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[Hurricane88]

Originally Posted by Botarbolampar

Still have ha. I thought ended liao. Hahaha lol:

Sure hv lah...how to end tcss...

TS gone mia on wed...

[Hurricane88]

Saigon slams door on gov't plan to build small apartments amid spiralling urbanization

By Ha Thanh, Minh Nga September 13, 2017 | 11:47 am GMT+7

The city says it does not want to create 'elevated slums' or risk further overcrowding.
Ho Chi Minh City has decided not to allow investors to build commercial apartments under 25 square meters (270 square feet) out of fear that fast urbanization and population growth may spiral out of control.

In a letter sent to the Ministry of Construction, the city said small apartments are not part of its development plans.

Small apartments would allow more people to buy property in the already overcrowded city, which would lead to population growth and more pressure on infrastructure, it said.

To strengthen its argument, the city stated that it does not want to create “elevated slums”.

In a letter issued in April to a domestic developer, the ministry said the firm would be allowed to build 25-square-meter apartments to attract low-income earners before new national standards for apartment sizes are set.

Vietnam’s 2015 construction law abolished a previous requirement that set the minimum area for an apartment at 45 square meters, but did not stipulate a new limit.

In December 2015, a government decree on housing development for low-income earners came into force and set the minimum area at 25 square meters. Decrees often require guidance from related ministries before they are implemented.

Construction businesses and provincial authorities have been seeking permission to build commercial houses of 30-40 square meters to attract individuals, small families and low-income buyers, and they have been given the go-ahead due to the huge demand, the construction ministry said.

Vietnam currently has 2.2 million people working in industrial parks, but only 20 percent of them have their own homes, according to the ministry.

HCMC's decision appears to be its latest attempt to rescue itself from the infrastructure mess it has found itself in.

The city has already instructed its construction department not to license any more high-rise condo buildings on roads that simply cannot handle them. This follows high-rise projects on Ung Van Khiem and Nguyen Huu Canh in Binh Thanh District and Ben Van Don in District 4 that have put immense pressure on infrastructure, local media reported.

Tim Doling, a British author who has studied Vietnam’s history and tourism extensively, wrote on his Facebook page: “More warnings that continued construction of massive ugly high rises along the city's main arteries will cause infrastructure to ‘break down’, with increased risk of flooding and further heavy traffic pressure.”

Ung Van Khiem is less than 2km long but is now home to around ten condo projects, while Nguyen Huu Canh, one of the main roads connecting the eastern part of the city with the downtown, often suffers from flooding and heavy traffic jams.

Explaining the reason for these projects, the construction department said it had been given the nod to make adjustments to the city’s development plan by allowing investors to build more high-rise buildings in those areas.

The Department of Transport said “due to the need to streamline administrative procedures, it hasn't been invited to comment on residential apartment construction.”

The city may be trying to make amends for the situation by putting high-rise condo buildings on hold and saying no to small apartments, but experts have described its solutions as "locking the stable door after the horse has already bolted."

[Hurricane88]

Top Vietnamese lawmaker calls for setting up 'red-light areas' in special economic zones

By Dien Luong, Vu Vi September 12, 2017 | 09:27 pm GMT+7

'Life has such realistic demands. We’ve got to go with the flow and work out an appropriate management mechanism.'

Red-light areas, which are still banned in Vietnam, should become legal to boost business in the country’s special economic zones alongside casinos, a vice house speaker said Monday.

Phung Quoc Hien, the vice chairman of the legislative National Assembly, said at a meeting of the Assembly's Standing Committee that Vietnam should consider establishing regulated red-light districts in certain special economic zones where the ban on local gamblers has been lifted on a trial basis.

Authorities in Vietnam's economic hubs have proposed the pilot establishment of such areas like those in Singapore, where prostitution would be regulated.

“Life has such realistic demands,” Hien told Monday's parliamentary meeting, which was convened to debate draft regulations on Vietnam’s special economic zones.

“We’ve got to go with the flow and work out an appropriate management mechanism,” he added.

Vietnam is preparing to make a final decision on a series of incentives for three special economic zones, namely the Van Don Special Economic Zone in the northern province of Quang Ninh, Van Phong in the central province of Khanh Hoa and the southern resort island of Phu Quoc.

The government has cast them as major investment magnets along the lines of Singapore and Hong Kong. While casinos for these zones have been approved, Monday was the first instance of an official publicly considering licensing red-light areas there.

Gambling and prostitution have long been considered forbidden vices in Vietnam. But the government has adopted a more lax attitude towards them in recent years.

In 2013, Vietnam abolished compulsory rehabilitation for sex workers in favor of fines no higher than $100.

The move has since sparked fierce debates among researchers, officials, and lawmakers on whether the country should legalize sex work.

Some 70 countries in the world have legalized prostitution outright, including Australia and Germany. According to a report by the United Nations Development Program, sex work has been decriminalized in many Southeast Asian countries as police turn their focus on arresting pimps and brothel owners instead of the prostitutes themselves.

Proponents of legalizing prostitution in Vietnam say the move is critical because it could significantly reduce the transmission of HIV among sex workers. Advocates cite studies indicating that STDs are more commonly spread in countries that ban sex work. They also say that even though Vietnam has declared a “war on prostitution,” sex work has continued to thrive.

More than two years ago, sociologists in Saigon proposed that the government establish regulated red-light districts in order to root out some of the worst results of the trade, such as sex slave trafficking.

But the proposal eventually died out under strong opposition from Vietnam’s rooted mindset that prostitution is an emblem of moral decadence.

Even if sex work is legalized, it is unclear how the authorities will deal with the trade.

Tran Chi Dung, the director of the tourism department in Kien Giang Province, which is home to Phu Quoc, expressed reservations.

“This is a sensitive matter,” Dung told the Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

He said the decision to open a casino on the island came after many rounds of discussions. Legal prostitution too, he said, must be dealt in the same cautious manner.

When Vietnam was debating whether it should lift the ban on local gamblers, opponents of the ban say it has only sent droves of Vietnamese gamblers abroad. The government has endorsed a study by Augustine Ha Ton Vinh, an academic who has extensively researched Vietnam's gaming industry, which pointed out that the country hemorrhages as much as $800 million per year in tax revenues from Vietnamese punters who cross the border to Cambodia.

So according to the government, it might as well let them gamble at home so they can pay taxes to Vietnam instead of foreign countries. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc announced last December that the Politburo, the decision-making body of the ruling Communist Party, had granted permission for Vietnamese citizens to gamble at two casinos: the one being built on Phu Quoc Island and the other set to open in Van Don.

But in a country still dominated by Confucian social mores, the debate on the legalization of prostitution has focused more on how to better protect the rights of the already vulnerable sex workers than how to cash in on the world's oldest profession.

“Vietnam is still short of the highest political will to legalize prostitution,” said Khuat Thi Hai Oanh, who founded and directs the Hanoi-based Center for Supporting Community Development Initiatives, an advocacy group that seeks to improve the quality of life for the most marginalized populations in the country.

“Perhaps because such a move implies too many political risks which would dwarf any possible gains for the authorities,” Oanh said.

“But to be fair, Vietnam’s relevant policies on prostitution have made some significant headway,” she said. “There are reasons and indicators to hope for an even better change in the future.”

[Hurricane88]

Hotels told to cough up for playing music on TV by Vietnam's copyright watchdog

By Ha Thu September 13, 2017 | 11:26 am GMT+7

Collection of the controversial royalty fees will resume after a three-month break following a public backlash.

Vietnam's music copyright watchdog has announced that it will resume charging hotels across the country royalty fees for playing music on TV.

The Vietnam Center for Protection of Music Copyright (VCPMC) will be charging all hotels VND25,000 ($1.1) per year for each room equipped with a TV.

The amount is based on similar fees charged in other countries based on information provided by the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (CISAC) and adjusted to Vietnam's economy, the center stated.

The culture ministry has asked the VCPMC to start collecting fees again after they were put on hold in May following a public backlash, according to Pho Duc Phuong, the center's director.

At a press conference on Monday, the VCPMC cited Vietnam's intellectual property law to reaffirm its right to collect royalty fees from hotels that play music.

The center also said that 80 percent of the royalties would go to the copyright holders and it would only retain 20 percent to cover its operating costs, Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper reported.

The collection process will be public and transparent, and the royalties will be paid to the copyright holders every three months, said Nguyen Hoang Giang, director of the VCPMC's northern chapter.

"The hotels will supply us with lists of songs they frequently play, and after subtracting administrative expenses, we will split the royalties equally among copyright holders," Giang said.

However, the VCPMC did not explain how the hotels will be able to compile these lists, or how it will verify them.

In May, the center's southern chapter started asking 1, 2 and 3-star hotels in Da Nang to pay music royalty fees and threatened to take legal action against those that refused to cooperate. Many hotel owners were surprised to learn about the new fees and were quick to protest, claiming most visitors don't use their TVs to play music and not all hotels play music in their lounges.

However, the VCPMC has been charging 4 and 5-star hotels music licensing fees for the last 10 years, and has been organizing conferences since 2013 to inform all hotel owners of copyright laws and regulations, Tuoi Tre quoted Dinh Trung Can, the VCPMC's deputy director, as saying.

Following the public backlash in May, the Copyright Office of Vietnam instructed the VCPMC to temporarily stop collecting music royalty fees until it could devise a more transparent and appropriate roadmap for the collection process.

The VCPMC is a non-governmental and non-profit collective copyright management organization. It claims to represent nearly 4,000 songwriters and copyright holders of Vietnamese songs, and more than 4 million international writers.

[Hurricane88]

Typhoon forecast this week....

Vietnam on red alert as worst storm in years bears down

By Vo Hai September 13, 2017 | 02:40 pm GMT+7



Doksuri is forecast to hit Vietnam on Friday night with wind speeds of at least 118kph.

Vietnam has been put on red alert as it braces for a giant tropical storm that is forecast to hit the country this week with wind speeds of at least 118 kilometers per hour.

Officials said at a meeting on Wednesday that Doksuri, the 10th storm to form in the South China Sea (which Vietnam calls the East Sea) this year, is also the strongest and there’s a very high chance it will hit Vietnam.

Nguyen Duc Cuong, director of the National Center for Hydrometeorology Forecasting, said that the hurricane has been growing in strength for a week as it moves towards Vietnam.

“This will be the strongest and most dangerous storm to hit Vietnam in recent years,” Cuong said.

The hurricane is expected to make landfall in Vietnam between Friday night and Saturday morning. Cuong said when it does, its destruction might be the worst the country has ever seen.

This is the first time the agency has raised the alert level to “red”, signaling “very high” risks, and only one below the purple alert issued for “disastrous” situations.

Around 800 kilometers (500 miles) of coastline from Quang Ninh Province to the central city of Hue is forecast to be the hardest hit, officials said.

Waves of more than 10 meters are predicted offshore, while sea levels are likely to rise two to three meters following heavy downpours, the agency said.

Coastal provinces have already announced plans to shut down beaches and ban offshore fishing from Thursday, and are considering closing schools.

There is also a chance Doksuri will combine with Talim, another storm forming in the area, and batter Taiwan and southwest China.

Vietnam has been hit by two tropical storms already this year that caused at least nine deaths. Forecasters say the country will be hit by around 15 storms this year.

Last year, tropical storms and flooding killed 264 people in Vietnam and caused damage worth nearly VND40 trillion ($1.75 billion), nearly five times more than in 2015.

[snipeshot08]

Originally Posted by Hurricane88

'I was brutally and maliciously assaulted': Kong director recalls Saigon bar fight

By Quoc Thang, Vu Vi September 12, 2017 | 12:25 pm GMT+7
.

If there is no fire then where did the smoke came from??? Just hearing his side of the story is not enough as he may have been the culprit that started the whole fight by being too arrogant

Cheerios......SS08 ^_^

[snipeshot08]

Originally Posted by Botarbolampar

Bring me there leh

You meant Holland ah????

Missed our old days when we used to go for sightseeing together with a big group of VBs

Cheerios.....SS08 ^_^

[snipeshot08]

Originally Posted by Hurricane88

Sure hv lah...how to end tcss...

TS gone mia on wed...

You did end the TCSS leh, whatever the posts is about you will just post the same "next topic please" , so how to cuntinue???

Cheerios......SS08 ^_^

[Hurricane88]

Originally Posted by snipeshot08

If there is no fire then where did the smoke came from??? Just hearing his side of the story is not enough as he may have been the culprit that started the whole fight by being too arrogant :rolleyes

Cheerios......SS08 ^_^

We are all in a foreign land...so why badly behave...asking for trouble...

No matter who...sure kena...

BTW,we went to DC CLub 212 and saw plenty of pills been taken...burn money inside...

[Hurricane88]

Originally Posted by snipeshot08

You did end the TCSS leh, whatever the posts is about you will just post the same "next topic please" , so how to cuntinue???

Cheerios......SS08 ^_^

Haha...let me start next topic...

iphone x and 8/8plus...another round of craze in Vuetnam...so more snatch thefts and robberies...

[Hurricane88]

Those in Vietnam now...flooding...

Heavy downpours leave Saigon’s traffic in chaos

By Staff reporters September 14, 2017 | 11:42 am GMT+7

Floods triggered by heavy rains that lasted from the early hours of Thursday until 8 a.m. have paralyzed the city.



This photo of Cong Hoa Street in Tan Binh District shows what Saigon's residents woke up to on Thursday morning. The routes that suffered the most from flooding and congestion were Huynh Tan Phat and Pham Huu Lau in District 7, Nguyen Huu Canh and Nguyen Xi in Binh Thanh District and streets near Tan Son Nhat International Airport.


"Traffic builds up every day on this road. The rain and the floods just make things worse," a local named Thao told VnExpress.


Riders struggle through the floods on Huynh Tan Phat Street.

continue to read here.
https://e.vnexpress.net/news/travel-...s-3641287.html

[Hurricane88]

hai VietJet Air barred from operating int'l flights, awaits re-certification in Thailand

The airline is one of 12 small carriers affected by a recent suspension order in Thailand

By Tuoi Tre News September 14, 2017, 11:26 GMT+7



Thai VietJet Air, a subsidiary of budget carrier VietJet Air, is suspended from operating international flights until new operator certificates are issued by the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT), the Bangkok Post reported on Wednesday.

The airline is among 12 small carriers – together accounting for just two percent of Thailand’s air market – affected by an order issued late Tuesday by Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, the English-language newspaper said.

The airlines are still permitted to fly domestic routes, but all international flights operated by the affected carriers are to be put on hold, according to the article.

The affected airlines include Thai VietJet Air, Orient Thai Airlines, Mjets, K-Mile, Jet Asia Airways, AC Aviation, Siam Land Flying, Asia Atlantic, VIP Jets, HS Aviation, Advance Aviation and Skyview Airways.

A VietJet Air representative confirmed the suspension to Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Wednesday evening, though it stressed that the suspension of its Thai subsidiary's international routes would have little impact on the parent company in Vietnam.

Thai VietJet Air currently operates international routes between Thailand and the Vietnamese cities of Hanoi, Hai Phong, and Ho Chi Minh City at a frequency of a couple of flights weekly, he said.

These flights will be temporarily operated by VietJet until the Thai branch has its certificate renewed, he added.

Reuters quoted a CAAT representative clarifying that the reasoning behind the suspension order was “not that they failed the assessment, but that the assessment has not been completed yet,” a reference to Thailand’s auditing of commercial airlines to ensure they meet standards set forth by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

"They can resume their flights as soon as they pass the assessment,” Chula Sukmanop, director general of CAAT, was quoted by Reuters as saying.

Thai VietJet Air is jointly owned by Vietnam’s VietJet Air and Thailand’s Kan Air, with the Vietnamese low-cost airline holding 49 percent of the shares.

The carrier was first authorized in November 2014, and operated its first flight in 2015.

[Hurricane88]

In Vietnam, over-the-counter medicine poses serious health risks

Using non-prescription medicine without proper caution can lead to fatalities


By Tuoi Tre News September 13, 2017, 15:58 GMT+7



It’s common practice in Vietnam for people to buy non-prescription medicine at local pharmacies, something that carries with it a serious risk of complication and potential death.

The recent death of a 22-year-old man in the northern province of Son La, who took 19 500mg paracetamol pills over the course of two days to treat a fever, has raised concerns over the dangers of unprescribed medication.

According to Nguyen Trung Nguyen, director of the anti-poison center in Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi, the victim was admitted to the infirmary on September 6.

He was unconscious, had suffered liver failure, and passed away on September 9.

The instructions on 500mg paracetamol states that an average adult should only consume a maximum of six pills per day, Nguyen said, adding that the male victim had also had hepatitis B.

This type of medicine is common as a pain and fever reliever, and can be bought easily without a doctor’s prescription, he continued, before adding that excessive consumption can be dangerous, especially for the liver.

Paracetamol and other kinds of non-prescription drugs, also referred to as over-the-counter (OTC) medicine, can be purchased at any local pharmacy.

Users of these medicines are advised to have proper understanding them before using, especially in larger dosages.

This kind of information can be found on the instructions of each medicine or by asking pharmacists.

Residents should make their pharmacist aware of their medical records to prevent poisoning, allergic reactions, and other complications, said Dr. Nguyen Huu Truong, a senior doctor at Bach Mai Hospital.

There are still problems regarding the sale of OTC medicine due to improper policies and management by the relevant authorities, Dr. Truong continued.

While only a certified pharmacist can open a pharmacy, several employees with limited expertise are hired as attendants at these facilities.

“The attendants often make their own prescription after listening to the symptoms of buyers, without asking for their prior diseases or allergies,” the doctor elaborated.

The issues can only be solved with tighter management by authorities of the sale of medicine, Truong said.

Residents should also be more attentive to their own health condition and should always read all the information about the drugs before using.

[snipeshot08]

Originally Posted by Hurricane88

BTW,we went to DC CLub 212 and saw plenty of pills been taken...burn money inside...

Wah you also go to Clubs one ah???? tot you should be in dreamland liao

Cheerios......SS08 ^_^

[snipeshot08]

Originally Posted by Hurricane88

Haha...let me start next topic...

iphone x and 8/8plus...another round of craze in Vuetnam...so more snatch thefts and robberies...

Lucky I am an Android fan & anti-Pengko

Cheerios.....SS08 ^_^