country into limbo, according to French consular officials. ...

Vietnam's Social Media Shaping New Environmentalism
06.06.2017 James Borton (Geopoliticalmonitor) - ... It was a turning point for Vietnam’s environmental and social activists, many who became first-time citizen reporters and posted their photos of tons of dead fish swept along a 125-mile coastline, devastating sea life and local economies dependent on fishing and tourism spanning several provinces from Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, and Quang Tri. With more than 35 million users, Facebook is rapidly becoming a lighting rod for environmental activism and sparking demands for improved environmental safeguards. ...

Vietnam quickly becoming Asia’s latest property hotspot
06.06.2017 Summer Zhen (SCMP) - Vietnam is fast becoming the region’s hottest property market for Hong Kong and mainland China investors, as prices at home continue to go through the roof. ...

Perfider Asylbetrug? Hunderte deutsche Männer geben sich als Väter von Flüchtlingskindern aus
06.06.2017 (Huffington Post) - Polizei und Staatsanwälte der Region Berlin-Brandenburg vermuten einen groß angelegten, bundesweiten Betrug bei der Asylvergabe. Ein besonders kurioser Fall: Ein 28-jähriger NPD-Anhänger, der schon wiederholt wegen des Tragens verfassungsfeindlicher Symbole verurteilt worden sei, soll die Vaterschaft für ein vietnamesisches Kind übernommen haben. ...

Chinese media mocks Australia, Japan, India, Vietnam alliance
06.06.2017 (Asia Times) - China’s Global Times described a new regional bloc as a “ridiculous utopia”, in response to a Reuters report that Australia, Japan, India and Vietnam were quietly stepping up talks to form an alliance to counter Beijing’s growing influence. ...

Asia loses faith in America as Mattis fails to ease Trump angst
05.06.2017 (The Business Times) - [SINGAPORE] The first question asked of US Secretary of Defence James Mattis at a Singapore security conference this weekend began just by thanking him for taking the job. It was a compliment meant for Mr Mattis, but not his boss. ...

Unsure of U.S., Asia builds new alliances to counter China
05.06.2017 (The Asahi Shimbun) - SINGAPORE--Several Asian nations are seeking to bolster informal alliances among themselves, regional diplomats and officials said, unsettled by growing fears that the United States could not be relied on to maintain a buffer against China's assertiveness. ...

7-Eleven will open its first Vietnam store in June
05.06.2017 (IGD) - Seven & I Holdings, which operates the largest chain of convenience stores in Japan, will enter Vietnam with its first store in Ho Chih Minh city. ...

Kim Thúy - Die vielen Namen der Liebe
04.06.2017 Von Christine Westermann (WDR) - Acht Jahre ist Vi, als sie mit der Mutter und den Brüdern aus Vietnam flieht und schließlich in Kanada neu beginnt, der Vater bleibt zurück. Eine kleine, leise Geschichte über Liebe, Sehnsucht und ein Leben zwischen den Kulturen. ...

Washington Zig-Zags in the South China Sea
02.06.2017 By Donald K. Emmerson (Asia Sentinel) - The latest American assertion of freedom-of-navigation rights in the South China Sea may have reassured some that new bonhomie between presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping won’t lead to abandonment of the region. But questions remain. ...

Stockschläge und Auswendiglernen – So erlebe ich Schule in Vietnam
02.06.2017 (Orange by Handelsblatt) - Klassen-Kampf: Jens studiert Management und jobbt als Lehrer in Vietnam. Der Alltag im Sozialismus erinnert ihn an die Schulgeschichten seiner Großeltern. Mitten im Unterreicht geht die Tür auf und meine Schüler springen auf. Ein Aufsichtslehrer kommt in die Klasse. ...

Vietnam: Sieben Dialyse-Patienten in Krankenhaus gestorben
01.06.2017 (derStandard) - Hanoi – Vietnam wird von einem schweren Skandal im Gesundheitswesen erschüttert: In einem staatlichen Krankenhaus in Hoa Binh im Norden des Landes starben sieben Dialyse-Patienten. Die Behörden sagten den Hinterbliebenen eine Entschädigung von umgerechnet jeweils 590 Euro zu. ...

Viet Premier Finds “Unexpectedly Good Dynamics” at White House
01.06.2017 By David Brown (Asia Sentinel) - There were lots of smiles as US President Donald Trump and Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc ended their White House meeting on May 31. ...

Spotify will Asiengeschäft mit Expansion nach Vietnam und Thailand ausbauen
01.06.2017 (IT-times) - STOCKHOM/SINGAPUR - Der schwedische Musik-Streaming-Dienst Spotify will sich den lukrativen Musikmarkt in Asien offenbar nicht entgehen lassen ...

As blast hits newly reopened Formosa Plastics plan, Catholics continue to be threatened and attacked
01.06.2017 (AsiaNews) - Hanoi  – A major explosion stopped production at a steel mill owned by Taiwan-based Formosa Plastics Group in Ha Tinh province, central Vietnam, the same that saw the worst environmental disaster in the country's history in April 2016. No casualties have been reported. ...

Explosion at Vietnamese Steel Plant
01.06.2017 (Financial Tribune) - An explosion rocked Taiwanese conglomerate Formosa Plastics Group's new steel plant in Vietnam late on Tuesday, a day after it resumed test operations for the first time since causing one of the country's worst environmental disasters. ...