Weekly press digest – May 12-18

PM meets with Hai Phong public

PM Nguyen Tan Dung on May 15 had a meeting with voters in Hong Bang district, the northern city of Hai Phong, during which they expressed their anger at China’s recent act of deploying a drilling rig in VietNam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf.

The citizens he met agreed that China’s installation of the Haiyang Shiyou-981 drilling rig is an unacceptable act, brazenly violating international law and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea, to which China is a signatory.

Local voters requested that the Party, State and Government carry out effective measures to demand China immediately withdraw its rig out of Vietnam’s waters and never again violate Viet Nam’s territorial sovereignty.

PM Dung told residents that the international community has supported Viet Nam’s legitimate viewpoint, while no country has raised its voice to back China. 

PM asks for more drastic efforts in ensuring social order

PM Nguyen Tan Dung on Saturday requested inferior levels to continue taking comprehensive ad drastic measures to reinforce social security and order.

Inferior levels must put an end to illegal protests and strictly punish lawbreakers who try to excite the crowd to violence.

PM Dung also urged ministries and localities to advise the public not to participate in illegal demonstrations and asked the public to make practical deeds to safeguard the country’s sacred sovereignty.

The Government chief reiterated that the Vietnamese Government is determined to take all necessary measures in line with law and the country’s international commitments in order to safeguard safety and security for foreign agencies, businesses and nationals in Viet Nam.

VN demands China’s positive response, assures foreign nationals

Deputy PM, FM Pham Binh Minh asked for China’s serious consideration and positive response to Viet Nam’s demands after China illegally placed Haiyang Shiyou – 981 drilling rig and deployed as many as 99 vessels in Viet Nam’s waters, during his phone call to Chinese FM Wang Yi on Thursday.

Once again, Deputy PM, PM resolutely opposed China’s act and demanded China immediately withdraw the drilling rig as well as vessels from waters under Viet Nam’s sovereignty, sovereign right and jurisdiction.

Deputy PM, FM talks on the phone with foreign FMs

Deputy PM, FM Pham Binh Minh on May 16 talked on the phone with Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa, Singaporean FM K. Shanmugam and Russian FM Sergei Lavrov.

During the talks, Deputy PM, FM Minh discussed measures to strengthen bilateral relations with the three countries, respectively.

He also informed the FMs about the latest developments related to China’s rig Haiyang Shiyou 981, particularly China’s deployment of a large number of ships, including warships and missile-mounted escort ships, to Viet Nam’s continental shelf and exclusive economic zone. 

The Deputy PM, FM emphasized that Viet Nam strongly demands China to withdraw its drilling rig and ships out of Viet Nam’s waters.

He took the occasion to inform the partners of Viet Nam’s diplomatic efforts to ease the tension. 

Leaders pay tribute to President Ho Chi Minh

Leaders of the Party, State, National Assembly (NA), Government and Vietnam Fatherland Front on May 18 laid a wreath in tribute to President Ho Chi Minh at his mausoleum on the occasion of his 124 th birthday.

General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong, President Truong Tan Sang, NA Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung, and Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung attended the ceremony.

Former Party General Secretary Nong Duc Manh, former President Tran Duc Luong, former NA Chairman Nguyen Van An, former President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front’s Central Committee Pham The Duyet and other senior leaders and revolutionary veterans also joined the delegation.

PM directs realization of new rural area building

PM Nguyen Tan Dung on May 16 stressed the importance of building new style rural areas at his meeting with the Central Steering Committee on the national target program on new rural establishment.

PM Dung said the program has concretized the Party Central Committee's Resolution on agriculture, farmers and rural development, enhanced the effectiveness of agricultural production and people’s living standards, guaranteed the sustainable growth of the nation and developed the nation as a modernity-oriented industrial country by 2020.

He asked functional ministries and agencies to apply science and technology into agricultural and aquaculture production, increase the quality and competitiveness of Vietnamese products and improve people’s living condition.

VN commits to protecting foreign investors

Viet Nam will adopt proper and necessary policies and measures to support businesses suffering from damages caused by illegal protests which took place recently in some localities, said the Assistant to the Foreign Minister, Dang Minh Khoi at an international press conference on May 17.

Over the past few days, some bad individuals excited workers to smash production facilities owned by Vietnamese and foreign investors in Dong Nai, Binh Duong and Ha Tinh provinces. These activities negatively affected business operation as well as the business environment in Viet Nam, causing social disorder.

In a quick response manner, PM Nguyen Tan Dung presided over a series of meetings and issued a number of instructions asking ministries and localities to take concrete and drastic actions to deal with the incident.

Viet Nam Science and Technology Day declared

PM Nguyen Tan Dung officially declared May 18 as the Viet Nam Science and Technology Day in a bid to honor the great contributions of scientists to the national revolution, protection and development.

In his remarks, PM Dung emphasized that science and technology must serve as a driving force for the current process of economic restructuring and growth model transformation towards higher productivity, quality and competitiveness of the economy and convert Viet Nam into an industrialized country.

Accordingly, PM Dung urged the sector to focus on realizing the Resolution on science and technology development which was adopted at the 6th Plenum of the 11th Party Central Committee.

Health Ministry intensifies efforts to fight diseases

The Health Ministry is intensifying efforts to prevent the spread of infectious diseases especially dengue fever and hand-foot-mouth as the weather turns hot.

The ministry has sent eight teams to localities with high incidences of the diseases to help shore up prevention work, while promoting educational campaigns to raise the public’s awareness about disease prevention measures.

A national campaign promoting washing hands with soap was launched in Ho Chi Minh City on May 17 as part of efforts to curb diseases.

The Preventive Medicine Department on May 18 reported that 9,011 cases of dengue fever in 42 cities and provinces and 20,500 cases of hand-foot-mouth disease nationwide had been registered since the beginning of this year.

More than 83% of dengue fever cases were in the southern region, and five people have died of the disease this year, while hand-foot-mouth has claimed two lives.

VN faces high risk of cyber attacks

Viet Nam ranks 12th in the list of countries facing the maximum cyber attacks, according to the Internet Security Threat report (ISTR19) released by the Symantec Corporation last week.

Director for Systems Engineering, Asia South Region, Symantec, Raymond Goh said that Viet Nam had jumped nine spots because of the rapidly increasing number of mobile internet subscribers and users who lack good cyber security skills.

The report showed that a series of attacks in 2013 caused the greatest loss in history. The total number of leaked documents in the world increased by 62%compared with 2012, resulting in the identities of 552 million users being revealed.

Nguyen dynasty documents added on inscription of UNESCO Memory of the World

A number of administrative documents signed by Nguyen dynasty Kings (1802 -1945) have been recognised as a UNESCO world documentary heritage.

The decision was made on May 15 at the sixth working session of the Asia Pacific Regional Committee for the Memory of the World Programme held in Guangzhou, China.

The documents, comprising more than 700 original papers circulated in 11 out of 13 reigns of Nguyen Dynasty, contain rich and trustworthy information on Viet Nam’s social life from early 19th century to the middle of the 20th century.

Many of them provide accurate evidence on Viet Nam’s sovereignty over its seas and islands, reflecting the Nguyen Kings’ great attention to the issue.

(Source: VGP/VNA/VOV/Nhan dan)