VNA Vice president calls for concerted efforts to fight social evilsVice President Nguyen Thi Binh has called for closer co-ordination between government agencies and local administrations to fight social evils, particularly child abuse and drug-related crime. The Vice President, who toured Ho Chi Minh City yesterday, was speaking during a working session on social issues with local leaders. She emphasised that as a major urban centre, Ho Chi Minh City should step up the pace and scale of the national campaign against social evils by taking tougher measures against wrong-doers, particularly civil criminals and drug traffickers. She asked the local administration and mass organisations to diversify their propaganda to direct the youth to sound social and cultural activities. The same day, the Vice President called at the Industrial College No 4 - one of the country's major and most effective vocational training schools - that trains more than 12,000 students a year. (VNA) **** Vietnam praises RoK's projects Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Manh Cam says that Vietnam's government always pays attention to and supports RoK's ODA projects in Vietnam to promote their effectiveness. This was said while the deputy prime minister received a delegation of the RoK's National Assembly's Unification, Foreign Affairs and Trade Committee on March 27 at the Government Office. He said that Vietnam highly valued the Official Development Aid (ODA) programme of the Republic of Korea's government given to the country, focusing on such fields as health care, education, worker training and other macro-economic fields. He said that he wished the National Assembly, government and people of the RoK would continue their co-operation and support Vietnam in many fields, especially in information technology. He said that the two countries shared many geological and cultural similarities and their friendly relations had undergone rapid development and become more effective in recent years. For their part, the RoK parliamentarians spoke highly of the socio-economic achievements recorded by Vietnam since its renovation and the role of Vietnam in south-east Asia. They said they wished to enhance the friendly and co-operative between Vietnam and the RoK. **** War veterans receive Singaporean and US guestsA Singaporean Armed Force Veterans' League (SAFVL) delegation led by SAFVL President John Morrice has visited Vietnam as guest of the Vietnam War Veterans' Association (VWVA). The delegation was received by VWVA Deputy President Nguyen Quoc Thuoc who briefed them about the situation in Vietnam, the VWVA and its tasks. Mr Thuoc said that he hoped the friendly bilateral ties between the Vietnamese and Singaporean veterans' associations and multilateral ties among war veterans' associations in the Asia-Pacific would be further promoted in the new century for peace, co-operation and development in the region. Mr Morrice, who is also President of the Standing Committee of the World Veterans' Federation for the Asia-Pacific region, had a working session with the VWVA during the visit. Earlier, a high-level delegation from the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United State (VFW) led by Deputy General Commander Raymond Sick, made a working visit to Vietnam. Member of the Standing Board of the VWVA Central Committee Lieutenant General Vu Xuan Vinh received the delegation. At the 10th high-level meeting of the VWVA and VFW, the two delegations exchanged views about measures to boost their relationship in the new century. (VNA) **** Foreign ministry rejects Amnesty International intervention Amnesty International's call for those who illegally flee their country be given refuge is an intervention in the internal affairs of that country and that cannot be accepted, says Foreign Ministry spokesperson Phan Thuy Thanh. Ms Thanh was responding to questions by reporters from AFP, AP and The Huanan Morning Post newspaper seeking Vietnam's response to Amnesty International's call for a number of Vietnamese minority people, who recently left the country for Cambodia, be given refuge. "By doing so (making the call), Amnesty International is encouraging the illegal exit and jeopardising the peaceful life of people living in the Vietnam-Cambodia border provinces," says Ms Thanh. She says Vietnam and Cambodia have discussed ways to settle the issue in conformity with the exit-and-entry agreements between the two countries. "We know that some foreigners are scheming to prevent those people from returning to Vietnam," she says. "We strongly oppose the move because it sabotages fundamental principles in nation-to-nation relations". (VNA) **** Neighbouring senior environmental officials meetSenior environmental officials from Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam met in Ho Chi Minh City on March 27-28 to prepare for the Vietnam-Laos-Cambodia Ministerial Environmental Conference scheduled for next May. Environmental protection projects and related issues - including strengthening the environmental-management workforce will be discussed at the meeting. Through this it will seek resolutions and prepare co-operation projects to be submitted to Ministers in order to settle national and sub-regional environmental problems; look toward a future of development, unity, prosperity and co-operation in the interest of the three countries. The participants considered the programme for the coming Environmental Ministerial Conference and discussed the framework of Vietnam-Laos-Cambodia co-operation in environmental protection, and the responsibility of management as well as settlement of disputes related to environmental protection among the governments, State bodies, research institutions and non-governmental organisations of the three countries. The meeting also discussed drafts of a project on construction of a Vietnam-Laos-Cambodia environmental education centre, an action programme for environment education for the three countries; a project to build an action strategy for environmental protection in the three countries for the sustainable development in the region, focusing on general management of river basins, bio-diversity, border pollution control, co-operation in implementation of international environmental conventions, legal reform, information exchange, co-ordination in scientific research, prevention of forest fire and the illegal trade of wild animals and exchange of experience in poverty reduction. The Vietnamese delegation is led by Head of the Environment Departnment of the Environment, Science and Technology Ministry Dr Nguyen Ngoc Sinh; the Cambodian delegation, by Deputy Head of the General Department of the Environment Ministry Koch Savath; and the Lao delegation, acting Chief of the Office of the Science, Technology and Environment Agency Sitha Phouyavong. A representative of the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA) - the biggest sponsor of the meeting - John Cartensen attended the event. (VNA) **** Russian Trade Union activist presented medal The Vietnam Labour Confederation (VLC) has decided to present the medal ŒFor the Cause of Trade Union¹s Building¹ to the famous trade union activist, Mr Vladimir Serbacov, president of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Trade Union (VPK), on the occasion of his 60th birthday (March 21, 2001). This is in recognition of Mr Serbacov¹s contributions to promoting and developing the brotherly friendship and multi-faceted co-operation between the Vietnam Trade Union and the VKP as well as with CIS countries¹ trade unions. Vietnamese Ambassador to the Russian Federation Ngo Tat To, entrusted by Ms Cu Thi Hau, VLC president, presented the medal to Mr Serbacov in Moscow. Mr Serbacov is the former deputy head of the Central Council of the Soviet Union¹s Trade Unions. _________________________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. Box 66 00841 Helsinki Phone +358-40-7177941 Fax +358-9-7591081 http://www.kominf.pp.fi General class struggle news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe mails to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Geopolitical news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] __________________________________________________
