Tieng Viet lovers club

[jackbl]

The rich send their children to foreign universities to avoid military service
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VietNamNet Bridge – While a lot of Vietnamese students have to break their studies and return to Vietnam because of the financial problems, many others have been trying to go studying abroad just because they want to avoid the compulsory military service.

Nguyen Huong Giang, an officer of an overseas study consultancy firm, yesterday received a special client.

NMT, a housewife in Cau Giay district in Hanoi, asked Giang about the procedures to enroll in a foreign school.

The mother seemed to be not too demanding. She just wanted her son successfully enroll in a foreign university, any schools, to avoid the military service. She wishes to receive the acceptance from the foreign school soon, so that the boy can leave Vietnam in June, before he receives the call for military service.

“My son’s learning capability is not really good. Therefore, I don’t think he would pass the national university entrance to enroll in a domestic school,” NMT said when she was asked about the boy’s ability.

“I have heard that from now on, all will have to join the army, even if they pass the entrance exams to domestic schools,” NMT complained. “If he has to join the army and begin the university education after the two-year military service, it will be too late for him.”

In the eyes of the boy, serving in the army is a kind of “torture” which doesn’t bring any good thing. “A neighbor of mine has been redundant over the last few years since the day he finished the military service. And he has no girlfriend, because girls don’t like this type of people,” he said.

Finally, NMT and her son decided to enroll in a medium-class school in Australia which requires the tuition of tens of millions of dong a month.

NTH, a parent in Thai Nguyen City had not thought of sending her only son to foreign schools until the day she heard about the compulsory military service.

“I previously did not intend of sending him abroad, because our financial capability is limited. However, I’d rather send him abroad and spend big money for the tuitions than letting him joining the army,” the mother said to an officer at the overseas study consultancy firm on Thuy Khue street in Hanoi.

“I am afraid that he cannot bear the iron discipline in the army. Since he is the only son of ours, we should create most favorable conditions for him,” she added.

The new regulation by the Ministry of National Defense that all the young people aged 18 and higher will have to join the army when receiving the calls has made a lot of parents change their plans.

Ho Phuong Lan, an office worker, said she has decided to send her son abroad sooner than initially planned. At first, the boy intended to leave Vietnam to follow university education overseas. However, Lan has changed her mind, deciding that the boy should leave Vietnam when he enters the 10th grade.

“We will have to pay hundreds of millions of dong for his tuition. However, we can be sure that he would not have to serve in the army,” Lan said.

To Nguyet Phuong from an overseas consultancy firm has noted that the number of high school students who came to ask about overseas training courses has been increasing rapidly in recent days.

“Many of them frankly said that they wanted to go abroad just to avoid the military service,” Phuong said.

Nguyen Thao

[jackbl]

Only 10 percent of coffee products in VN made of real coffee?
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VietNamNet Bridge – Coffee drinkers would be exceedingly astonished if they know that what they drink is not real coffee, but of the mixture of maize and other burnt grain powder.

Nguyen Thanh Tung, Deputy General Director of Vinacafe Bien Hoa, has surprised the public when stating on Tuoi tre that only 10 percent of the coffee products available on the market are made of real coffee.

Tung said in pre-1990s, coffee was a luxurious and expensive product in Vietnam, which then prompted coffee roaster to add some cheap materials to optimize profits.

Therefore, adding some other materials into coffee during the roasting process has been a growing tendency. Roasters have been satisfactory with the new “technique” of making coffee because the technique allows them to make bigger money, while they don’t think of making heavier investment in technologies.

Most of the manufacturers, according to Tung, state that their coffee products are 100 percent made of coffee, but in fact, these are not fine coffee.

“The same thing now can be seen in instant coffee products as well. The red alarm should be rung in Vietnam, since most of products are made of false coffee,” Tung has warned.

He went on to say that in recent years, roasters not only put additives, but also toxic chemicals into coffee. Local newspapers have reported that soya beans have been used together with unoriginal chemicals to make “original coffee.” Especially, the chemicals have been discovered as harming people’s health.

As a result, regular coffee drinkers have to keep drinking the low quality coffee, because they have no other choice. Meanwhile, others have to give up their habit of drinking coffee everyday.

More seriously, the ill fame about Vietnam’s coffee has badly affected Vietnam’s coffee industry, making Vietnam’s coffee less valuable in the world market.

However, Tung’s words have raised doubts among people. Though agreeing that the coffee quality is problematic, people don’t think that only 10 percent of coffee products are made of real coffee.

Especially, after Tung made such a statement, the report released by Nielsen, a market survey firm, on July 9, 2012, affirmed that the Vietnamese coffee market has been seeing positive growth. The report also said that Nestle was leading the instant coffee market. However, G7 of Trung Nguyen was accounting for 38 percent of the 3-in-1 market, followed by Vinacafe (31 percent) and Nescafe 27 percent.

Local people in Buon Me Thuot City -- the “metropolis” of Vietnam’s coffee growing areas, said they don’t believe ad pieces and that they choose coffee based on their taste.

Nguyen Manh Ly, the owner of a coffee garden in Dak Lak province said pure coffee powder is brown in color, not black burned like the one sold at cafes, which is just the mixture of powder and roasted maize.

Tung, the owner of a café on Le Duan Street of Buon Me Thuot City, said there are a lot of counterfeit coffee products which are priced at just ½ or 1/3 of the high quality products.

“Be careful about the coffee which has black color. This may contain industrial dying substance, very harmful to people’s health. The substance can help create a coffee-flavored water,” Tung said.

Tung declined to name the products, but he said that even big enterprises also add non-coffee materials into their products, while they don’t declare about the mixture in the packs of products.

Dat Viet

[Hurricane88]

Một chàng trai mang món quà từ TPHCM ra gặp người yêu nhân dịp lễ tình nhân. Nhưng chẳng may ra đến Huế bị tai nạn.
Chàng nhấc máy lên gọi
- Alo em yêu à. anh đang ra đến Huế thì xe bị tai nạn. em vào Huế với anh chứ? Anh đang mắc kẹt tại đó...
- Em xin lỗi, nhưng xa quá, em không thể, em còn phải học....
- Cô gái òa khóc trong điện thoại Lặng lẽ cúp máy.

chàng trai gọi cho người bạn thân :
- Mày đang làm gì đấy? xe tao bị tai nạn ở Huế, tao kẹt ở Huế rồi, mày đến đây với tao nhé?
- Tao xin lỗi, nhưng tao không thể bỏ người yêu tao trong ngày hôm nay đc, tao không muốn cô ấy buồn...

Cuối cùng chàng trai nhấc máy lên :
- Mẹ à, con đang bị tai nạn.
- Con ở đâu? ở yên đó, mẹ đến ngay.
Đôi lúc cuộc sống là vậy đấy, chúng ta đã quên đi mất tình yêu thương lớn lao của cha mẹ dành cho ta... Hãy dành cho người cha người mẹ của mình sự quan tâm lớn nhất. Không ai che chở, giúp đỡ khi ta hoạn nạn, khó khăn; không ai động viên khích lệ khi ta tuyệt vọng chán nản; không ai tin tưởng ủng hộ ta khi ta có ước mơ; không ai theo dõi, âm thầm động viên khi ta thành công.

Chúng ta luôn tìm niềm vui ở những người bạn, đồng nghiệp khi đạt được điều gì đó mà quên mất rằng ở nhà luôn có người mong ngóng ta trở về. Chúng ta luôn quan tâm xem trên thế giới hàng ngày có điều gì biến động; người nổi tiếng này có những vấn đề gì đáng được quan tâm, mà chúng ta quên mất rằng người mẹ già của mình đã làm gì, ăn gì và cảm xúc như thế trong ngày hôm đó. Khi đọc được những dòng này, tôi chợt sởn gai ốc. Sẽ chẳng có tình yêu nào sánh được bằng tình yêu của người mẹ dành cho con.

Nhưng chúng ta thì sao đây? Chúng ta luôn mặc định là một mẹ nuôi được mười con nhưng mười con chẳng thể nuôi một mẹ. Cũng giống như bao bạn trẻ khác, tôi thờ ơ, vô tâm với người mẹ của mình. Nhiều khi quên 1 cuộc điện thoại hỏi thăm trưa nay mẹ ăn gì, quên 1 món quà nhân dịp gì đó như 14/2, 20/11, quên 1 bài hát mà mẹ hay nghe, quên 1 món ăn mà mẹ thích, quên 1 bữa cơm ngon mà mẹ nấu và mong chờ tôi về… Quên nhiều lắm.

Tôi đã làm mẹ tôi buồn nhiều, và vẫn tiếp tục như vậy. Tôi biết cả đời mẹ vất vả nuôi tôi khôn lớn, nhưng rất ít khi tôi làm cho mẹ vui. Vì đơn giản là tôi ích kỷ. Thật xấu hổ khi tôi nhận ra được điều này. Nhìn mẹ mà lòng đau như cắt. Khuôn mặt đã lắm vết rám nắng chân chim, thời gian đánh dấu bằng những nếp nhăn, những căn bệnh quái ác mà bà gặp phải, sự ưu tư in hằn lên đôi mắt khi cuộc đời đã lấy đi của bà nhiều nước mắt và sức khoẻ…
Tôi hiểu rằng gánh nặng đặt lên đôi vai tôi là rất nặng nề. Tôi không được phép nản chí dù trong hoàn cảnh khó khăn nhất. Tôi phải vững vàng để làm chỗ dựa cho mẹ tôi khi về già. Chưa lúc nào tôi dám nói yêu mẹ mình như lúc này, bởi vì tôi mà bà phải chịu đựng nhiều đắng cay của cuộc đời như vậy. Tôi luôn cảm ơn bà đã cho tôi cuộc sống này, đã cho tôi nghị lực để sống 1 cách ý nghĩa hơn. Từ đáy lòng mình, con xin lỗi mẹ vì những gì con đã làm để cho mẹ phải buồn và lo lắng. Con sẽ cố gắng để làm mẹ cảm thấy vui hơn và an nhàn hơn lúc về già. 1 valentine k hoa, k chocolate nhưng hạnh phúc và ấm áp khi được ở bên mẹ, người phụ nữ quan trọng nhất của cuộc đời!

[jackbl]

Wow..... 1 big posting with all vietnamese words.... how to understand???

[jackbl]

Take-away coffee booming in Vietnam
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VietNamNet Bridge – More and more take-away coffee brands, both domestic and foreign, have appeared on the market, creating a new tendency of enjoying coffee among the youth.


Huynh Thi Thanh Nga, the owner of a pavement coffee shop on Han Hai Nguyen Street in HCM City, noted that previously, connoisseur people liked the coffee with strong coffee flavor, while nowadays, the youth and office workers tend to drink coffee more regularly, considering this a kind of refresher.

Nga has noted that the western-styled coffee has low caffeine concentration, therefore, it can be drunk many times within a day. Especially, it has been favored by the youth because of the modern style.

In fact, Nga has been selling take-away coffee for a long time already to the customers who prefer enjoying coffee at their homes or offices. However, only when foreign coffee brands like Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Gloria Jean’s Coffees, Angel In Us, and Starbucks recently, turned up in Vietnam, did the concept “take away coffee” or “to go coffee” become popular.

Western style coffee’s customers are the young people who like discoveries and new tastes, who account for a half of the total population.

A report of the international coffee organization ICO showed that in 2008-2011, the volume of coffee consumed in Vietnam increased by 65 percent. Especially, the growth rate was very high at 31 percent in 2010. This showed the great potentials for coffee brands in Vietnam.

Since the day Passio opened its first café in Vietnam in December 2006, its chain has had 10 shops to date. Effoc, which turned up in Vietnam in August 2008, now has developed into a chain with 8 shops. A lot of other coffee brands have also joined the market, including Freddo Coffee, Urban Station Coffee, Cactus, Buzz.

Most recently, La Fontaine opened its first shop on Hai Ba Trung Street in district 1 in HCM City in January 2013, and the second shop in district 5 just three weeks later. It plans to develop a chain with 10 shops in 2013 with more shops to be set up in the districts of HCM City, before it develops all over the country.

Tran Thi Phuong Dung, Director of La Fontaine chain, revealed that she plans to make investment in a massive scale to cement the position in the domestic market.

Dung said foreign brands are not a threat to her, because they are not the direct rivals of La Fontaine, while the market is still very large with enough room for all.

“Foreign brands target high income earners, while we target medium class customers, while the market segment is large enough,” Dung said.

Analysts have noted that it’s now the time for take-away coffee to boom. Cafés have been mushrooming partially because of the low investment rates required.

While the other investors need large retail premises with gardens and good view which require big investment capital, the owners of take-away café just need to spend VND200 million for a café with some 10 seats and VND100 million for a café with no seat. That explains why take-away café is the favorite choice of the Vietnamese young or start-up businessmen.

While foreign brand coffee has been selling at VND60,000-100,000 per cup, Vietnamese brands target students and office workers, offering the prices lower by 30-50 percent.

Effoc, for example, sells coffee at VND20,000 per cup, Buzz VND18,000-20,000, Cactus VND12,000—30,000, La Fontaine VND30,000, Urban Station VND16,000-27,000.

DDDN

[Hurricane88]

Originally Posted by jackbl

Wow..... 1 big posting with all vietnamese words.... how to understand???

you are the expert...how can dun understand......

[kukubird85]

Hi all guru, bro here, can help me translate the. following sentences? thank 1st

me: Gan om, a hoi k happy e co tin k
her: Tôi đâu phai baby đâu ma tôi tin lơi a noi.

and receive a msg from a lady really hard to understand:

5 Okg. vTư8 tư v v 8

All bro guru, please help

[jackbl]

French tourists threaten to boycott Vietnam for dog meat
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VietNamNet Bridge - In the western world, dogs and cats are pets and are considered friends. Killing dogs and eating dog meat is considered brutal and that act is banned in many countries. Many foreign tourists to Vietnam were very shocked seeing Vietnamese people killing dogs and eating dog meat.

Annie Peysson, a French resident at 14 RUE DE L'EGALITE 69330 PUSIGNAN said he was profoundly shocked to witness the Vietnamese eating dog. He did not understand why the Vietnamese people raise dogs in their houses but they can still eat dog meat in a tasty way.

"We do not understand why Vietnam has opened its doors to other countries in the world, but it continues to horribly massacre dogs, cats – smart, sensitive and useful domesticated animals to our humanity," Peysson said.

Like many other travelers, Peysson knows Vietnam a beautiful and hospitable country. But when he came and witnessed the slaughter of animals, he lost sympathy. He was chilling to participating in a wicked festival, in which people killed pigs. These innocent animals howled in pain while people cheered delightedly.

"These facts do not represent the intelligence of a true civilization. But it is an act of expression for the retarded and shameful cruelty which would destroy the cultural values and our spirit. For this reason, we will not travel to Vietnam again if you continue to eat dog meat, with no respect for law on the protection of pets and other animals," said Peysson.

Food is scary?

As a photographer, Nathan Wynn traveled to Vietnam hoping to admire the beautiful image of a tropical country. But after the trip, the image that was so bold in his mind is not the landscapes, but the horrible cries of animals.

"That's the worst thing that I saw in Vietnam. The dogs were on their way to the market, to be eaten. They are not treated humanely. I cannot forget the image that people arrested dogs to lock them in cages. Horrible sounds!" Wynn said.

Johann, an Italian tourist said he went to Vietnam at the invitation of a friend. His friend is a foodie so he led him to enjoy many delicious dishes in Hanoi. He loved pho and bun cha here. But some Vietnamese dishes made him get "goose bumps."

"When I was invited, I was excited because my friend said to take me to eat the biggest specialties of the Vietnamese. But when I saw it, I was dazed because the dish that they call “tiet canh” turning out to be fresh blood," Johann said.

He was also scared when his friend led him to savor "seven dishes from dog meat." In his country, cats and dogs live with human as friends. They will be buried careful by their owners when they die and they are never slaughtered.

La Hoan

[jackbl]

Vietnam’s tourism does not depend on dog meat
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After VietNamNet published the story “French tourists threaten to boycott Vietnam for dog meat,” we have received a lot of opinions from readers. Part of them disagreed with the French visitor and part of them agreed with him. Below are the opinions of the first group.

“This French man is too arrogant and disrespectful to Vietnamese. Apparently he imposed his culture on Vietnam. If the French do not eat dog meat, it does not mean that the Vietnamese must not eat dog meat, too! If he said so, perhaps I will boycott France if the French do not stop eating a horror food - snails!” wrote Thanh Hai.

According this reader, throughout history, dog meat is a specialty and the quiche of the Vietnamese. The Vietnamese eat dog meat like pork, chicken, buffalo meat or beef. If saying like the French man, then the French should be vegetarian because they also raise chickens, pigs, goats, cattle and they should not slaughter them for meat.

“The French also loves to eat goose liver. And if we see the way they raise goose for taking livers, we will find them cruel and inhuman too,” he added.

According to Thanh Hai, food is a part of the culture. Every country in the world has the culinary culture of their own. That is one of the tourist attractions. People go all over the world not only for sightseeing, but also to enjoy the delicious food. With Vietnamese, dog meat is a specialty, so when you visit the country of Vietnam, learn about Vietnamese culinary culture, you should not belittle the food.

“We should not side with the French man to criticize dog meat, a culinary culture of ours because food is one of the factors that make the difference in the local culture. If a foreign tourist says that he will boycott Vietnam because of the killing of buffaloes in the buffalo fighting festival in Hai Luu (Lap Thach, Vinh Phuc) or in some other festivals of ethnic minorities in Vietnam, we will remove all traditional festivals? And there are many other comments of foreign visitors, if we follow them all, we will lose our culture,” Thanh Hai wrote.

He confirmed: “Foreign visitors come to Vietnam and Vietnam's tourism industry develops or not, it does not depend on the dog meat or blood pudding but other factors!”

Reader Hoang Nguyen questioned: “The Koreans also eat dog meat but their country is still touristy! So what is the relationship between dog meat and the civilization of a country?”

“After reading the article French tourists threaten to boycott Vietnam for dog meat, I want to ask the French man about his feeling when he eats foie gras and snails, chicken, beef and pork, which are also domestic animals. Any animal bleeds when they are slaughtered. Unless you're a vegetarian, if you eat meat but you voiced to disdain Vietnam for eating dog meat, I do not admire him,” Hoang Nguyen wrote.

“When in Rome, do as the Romans do”. Respecting the culture of each country is civilized, the French man!” Hoang Nguyen stressed.

Another reader named Tran Quoc Minh Thong wrote: “Reading the article French tourists threaten to boycott Vietnam for dog meat, I found it funny. This French tourist made a huge mistake: bringing the values of Western culture to criticize the cultural values of the East, in this case is considering eating dog meat in Vietnam disgust, horror. This tourist was completely ignorant about Vietnam culture when considered eating dog meat, a characteristic in food culture of Vietnam, is a brutal, reprehensible act.”

He continued: "These facts do not represent the intelligence of a true civilization. But it is an act of expression for the retarded and shameful cruelty which would destroy the cultural values and our spirit. For this reason, we will not travel to Vietnam again if you continue to eat dog meat, with no respect for law on the protection of pets and other animals." I really do not understand why this tourist could speak out this saying. It shows his ignorance to some extent. Eating dog meat is nothing shameful or underdeveloped. South Korea is a country that also eats dog meat, but they are powerfully developed and are proud of their own culture. Many tourists go to that country.”

“Many foreigners coming to Vietnam tried dog meat and they liked it simply because dog meat is delicious, nutritious food and has a long-standing history in Vietnam. A word of advice for the French tourist, when traveling to any country, you need to thoroughly understand the culture of that country. You should remember this sentence "When in Rome, do as the Romans do." When you come to our country, you should respect our culture and vice versa. When I go to France, I will respect the culture of your country. You have absolutely no right to take the cultural values of your country to contempt and condemn the culture of our country,” he emphasized.

“Each country has its values, its own cultural qualities. For our country, we are proud of the long-standing culture, including eating dog meat. Nothing is shameful, humiliating when showing the good cultural values of our country to international friends. I hope that when you read this article, you will think through, and withdraw your words,” Tran Quoc Minh Thong ([email protected]) wrote.

“I do not want to use big words to talk about the French tourist’s comment on dog meat. I just want to tell you that culture is identity; it is unable to be distinguished between high and low,” wrote reader Duong Ngoc Khoa.

“Culture, especially eating is the way people adapting themselves to natural conditions. Eating is a natural demand. But when it develops at a higher level, it becomes a culture where people still call food culture. Eating dog meat is the culinary culture of the Vietnamese residents in particular and of people of agricultural culture in Asia in general. This dish has gone into folklore, become a culinary delicacy in Vietnam,” Khoa analyzed.

“Each ethnic group has a separate culture, and you cannot bring cultural norms of this nation to impose on other peoples. I agree that “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” Each nation always has a dish that other people cannot eat, even disgusting. However, if expressing disdain, it is the cultural stigma,” he continued.


“I am very sad that a tourist from a civilized country makes such uncultured comments. If only because of the saying of a French tourist and a number of foreign tourists that Vietnamese people do not eat dog meat anymore, it is ridiculous. I agree that some of the cultural festivals have some brutal features, such as cutting pigs, stabbing buffaloes, bullfighting ... and they should not be promoted. But for the habit of eating dog meat, we have nothing to be ashamed of. If only because the Vietnamese eat dog meat that this tourist does not go to Vietnam again, I would not be sad for the development of tourism in Vietnam. I'm just sad for the visitor who has overly simplistic view that ignores unique cultures in Asia,” Khoa wrote.

Reader Manh Kha raised some questions:

1. In recent years, some Western countries, for example Spain in 2009, have warned the people to prepare beef steak thoroughly to reduce the risk of getting diseases from tapeworms. But most of people have ignored because they prefer the traditional beef steak: a piece of beef of about 2-3cm thick, being fried quickly on big fire for having a brownish outer layer, but the meat inside is still red and it will pour fresh blood when it is cut with a knife. Is this dish more civilized than tiet canh or blood pudding?

2. The closest animal to humans is probably the monkey. Who (Eastern or Western) have invented the use of monkey brain to make vaccines for humans? And then there is an industry that raises and kill monkeys. So how many people in the West are “eating monkey meat" every day?

3. Horses are one of the great friends of European farmers and warriors. But Do the Europeans eat horse meat? In Germany, they also sell pigeon meat in supermarkets.

4. What about the favorite cuisine in France – the foie gras? How do the French have that cuisine? Typical foie gras production involves force-feeding birds more food than they would eat in the wild, and much more than they would voluntarily eat domestically. The feed, usually corn boiled with fat, deposits large amounts of fat in the liver, thereby producing the buttery consistency sought by the gastronome. The fat liver is processed foie gras for export and they are proud of this food. Is it civilized?


Compiled by Na Son

[jackbl]

To be civilized, Vietnamese should stop eating dog meat!
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After VietNamNet published the story “French tourists threaten to boycott Vietnam for dog meat,” we have received a lot of opinions from readers. Part of them disagreed with the French visitor and part of them agreed with him.

Below are the opinions of the later group.

“People in the civilized countries never eat pigeon meat because this bird is a symbol of peace and happiness. They also do not eat dog meat because the dog is the most loyal friend of human. Our country has integrated into the world and to become a rich and civilized country, we need to change bad habits in society,” wrote reader Nguyen Van Trung.

“Indeed, not only French, but people in developed countries do not eat dog meat. Why? Have you ever wondered that in other countries they have doctors for pets but Vietnam does not have? In the civilized countries, people consider pets as humans but in our country, we kill dogs for meat. Witnessing that scene, Western people are scared,” Trung analyzed.

According to this reader, when Vietnam has integrated with the world, Vietnamese should give up the habits that are condemned by the world. “You should not argue eating dog meat as our cultural characteristic because the Southerners do not eat dog meat, just the Northerners. We open the door to absorb and learn civilized things from the outside world,” Trung said.

“That French man is right. Civilized foreigners consider eating dog meat as barbaric behavior. They will not want to visit our country again. Gradually Vietnam will be abandoned by international visitors. The lawmakers and policy makers should pay attention to this. Small things can gradually affect the image of Vietnam in the eyes of international friends,” Trung wrote.

“Behind the dog meat is a crime!” wrote reader Thanh Minh.

“I would like to ask reader Thanh Hai that have you ever raised dogs or cats? If not, I can understand your thoughts. Dogs are faithful and smart animals that have been next to and helped humans for thousands of years. Have you read the short story “Mr. Hac” which is in the literature textbook for the 8th graders? Do you understand the tears from heart of Hac when that old man had to sell his friend?” Minh continued.

“Eating dog meat is culinary culture? It needs to be changed when it is no longer consistent with current life. Blood pudding is also the unique culture of Vietnam, but nowadays who dare to taste it, for food hygiene and for the safety of their lives. Similarly, dog meat is no longer appropriate to the culture and civilization of the present life,” Minh wrote.

“Why? Behind the dog meat, cat meat is evil, is barbaric. If you eat dog meat, you have indirectly encouraged the thieves of dogs and cats. How many dog thieves have been killed? Why people are so indignant against dog thieves? They partly regret their property but mostly they are angry that when their friends are robbed.

Our forefathers ate dog meat during the time of famine because they did not have choice. That does not mean that we continue to do so, when we do not lack anything, especially in today's era of civilization, when people need humanities.

Around the world there are many stories about dogs: The dog Hachiko, a dog that guarded the tomb of its owner and the dog that watched the body of its owner... If you read these stories, you will understand why people respect dogs more than other animals,” Minh concluded.

Reader Hoang Yen wrote: “Cats and dogs are pets, lovely and faithful friends and nobody could his/her friends. Some said that dog meat is a culture, a specialty of Vietnam. Please do not quibble, okay! The majority of Vietnamese people do not to eat dog meat, especially women. The number of dog-meat restaurants is very small, which proves that there are not many people eating dog meat.”

“Someone comparing dog meat to beef, chicken and duck, but it is different. Cows, chickens and ducks are raised in industrial-model for meat. But dogs are different. We breed dogs to guard our houses. They are set free and they are friends of us,” she added.

“As a Vietnamese, but I support the French tourist. Seeing dogs are locked in cages and slaughtered, I really feel horrible. I loathe people who are proud of dog meat and despise those who eat dog meat,” Yen wrote.

Because that dog meat baits evils dogs, dogs on day poaching rife. Watching the dogs imprisoned in cages awaiting killed haunt me. Vietnamese people also do not mind, but not humanity? It is true that eating a piece of brutal piece!

Compiled by Na Son

[jackbl]

Allowing foreigners buying houses in VN to rescue property market?
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VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnam will not be able to rescue the real estate market if it only relies on the domestic resources. The government has been urged to allow foreigners to buy houses in Vietnam to increase the demand.


Foreign sources would help warm up real estate market

In 2008, the National Assembly released a resolution on allowing foreign individuals to buy houses in Vietnam in a 5-year trial period.

However, to date, only 500 foreigners have bought houses in Vietnam so far. Most of them are original Vietnamese with foreign nationalities. This has been attributed to too many restrictions set up by the current policies.

The subjects allowed to buy houses in Vietnam are limited. Meanwhile, they have to follow very complicated procedures to register the ownership of their houses. Especially, they can only buy houses for accommodations, not for the financial investment or other purposes.

Experts have pointed out that by setting such limitations, Vietnam has put big difficulties for itself, and that Vietnam has missed a big resource for the development of the real estate market.

Dr. Tran Minh Hoang, President of the Vietnam Real Estate JSC, said real estate is a kind of valuable asset, therefore, people’s ownership and their asset determination right should be protected by the laws. This would be an important factor people would consider when making investment decisions.

Satmad Zok, a foreign businessman who has been living and working in Vietnam for 8 years, said he is still reluctant to buy a house in Vietnam.

“If referring to the current laws, I have the conditions to possess an apartment. However, I know it’s very complicated to buy and register the ownership of properties. Vietnamese also find it difficult to buy houses, let alone foreigners,” he said.

Deputy Minister of Construction Nguyen Tran Nam has also admitted that the policy on allowing foreigners buying houses in Vietnam has not been “brought into life” because of the limitations.

“In the world of integration, while Vietnamese people can buy houses in foreign countries, foreigners cannot buy houses in Vietnam,” Nam said.

What will happen next?

The Resolution No. 19 with the 5-year prescription on allowing foreigners buying houses in Vietnam in the trial period would end in 2013. What will come after 2013, then?

Sources have said that the government has instructed the Ministry of Construction to review the implementation of the pilot policy, while planning to submit to the National Assembly a new policy, under which Vietnam would widen the subjects to be eligible for buying houses in Vietnam.

The Ministry of Construction’s principle is that Vietnam should allow not only the foreigners who work and do business in Vietnam, but also the foreigners who have demand for houses, to buy real estate products in Vietnam. Especially, the foreigners would be driven to the high end housing projects.

The ministry’s standpoint has been advocated by economists. Dr. Vo Dai Luoc, who was the Head of the economics and politics institute, said opening the real estate market to foreign buyers would be a good solution that can help rescue the real estate market.

Bui Kien Thanh, a well-known economist, also said that Vietnam should not worry about the problems to be arisen when allowing foreigners buying houses in Vietnam.

“We will have the legal regulations and required procedures to control the real estate market,” Thanh said.

Phong Vu

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Foreigners willing to spend millions of dollars to buy houses in Vietnam
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VietNamNet Bridge – A lot of expats in Vietnam have affirmed they will spend millions of dollars to buy houses here, denying the opinion that even if the government opens the real estate market to foreigners as proposed, this would not attract foreigners, who believe that the real estate price in Vietnam is overly high.

Owning houses better than renting

Analysts have noted that the foreigners’ demand for possessing houses in Vietnam has been increasing rapidly.

Philip, a Canadian citizen, who now works as an English teacher for a foreign language center in Hanoi, said he has been living in Vietnam for three years, but he still has not been allowed to buy a house in Vietnam.

Philip now still lives in a 100 square meter apartment in the West Lake area which he leases from a Vietnamese landlord. The rent alone costs him $2,000 a month, or VND40 million.

“The real estate price in Vietnam has become very reasonable. A high end apartment is priced at US$100,000-200,000, or VND2-4 billion,” he said.

“It would be better for me to buy an apartment in Vietnam than living in a rent one,” he added.

Alexander, an US expat in Vietnam, said a lot of his friends complained that they cannot find stable accommodations, though they have been here in Vietnam for 5-6 years. Most of them are the engineers working for the projects which require senior experts.

Alexander himself finds it uncomfortable to live in rent houses in Vietnam. The rents are very high, about VND50-60 million a month for high end apartments, and VND20 million for lower quality ones. The Vietnamese landlords can regularly raise the rents or ask the tenants to leave as soon as they find better clients.

The man said his friends are quite willing to spend millions of dollars to buy apartments in Vietnam, but they still cannot.

Foreign money on the doorstep to the real estate market

A report by the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment showed that 427 foreigners had bought houses in Vietnam under the pilot program on allowing foreigners to possess houses by February 1, 2013, including 342 cases in HCM City. The figure proves to be too small if noting that there are 80,000 expats in Vietnam.

Lawyer Bui Quang Hung from the Bui Quang Hung & Associates Law Office, has confirmed that a lot of foreign subjects wants to buy houses in Vietnam. They include the expats who plan to work for long term in Vietnam under the contracts with domestic companies and international groups.

He also said that foreigners want to buy houses not only for their accommodations but for leasing for money as well.

Nguyen Van Minh, Director of the Phat Dat Real Estate Trading Floor, said some his foreign clients are seeking to buy high end apartments, priced at VND8-10 billion.

“They said they would pay in cash as soon as they receive the apartments. However, I told them I could not help, because they were not the ones allowed to possess houses in Vietnam,” Minh said.

The Ministry of Construction, lawyers and real estate firms have been of the same mind about the necessity of setting up a new policy on allowing foreigners to buy houses. Lawyer Hung said that the “open policy” would help attract a strong foreign cash flow to the real estate market, which would serve as a big capital source for Vietnam.

VTC

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Bus companies reveal fair hike for upcoming holidays
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VietNamNet Bridge – Bus tickets will rise by nearly 30 per cent during Reunification Day and International Labour Day (April 30-May 1) holidays, said the Ha Noi Bus Station Management Company.

Five passenger transport companies planned to raise their bus fares for routes from Ha Noi to Ninh Binh, Nam Dinh and northerneast provinces, said director of the company Nguyen Hoang Trung.

They include Hung Thanh Co, Ninh Binh Transport Joint Stock Company and Bao Yen Company, he said.

Under the plan, passengers will have to pay VND220,000 (US$10.50) instead of VND180,000 ($8.50) for trips between Ha Noi-Son La and Ha Noi-Ha Giang.

It will cost VND320,000 ($16) instead of VND300,000 ($15) to travel from Ha Noi to Lai Chau.

Trung said some 400 buses would be added to serve the increased demand.

Deputy director of HCM City-based East--bound Bus Station Thuong Thanh Hai said the number of passengers traveling would double on the holidays.

It was estimated they would serve nearly 35,000-44,000 passengers on April 26-28, he said.

The bus ticket prices would be 40 per cent higher than a normal day, for routes such as Binh Thuan- Quang Ngai, Binh Phuoc, Dong Nai, Lam Dong and south-west provinces on April 26-29, he said.

Around 30 buses would be added to serve passengers on April 26-29, he said.

Meanwhile, the HCM City-based West-bound Bus Station forecast about 49,000-51,000 passengers on April 27 and 28.

The station's director Kieu Nam Thanh said an additional 50 buses would operate.

According to Thanh, passenger transport companies had to submit to authorised agencies if they wanted to raise their bus fares and inform the station before April 20.

Deputy Chairman of the National Committee for Traffic Safety Nguyen Hoang Hiep told Nong thon ngay nay (Countryside Today) newspaper that passengers could contact hotlines 069 42608, 069 42407 and 0984 249 999 if they were overcharged or crammed into overcrowded buses.

The Ministry of Public Security ordered police departments in provinces and cities to conduct more inspections to check the quality of all modes of transport during the holidays to ensure traffic safety.

Government workers will have five days off, from April 27 to May 1.

Source: VNS

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Vietnamese girl rescued from prostitution in Angola
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VietNamNet Bridge - A 20-year-old girl, a native of the central province of Ha Tinh, was just rescued from a prostitution ring in Angola. The victim has returned home and sent denunciations to the authorities.

According to the complaint of the victim's family, Ms. Tran Thi T, 20, in Thach Ha district, Ha Tinh province, in September 2012, the family was informed by a woman named Dao Le Xuan, 42, in Ha Tinh City, that Mr. Son and his wife Nguyen Thi Xuyen in Ky Anh district was finding a girl to work for a Vietnamese restaurant in Angola, with monthly salary $1,000. Being a 2nd year student of a vocational school in Ha Tinh, but due to financial difficulty, T. asked her parents’ permission to work in Angola.

On August 3, 2012, T flew to Angola. They arrived at Luanda the next day. T. was taken to a small restaurant, which had only one guard cum chef, one waitress and the Vietnamese owner, a woman named Huong.

That night, Huong announced that T’s job is working as a prostitute. The woman threatened that if T and other girls did not obey, they would be sold to another prostitution house.

T. found ways to inform her parents in Vietnam. At that time, T’s mother was in Hanoi with Xuyen. The mother asked Xuyen to call the woman in Angola. T’s family also asked for help from their acquaintances in Angola to rescue their daughter.

At noon on March 12, T escaped from the restaurant, with the assistance of a Vietnamese man in Angola. This man helped her return to Vietnam on March 19.

The family denounced the case to the local authorities, saying that the ones who took T to Angola are in a ring that illegally takes Vietnamese laborers to Angola.

Dam De

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Adulterous people could be fined up to $240
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The fines for people engaging in extramarital relationships may be increased to VND5 million (US$240) and the ban on same-sex marriage may be removed.

The latest draft decree including these issues was reported by the Ministry of Justice’s Inspectorate to Minister Ha Hung Cuong at a meeting yesterday.

Accordingly, married people must pay a fine from $96 to $240, instead of just VND100,000-500,000 ($$4.8-24) as present, if they are found marrying or living with another individuals like husband and wife.

At the same time, single people who get married to or cohabit with those who they know are married are subject to the same fines.

In the previous draft decree, the drafting committee proposed that the fines be increased to only VND200,000-1 million, but after receiving feedback from the public and mass media, the drafters finally proposed higher fines, Nguyen Thang Loi, deputy chief inspector of the ministry, said.

They have also removed the ban on same-sex marriage in their latest proposal.

In respect to this issue, Deputy Justice Minister Phan Quy Ty, head of the drafting committee, said, “The drafters have removed the ban only because such a ban is not appropriate with current social conditions. The proposed removal of the ban should not be interpreted as an acceptance of same-sex marriage in Vietnam.”

Ty emphasized that “whether same-sex marriage is accepted or not should be based on more studies and more public opinions.”