[Vnbiz] Vietnam in Uphill Battle Against Corruption

[Shane Wall]

My Dear CACC,
   I would very much like to hear comments from my brothers and sisters here
in Vietnam about the following situation which happened to me. I believe
this now stretches from the "bottom to the top" - the foreigner is ALWAYS
wrong.

   When riding my motorbike home at lunchtime, taking my usual shortcut, I
must cross a very minor, secondary connecting road (no traffic lights, etc.)
from one alley to the next. On this day there was a woman on a pushbike
coming from my right. The secondary road is only 3-4 meters wide. My brain
assessed that since she was still about 8-10 meters from where our paths
would "cross", she was on a pushbike and I was on a motor bike, I could "do
the Vietnamese thing" - not my words, borrowed from a fellow long-time
resident - and just drive across in front of her. She would brake, swerve to
the left and continue. WRONG!

   The lady's bike had no brakes. It was always going to be a "close call",
but then again close calls are 40-50 per minute on the streets of Saigon! It
did not bother me that she ran into me. Maybe I misjudged the distances or
her speed. What really bothered me was that she 'flopped' unhurt off her
bike after hitting me because she had no brakes to slow down and avoid it,
then got up saying sorry (in Vietnamese), only to realize that I'm not
Vietnamese, whereupon she hesitated for a fraction of a second - and then
threw herself on the ground to fiegn injury!

   Of course a crowd gathered. Despite the obvious fact that her bike had no
brakes which could have been used to avoid the whole incident, I was
automatically seen as being in the wrong. Even though she hit the back wheel
of my motorbike, got up healthily to 'cuss' me - then "fainted" when she saw
I wasn't Vietnamese.

   I do have to say that in 6 years this is the ONLY time something like
this has ever happened to me. Of course I have had other minor accidents and
incidents on the roads and elsewhere, but this was the ONLY time I was NOT
with my wife, family or another Vietnamese person. I think many people
over-exagerate this behavior from some Vietnamese people, but I can
certainly attest that this attitude DOES exist.

   As an amatuer, self-avowed student of modern Vietnamese history, it
occurs to me that this "practice" may have its origins in the "American"
years in Saigon from about 1965 to 1973. I see some "reflections": lots of
foreigners with lots of money and little or no cultural understanding of
Vietnam or its peoples and language(s). In case some brothers and sisters
don't quite understand what I mean, it is simple: during those years,
Vietnam was 'flooded' with foreigners (soldiers, etc.), now it is 'flooded'
with foreigners again (tourists).

   Of course the reasons, objectives and attitudes are totally different
between these two groups separated by time, but I suggest that some things
have carried over in the Vietnamese psyche (at least here in Saigon).

   Chu Hoanh, you have much more experience about these times - but being
Vietnamese this is not likely to happen to you. Still, I would love to hear
your thoughts. 

   Bac Chuck Searcy (yes, you are older than my dearly beloved father), I'd
REALLY love to hear what you think.

Xin CACC, stay safe and ask yourself: What can I do today that will improve
somebody's tomorrow?

Shane
-------------------------------------
Mr. Shane Wall
Principal
 
shane.wall at translingualexpress.com
Mbl: +84 (090) 9484 753
Tel: +84 (8) 820 9143
 
www.translingualexpress.com


-----Original Message-----
From: vnbiz-bounces at mail.saigon.com [mailto:vnbiz-bounces at mail.saigon.com]
On Behalf Of Phan, Tai
Sent: Monday, August 14, 2006 6:24 PM
To: vnbiz at vietlinks.net
Subject: [Vnbiz] Vietnam in Uphill Battle Against Corruption



[Vietnam Business Forum]



Vietnam in Uphill Battle Against Corruption 
By Matt Steinglass 
Hanoi
13 August 2006
  


 
Vietnamese Deputy Transport Minister Nguyen Viet Tien is handcuffed and led
from his home in Hanoi (File photo) 
As Vietnam prepares to ratify the U.N. Convention Against Corruption, the
government continues its campaign to eradicate one of the country's most
entrenched economic problems. But, progress is slow and one recent case has
raised concerns in the foreign business community.


Vietnamese government officials are gearing up to adopt new anti-corruption
measures when the country ratifies the United Nations Convention Against
Corruption. 

Nguyen Van Thanh, head of research at Vietnam's Government Inspectorate,
says ratifying the U.N. convention goes along with a host of other measures
that will make Vietnam a more transparent place to do business.

"From our point of view, it is very important for the investors to see the
developing of our transparency, and if we do that we can get more investors
internationally into Vietnam," he said.

Vietnam is involved in a massive anti-graft campaign, and the National
Assembly recently passed a comprehensive law on corruption. 

Since last year, Vietnamese government inspectors have uncovered a series of
major corruption scandals. 

The worst, at the Transportation Ministry, involved tens of millions of
dollars and cost the minister and other senior officials their jobs. 

Other investigations have targeted Vietnam Airlines and the government oil
monopoly, PetroVietnam. 

Soccer stars have been jailed for running illegal gambling rings, teachers
have been caught helping students cheat on final exams, and a top official
of the government inspectorate itself has been suspended for accepting
bribes.

While welcoming moves toward transparency, some foreign investors remain
worried.

A recent case of corruption by a government worker has embroiled a foreign
company in both civil and criminal lawsuits and raises concerns that the
laws are being applied unfairly and arbitrarily. 

Incombank, a state-owned bank, has sued ABN AMRO for $5.4 million. It claims
the money disappeared in speculative deals the Dutch bank made with an
Incombank manager who was not authorized to trade currency. ABN AMRO says
the trades were legal.

The manager has been arrested on charges of losing state resources through
economic mismanagement. Two local ABN AMRO employees have also been
detained. 

Incombank spokesman Tran Duy Bich says the police think the Dutch bank is at
fault.

Bich says the police decided that ABN AMRO had broken the law, and
recommended Incombank demand its money back. He says Vietnam could expel ABN
AMRO if it does not comply.

Previous finance cases have been investigated by Vietnam's State Bank, not
the police. That change has some foreign investors in Hanoi worried. 

"We are concerned by the criminalization of some civil cases in Vietnam,"
said Alain Cany of the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam.

Foreign businessmen still put little trust in Vietnam's legal system, which
is not independent of the government or the governing Communist party. Many
business leaders say it is impossible to win a case against a state-owned
company. _______________________________________________
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