Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Vietnam Sees More Abortions Than Live Births in Ho Chi MinhCity
Vietnam Sees More Abortions Than Live Births in Ho Chi Minh City
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
November 26, 2007
Hanoi, Vietnam (LifeNews.com) -- The number of abortions has declined in
Ho Chi Minh City, but the large Asian city still sees more abortions
there than live births. Vietnam has long had one of the highest abortion
rates in both Asia and the world and the United Nations recently said
sex-selection abortions are causing significant gender gaps.
The VietNamNet Bridge news service reports that the number of abortions
in HCM City in 2006 fell by 30% from 2000, with 103,972 abortions.
Doctor Duong Phuong Mai, who heads the family planning department at Tu
Du Obstetrics Hospital, said there were 19,000 abortions there from
January to September 2007 and about the same number of births. That's
something that has been going on for years.
Despite the decline, the city failed to meet the goals the national
government has set -- of reducing abortions by 50 percent.
Part of the reason abortions are so high in the city VietNamNet Bridge
reports is that the number of abortions on teenagers is rising.
According to figures the city government sent to national officials, HCM
City hopes to reduce abortions there by 10 percent annually from now
until 2010.
In October, the UN issued a new report praising the population control
efforts in Vietnam but acknowledged the devastating effects the program
has had there.
The new report from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) praises
Vietnam for lowering its fertility rate to 2.09 children per woman,
which is just below the level of replacement.
However, the pro-abortion agency warns that the sex ratio is becoming
skewed in the Asian nation just as it is in India and China.
According to UNFPA, the sex ratio at birth (the number of boys born to
every 100 girls) is becoming imbalanced. Part of the reason for this is
the cultural preference for boys and the nation's limit of only two
children per family.
This has led to an incidence of sex-selection abortions and infanticides
that are seen in other Asian countries where social norms are different
from the industrialized West. It also leads to sex trafficking, child
abandonment, and a society where men can't find partners to marry and
start families of their own.
The population levels have also stabilized in part because Vietnam has
one of the highest abortion rates in the world. It is also experiencing
high rates of infertility among women there, which is another sign of
the damage abortion causes women.
The number of abortions in the communist nation is staggeringly high and
government figures show one woman dies every five days from abortions
there.
According to national health statistics, 760,000 abortions were carried
out in 1989, 1.3 million in 1994 and 1.4 million in 1995.
In 1999, the pro-abortion Alan Guttmacher Institute, the research arm of
Planned Parenthood, reported that Vietnam had the highest abortion rate
of any nation.
Sunday, November 25, 2007
View from the Bridge
Thanksgiving Eve. From the stern of a friend of an acquaintance's yacht as we buzzed under the Gwang An Bridge in Busan...
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Vietnam approves plan to use biofuels
HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam, which has a technology-sharing pact with
leading ethanol producer Brazil, on Thursday approved the production and
use of biofuels as it seeks to diversify its energy sources.
Vietnam's Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai said in a directive that
biofuel output, including ethanol, would reach 250,000 tons by 2015 and
1.8 million tons by 2025, meeting 5 percent of the energy-hungry
Southeast Asian country's total fuel demand.
The government would create favorable conditions to promote the transfer
of biofuel technology and investment, including tax incentives and
low-interest loans, the directive said.
The economy of underdeveloped Vietnam is growing at more than 8 percent
a year, and forecast to expand between 8.5 percent and 9 percent in
2008, boosted by infrastructure and energy projects.
Fears about climate change have fueled a boom in biofuels which has
diverted some food crops into fuel production, pushing up cereal prices.
But some environmentalists and food experts say any major use of
biofuels, especially wood, as an alternative to burning fossil fuels
could lead to further deforestation and hunger.
In May, Vietnam signed an agreement with Brazil, the world's leading
ethanol exporter, to share ethanol fuel technologies.
A subsidiary of state-run oil monopoly Petrovietnam plans to have an
ethanol plant up in 2009.
The subsidiary, Petrosetco, has teamed up with Japan's Itochu Corp. to
produce ethanol from tapioca chips at a cost of $100 million.
(Reporting by Nguyen Nhat Lam, editing by Grant McCool, Valerie Lee)
Monday, November 19, 2007
UN Cemetery in Busan
The Wall of Remembrance for allied soldiers killed during the Korean War
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Brass in Busan
The Joy Jazz Band from Seoul played at the World Marine Week expo in Busan
DSC_3445.JPG
The Joy Jazz Band from Seoul played at the World Marine Week expo in Busan
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
More soldiers drafted in to hunt for hundreds of runaway crocodiles in central Vietnam
November 13, 2007 Tuesday 9:00 AM GMT
More soldiers drafted in to hunt for hundreds of runaway crocodiles in
central Vietnam
DATELINE: HANOI Vietnam
Authorities intensified their search Tuesday for hundreds of crocodiles
on the loose in central Vietnam after they escaped from a farm during
heavy weekend floods.
Soldiers, militiamen and local residents have captured or killed 67
crocodiles, but an unknown number continue to pose a danger to villagers
in Khanh Hoa province, said Nguyen Nhu Long of the provincial military
command.
"We have sent in more soldiers to search for the animals because we are
worried that they may crawl into people's houses in search of food,"
Long said. "They haven't been fed for several days now."
The reptiles escaped when flood waters knocked down a fence surrounding
the state-owned Khanh Viet Farm, a popular tourist attraction that
housed 5,000 crocodiles.
Several hundred people live in the immediate area of the farm.
Soldiers wielding AK-47 assault rifles shot dead 11 crocodiles as they
crawled up a river bank on Monday, Long said, and villagers killed four
others.
Vietnam has more than 100,000 farmed crocodiles, which are raised for
their skin and meat, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural
Development.
Meanwhile, owners of the Khanh Viet Farm have offered a reward of up to
$100US to anyone who returns one of the missing reptiles, which the
company exports to several countries, including Japan and Australia.
"It's a very good business," said company spokesman Le Tien Anh. "We
were planning to expand the farm to 10,000 crocodiles next year."
Heavy rains triggered the weekend flooding that killed 23 people in
central Vietnam, disaster officials said. Water levels in area rivers
remain extremely high, and more rains were expected Tuesday, the
national weather forecast center said.
Floods and typhoons have killed 215 people across central and northern
Vietnam since early October.
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Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Vietnamese feel the pinch of red-hot home prices
Vietnamese feel the pinch of red-hot home prices
By Roger Mitton
HANOI - PHYSICIAN Nguyen Thu Huong lives with her engineer husband and
young daughter in a small flat in the Vietnamese capital's drab and
distant north-west suburbs.
They pay US$60 (S$87) a month for their place in a run-down 35-year-old
building. That may sound cheap, but bear in mind it is half of Dr
Huong's monthly salary.
So she is not happy, especially as the rent used to be US$30 until their
landlord doubled it this year.
Excessive demand and inadequate supply, made worse by a growing flood of
rural folk moving to the booming cities, has caused Vietnam's urban
property market to go wild.
Skyrocketing prices have been sent even higher by an influx of affluent
foreign investors seeking a place to live and set up office.
Naturally, local landlords, unhindered by wishy-washy and rarely
enforced regulations, are making hay while the sun shines - often
doubling and tripling rents without notice.
Welcome to the cut-throat world of real estate gouging in the region's
most booming economy.
Said Ms Tran Minh Phuong, 23, an accountant at a toy-making company in
Ho Chi Minh City: 'High rents make life very tough. I earn 1.8 million
dong (S$163) a month and I have to pay a third of that in rent for the
little one-room flat I share with my student sister.'
The issue is a hot topic in the current session of the National
Assembly,the country's legislature, and measures such as hiking property
taxes have been mooted to discourage speculation.
But in reality, few expect the moves will turn the tide of the soaring
market.
Said Mr Truong Thai Son, deputy head of Hoang Quan Real Estate in Ho Chi
Minh City: 'High property prices badly affect ordinary people like civil
servants and young professionals. They now have little chance of buying
their own place.'
The Huongs have always dreamed of getting their own flat, but it now
looks like it will stay a dream.
Said Dr Huong: 'We checked one place and it was 14 million dong
(S$1,268)a square metre. Even if we could raise the deposit, it would
take us 50 years to buy the place, so we'll never do it.'
As Vietnam's economy has kicked up another gear, prices have shot up
across the board.
Inflation hit 9.34 per cent last month and is expected to be 9 per cent
for the year.
Ordinary people have had to face a double whammy of steep hikes in the
cost of staples like petrol, meat and cooking gas, as well as soaring
rents and property prices.
Mr Nguyen Ba Thanh, a national assemblyman from Danang, said: 'The
amount of money that bought half a kilo of meat earlier this year now
only buys a third of a kilo. A bowl of noodles that cost 10,000 dong now
costs 14,000. The hike in prices has been tremendous.'
Vietnam's 81,000 resident expatriates have also been hit hard. It is
estimated that the annual inflation rate for foreigners is now between
20 per cent and 30 per cent, largely fuelled by stiff rent increases.
Said Mr Le Viet Hai, chairman of Hoa Binh Construction & Real Estate:
'Urban property prices in Vietnam are too high, much higher than in
Bangkok and other places in the region.'
In fact, property prices have gone up a staggering 50 per cent
nationwide since the start of this year, and in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh,
they have tripled.
Said Mr Hai: 'A large imbalance between supply and demand has led to
these steep price hikes. When more supply comes onstream, prices will
fall.'
Not everyone is so sure, especially in the major cities, where extensive
construction projects have recently been completed, but prices continue
to soar.
Apartments in more than 100 Hanoi property projects have mostly been
sold and even resold - often before construction had begun, at prices
ranging from US$700 to US$3,000 per square metre.
These prices are far beyond people like Dr Huong, Ms Phuong and most
other citizens who work as civil servants, factory employees, or in the
service industry.
Said Ms Phuong: 'Five years ago, I moved from the provinces to the city
to find work and I dreamed of buying a flat. But with my current income,
it's impossible.'
It is, however, possible for a select number of elite urban
professionals in Vietnam's private sector who are entrepreneurially
adventurous and who play the stock market.
They snap up the high-end properties, and vie with affluent expatriates
to rent the topnotch new condos.
Said Mr Son: 'Many people have made a ton of money from playing
Vietnam's stock market, and they invest some of their gains in property.
So that has helped drive prices up.'
They have soared highest in the booming commercial metropolis of Ho Chi
Minh City, where top-range flats can cost US$3,500 per square metre.
Considering that Vietnam's annual per capita income is only US$835, it
is understandable why the masses feel left out and angry.
Said assemblyman Tran Du Lich, the director of Ho Chi Minh's Economic
Institute: 'Ironically, housing prices in Vietnam are among the highest
in the world, while our per capita income is among the lowest.'
Indeed, as Vietnam's property prices start to rival those in Hong Kong
and Singapore, many fear that none of the government's proposed new
measures will bring much relief.
And that is why people like Ms Phuong and Dr Huong will continue being
squeezed out of the property market and forced to live in small
low-quality rented dwellings.
At the Busan's McD's
I guess being at a McDonald's anywhere in the world makes you feel like a kid...
Viva La Mexico!
Enjoying a traditional Mexican beverage with the Mex. Ambassador to Korea...
Paris Hilton 'Loves Everything About Korea'
American celebrity Paris Hilton
By Cathy Rose A. Garcia
Staff Reporter
A barrage of flashing cameras greeted hotel heiress and American celebrity Paris Hilton when she attended her first press conference in Seoul, Friday.
Hilton, who is currently in Seoul for a promotional tour sponsored by sportswear brand Fila Korea, smiled and showed off her trademark pose for photographers and cameramen at the Grand Hyatt Hotel.
With her upswept blonde hair and glowing tan, Hilton wore a gold puffer vest, hot pink track jacket, gray tank top and purple track pants. Everything she wore, except for a pink Chanel purse, was from Fila's collection, which she is endorsing.
The 27-year old fashionista, who is often seen wearing high-end designer brands, declared she loves the Fila brand. ``I love Fila. Girls who wear Fila have great style too. I love to mix the colors. The Fila brand comes in all different colors, so I can mix and match them. My favorite color is pink, so I wore this today,'' she said.
This is her first time in Korea, so she gushed about the beautiful Korean scenery. Hilton also said she loved bibimbap and would like to eat more of it during her trip.
``I love everything about Korea. People are amazing. I look forward to coming here more often. I wish I had more time here. I'd love to see the Korean palaces, architecture and old streets,'' she said.
Hilton, an heiress to the Hilton Hotel fortune, sees Korea as a great market for her brand. ``My fashion line is also coming out, which is clothing, outerwear, shoes, purses and jewelry. Also next is real estate, like hotels and restaurants. I try to be as professional as possible. I'm very excited to be in Korea. This is a great market for me. I'm happy to be here right now,'' she said.
As for her acting roles, Hilton said she appears in the romantic comedy ``The Hottie and the Naughty'' to be released in February. She also just finished shooting ``Repo: The Genetic Opera,'' and is developing another TV show.
When asked how she feels about the paparazzi following her every move, Hilton said she understands the photographers are only doing their job. ``I respect that. I can't complain about it. I love my life and I don't let it bother me,'' she said.
On Thursday, Hilton filmed scenes for her guest appearance on the popular MBC show ``Reckless Challenge'' (Muhandojeon) at the Korea House in Pil-dong. She said she wore a ``gorgeous Korean wedding dress'' (hanbok) for the show.
Hilton's one-year contract with Fila Korea is reportedly worth $1 million. Fila chose Hilton as its model last March because of her sexy, fashionable image. However, her ads were temporarily pulled last June, when she was sentenced to a 45-day jail term on a drunk driving charge.
Fila was originally established as an Italian company in 1911, but is now owned by Fila Korea.
cathy@koreatimes.co.kr
Friday, November 09, 2007
Polyphonic Spree
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
Vietnamese films streaming
Following info is from the VSG list serv:
Doi Cat (1999)
The script of the film is based on the short story Three People on the Platform of a Railway Station by Huu Phuong. The story begins with the return of Canh (played by Don Duong) from the North to the South where he reunites with his wife. His wife, Thoa, stays at the village and waits for him throughout the war. For Canh, returning home means he has to leave Tam, his second wife and the daughter he has with her in the North. He tries but fails to rekindle his love with his aging wife, who has spent all her youth waiting for his return. The fire of conflict blazes when first the daughter and then Tam comes to visit him. Under the same roof, the life of a man and his two wives is full of sorrow, pain, humiliation, suffering and jealousy.
Alongside the love triangle, in Canh's family is a separate sub-plot and set of characters. The crippled Huy (played by Cong Ninh) loves Thoa from their years fighting with each other in the guerrilla team, but this love is unrequited. While Hao (played by Tran Thi Be)—who lost both her legs during the war—madly loves Huy.
On the platform of the station, Canh and Thoa com to see Tam and her daughter off to their native village. Sympathizing the affection between her husband and Tam, Thoa restrains her pain, and buys tickets for Canh to go to the North with his second family. Surprisingly, Canh gets off from the train and decides to stay with Thoa. Ordinary people illuminate over their ill fate and that deepens the humanity of the film.
and
Nostalgia for the Countryland
Thuong nho dong que (1995)
Nostalgia for the Countryside explores the tensions and traumas of everyday life in a rural Vietnamese village. The arrival from abroad of Quyen, who fled the village as a small girl, coincides with the sexual awakening of 17-year-old Nham, through whose eyes the story unfolds.
While picturesque on the surface, the countryside that Quyen dreamed about turns out to be a landscape of poverty, passion and tragedy - though not without pockets of warmth and humor.
Highly controversial at the time of its release, Nostalgia for the Countryside has been acclaimed as a masterpiece, due largely to the sensitive and compassionate storytelling of director Dang Nhat Minh.
///////////////////
A list of Viet films is described on the site:
http://www.asianfilms.org/country_films.php?regionid=3&countryid=19
Selected Feature Films
Bar Girls (2003)
Bitter Gourd (2002)
Former Student From Gia Dinh, A (2003)
Hanoi - 12 Days and Nights (2002)
Heaven's Net (2002)
Jackfruit Thorn Kiss (2005)
King of Rubbish Dumps (2002)
Lost and Found (2002)
Me Thao - There Was Once a Time When (2002)
Nguyen Ai Quoc in Hong Kong (2003)
Night in Ben Tre, A (2003)
Nostalgia for the Countryland (1995)
Once In Love (2003)
One Hour as a Mandarin (2003)
One Looking for a Dream (2002)
Quiet School (2002)
Sandy Lives (1999)
Slap Behind the Wings, A (2002)
Sleep-Walking Woman (2003)
Song of the Stork (2002)
Street Cinderella (2003)
Un-Petrified Woman (2002)
Unmarried Mother (2002)
Waiting Sea (2003)
Who�s Visiting this New Year�s Day (2002)
Article on Viet films: http://www.asianfilms.org/country.php?regionid=3&countryid=19&view=full
Other Asian films online:
http://www.asianfilms.org/festival.php
More info on site:
In 1995, the website was established to
· encourage international access to and appreciation of feature films generated by the nations and people of the Asia region;
· highlight feature films that demonstrate cultural diversity within the region; and
· address representations of Asian peoples through employing a broad array of technologies in the service of these goals as a lasting worldwide resource.
iFilm Connections: Asia & Pacific recognizes that although the indigenous cultures of the Pacific Islands have been underrepresented as filmmakers in the past, recently there has been a surge of new feature films created by Pacific Islanders. This site will highlight those films and filmmakers, and in this modest way encourage their further representation through cinematic storytelling.
This site recognizes the power of the new technologies to showcase artistic and culturally significant Asian and Pacific Island feature films that have been overlooked by the marketplace through streaming. Our goal is to highlight a selection of these feature films in conjunction with original materials developed by scholars and critics. Used
Monday, November 05, 2007
Temple of the Sea God
Sunday, November 04, 2007
Allah, Amps and Anarchy
there is definitely something afoot here in how Muslim-American youth are responding to their unique situation.
On the road with the first-ever Muslim punk-rock tour
In late august, a creaking green school bus with red camels stenciled on its side rolled up to the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo in Ohio. Seventeen exhausted, beer-reeking punks, with mohawks and dyed hair, walked up to the mosque looking for a place to rest. "I was surprised -- they totally let us hang out there," says Kourosh Poursalehi, 19, frontman for
Full article at:
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/16654842/allah_amps_and_anarchy
Saturday, November 03, 2007
: Senior economist: US to be leading investor in Viet Nam
Viet Nam
http://www.vneconomy.com.vn/eng/?param=article&catid=03&id=6f0b823985c87
7
Senior economist: US to be leading investor in Viet Nam VNECONOMY
updated: 02/11/2007 US-ASEAN Business Council President Matthew P. Daley
told Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai the US will become the
largest foreign investor in Viet Nam at their meeting in Ha Noi on
November 1.
Daley also pledged to reach the goal in just one or two years if the
Vietnamese Government speeds up investment climate reforms.
The senior US economist received a positive response from Deputy Prime
Minister Hai, who reiterated the Government's policies in support of
long-term foreign investments, including those from the US .
Hai also warmly welcomed US industrial groups' interest in the post and
telecommunications and information technology.
"The Vietnamese Government appreciated the US-ASEAN Business Council's
contributions to promoting relations between the two countries," said
the Deputy PM.
Viet Nam and the US have enjoyed a surge in investment and commerce in
recent years.
The 2007 two-way trade turnover is estimated at 13 billion USD while the
US investment has surpassed the 5 billion USD mark, making it the sixth
largest investor in Viet Nam.
Source: Vietnam Agency
Thursday, November 01, 2007
North Korean premier ends Vietnam visit
LENGTH: 398 words
Text of report in English by Vietnamese news agency VNA website
[Unattributed article from the "Politics" page: "DPRK Prime Minister
wraps up Vietnam visit"]
Hanoi (VNA) -Prime Minister of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea
(DPRK) Kim Yong-il left Ho Chi Minh City on October 30, wrapping up his
five-day official friendship visit to Vietnam at the invitation of his
counterpart Nguyen Tan Dung.
While in Vietnam , the DPRK Prime Minister was received by Party General
Secretary Nong Duc Manh, State President Nguyen Minh Triet and held
talks with PM Nguyen Tan Dung.
He visited President Ho Chi Minh stilt-house and economic and cultural
institutions in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, the northern province of Quang
Ninh and the northern port city of Hai Phong.
During all the meetings and talks, the Vietnamese side praised the
achievements made by the DPRK people during socialist construction and
national reunification process.
The Vietnamese leaders affirmed Vietnam 's consistent policy of
supporting the DPRK people's aspiration for peace and national
reunification. They applauded the results of the second Inter-Korean
summit in Pyongyang , as well as recent progress on the Korean
Peninsular and results of the recent six-party talks, which contributed
to the trend of peace, stability, cooperation and development in
Asia-Pacific and the world at large.
The DPRK PM congratulated Vietnam on its achievements during the
industrialisation and modernisation process under the leadership of the
Communist Party of Vietnam.
The two sides expressed their delight at the development of the
traditional friendship and cooperation over the past time. They agreed
to increase the exchange of visits and reached a consensus on measures
to expand cooperative ties.
In this spirit, the Inter-governmental Committee on Economic, Scientific
and Technological Cooperation will be required to be more active in
seeking measures to promote bilateral cooperation in trade,
science-technology, culture, education, health care and sports.
Businesses of the two countries are encouraged to consider establishing
joint ventures and increase barter trade.
The two sides agreed to boost mutual consultation and coordinate at
regional and international forums such as the United Nations and the
Non-Aligned Movement and the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF).
Source: VNA news agency website, Hanoi, in English 31 Oct 07
