NA deputy chairwoman pays Tet visit to border guards
National Assembly Deputy Chairwoman Truong My Hoa visited and presented Tet
(Lunar New Year) gifts to border guards of Lang Son northern province on
January 14.
Deputy Chairwoman Hoa praised cadres and soldiers for their efforts to
protect the national sovereignty and the territorial border area, further
saying she hoped that the unit would better implement their political tasks,
thus contributing to maintaining the border security.
While there, the deputy chairwoman also called on orphans and disadvantaged
children at the Social Centre, the provincial Women's Association and
veteran revolutionary Duong Thi Kim.
****
Spring Press Festival opens
The Spring Press Festival of the Year of the Snake, organised by the Vietnam
Journalists¹ Association in co-ordination with the Ministry of Culture and
Information, was opened at the Vietnam Exhibition and Fair Centre in Hanoi
on January 15.
The festival is being held in an atmosphere that the Vietnamese people is
welcoming the first year of the new century and the new millennium and the
ninth National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam. This is the tenth
spring press festival since the first festival in 1991.
The festival of this year is much bigger than in previous years so far as
the size is concerned. It is being held in an area of 1,200 square metres.
On an area of 200 square metres of a stall called �Panorama of Vietnamese
Press,¹ Tet (Lunar New Year) publications of newspapers and magazines
nationwide and models and logos of the radio and television stations and
press agencies are on display. This is to help visitors learn about the
development of Vietnamese press.
So far, there have been 500 press agencies in Vietnam with 700 publications,
hundreds of millions of printed pages and tens of thousands of broadcasting
hours a day. Behind the stall are 21 special stalls of Central press
agencies, like press of the Party¹s Central Committee, the Vietnam News
Agency, the Radio Voice of Vietnam, Vietnam Television, press of the army,
industries and social organisations, Online and press and publications of
the Vietnam Writers¹ Association, press agencies in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh
City. Books and calendars for Tet are displayed at a stall of the Publishing
Department.
In the presence of Mr Pham The Duyet, member of Politburo and President of
Presidium of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, Deputy Prime Minister Pham Gia
Khiem, Mr Huu Tho, head of the Party Commission for Ideology and Culture, Mr
Hong Vinh, chairman of the Vietnam Journalists¹ Association and
editor-in-chief of Nhan Dan (People) newspaper, Mr Nguyen Khoa Diem,
minister of culture and information, and Mr Tran Mai Hanh, deputy chairman
and general secretary of the Vietnam Journalists¹ Association, head of the
Steering Council and chairman of the Spring Press Festival, cut a ribbon to
open the festival.
Mr Duyet and other officials visited the stalls of the festival.
Party advisor Le Duc Anh sent a basket of flowers to the festival while
General Vo Nguyen Giap sent a greeting letter.
****
Support for one-China policy affirmed
Mr Pham The Duyet, Politburo member and President of the Presidium of the
Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) expressed his gladness at the fine
development of relations between Parties, governments and peoples of Vietnam
and China in the recent years.
Mr Duyet said this during his reception given to the visiting National
Committee of the Chinese People's Consultative Conference (CPPCC) delegation
led by Vice Chairman Hu Yingdong in Hanoi on January 15.
He said that the two countries had signed bilateral agreements for their
land border and the demarcation of boundaries, exclusive economic zones and
the continental shelf and fishing co-operation in the Bac Bo (Tokin) Gulf.
The bilateral relations have seen new developments. Mr Duyet also affirmed
Vietnam's support for the Chinese Party and State's one-China policy. Mr
Duyet praised the role and contributions of the Vietnam Fatherland Front and
the CPPCC in uniting the whole people under the leaderships of the two
Parties to serve economic development and national construction. He said he
hoped that the friendly and co-operative relations between the two
organisations would further develop for the interest and aspiration of the
two peoples.
Vice Chairman Hu Yingdong highly praised the achievements recorded by the
Vietnamese people and said he wished that the traditional relations of
friendship and co-operation would continue develop.
The same day, a Vietnam Fatherland Front delegation led by Mr Tran Van Dang,
the general secretary of VFF and the Chinese delegation led by Vice Chairman
Hu Yingdong held a meeting to exchange experiences of the two organisations.
The Chinese delegation is scheduled to pay a tribute to President Ho Chi
Minh in his Mausoleum, visit the Temple of Literature and work in Ho Chi
Minh City.
****
Tet gifts for people in need
Representatives from the Hanoi social insurance held visits to presents
gifts to Heroic Mothers, parents of war martyrs and lonely, elderly people
on the occasion of the coming Tet (Lunar New Year).
Vinh Phuc province provided VND 100 million to 1,000 households in
difficulties to help them celebrate a happy Tet. The provincial Fatherland
Front, Labour Federation, Women¹s Union and Red Cross also raised funds for
people in need.
The provinces of Nam Dinh, Dak Lak and Phu Yen organised visits to Heroic
Mothers, parents of war martyrs, lonely, elderly people, orphans and
handicapped children. The localities also supported 152 Heroic Mothers,
built 10 houses of gratitude and granted money to poor workers and
labourers.
The Vietnam Fund for Children released over VND 205 million to buy Tet gifts
for 3,158 handicapped children, orphans and children in special conditions
in the cities and provinces of Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Haiphong, Tuyen
Quang, Phu Tho, Ha Nam, Nam Dinh, Vinh Phuc and Hoa Binh.
The Hanoi Fund for Children, Hanoi Radio and Television and the Prudential
Company presented Tet gifts to 174 orphans, handicapped and Agent Orange
affected and poor outstanding children on January 15.
Also in Hanoi, the Charity Association of Hai Ba Trung district presented
Tet gifts to visually impaired and handicapped and lonely elderly people in
the city. The association provided health care and medicines to poor
patients.
****
HCMC poor children enjoy Tet festival
About 2,000 poor children in Ho Chi Minh City enjoyed a Tet (Lunar New Year)
festival at Dam Sen Park held by the city's Committee for Protection and
Care of Children in January 14.
The committee presented 2,000 boxes of gifts, each worth VND 50,000 to them.
Earlier, the committee provided free medical checks-up and medicines to 350
poor children in Binh My commune, Cu Chi district, Ho Chi Minh City. The
committee is to visit and give gifts to 150 sick children at the Pham Ngoc
Thach Centre for Tumours, Tuberculosis and Lung Disease today.
****
Donations given to disadvantaged children on Tet festival
Save the Children's Fund has received donations in cash and kind, totalling
680 million (about US $45,000) from 20 domestic and foreign organisations to
help children in special difficulties enjoy Tet (Lunar New Year) festival.
Minister and director of the National Committee for Protection and Care of
Children, Tran Thi Thanh Thanh, and representatives from the Chinese and
Lebanese embassies in Vietnam attended the donation reception ceremony which
was held in Hanoi on January 15.
Indian PM describes visit as success
Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee has expressed satisfaction with
his visit to Vietnam.
The visit helped open a new chapter in the relations between India and
Vietnam, said the Indian PM while meeting the press in New Delhi on January
14.
During the visit, PM Vajpayee and his Vietnamese counterpart, Phan Van Khai
agreed to boost bilateral co-operation in trade and information.
The two sides signed some co-operation documents, including an agreement on
oil and gas co-operation worth US $328 million.
The Vietnam visit, he noted, closed a productive year of diplomatic
activities between India and Vietnam and served as a major step in
strengthening ties with ASEAN countries as Vietnam was undertaking the
Presidency of the ASEAN Standing Committee. (VNA)
****
Electrification exceeds several regional countries
The current number of households with access to electricity accounts for
73.5%, exceeding several regional countries with high electrification rate
such as Indonesia (70.3%), Philippines (58.5%) and Laos (15%).
At the end of last year, the Electricity Corporation of Vietnam (EVN) had
provided electricity to 176 more communes, including four poor communes of
the northern mountainous province of Lai Chau and Son La, said Mr Dao Van
Hung, EVN general director. Therefore, 95% of districts nationwide have been
connected with the national power grid and 81.8% of communes have had access
to electricity.
To date, all the 61 provinces and cities can access the 110 KV power grid.
EVN has invested US $200 million from the World Bank loan to bring
electricity to about 700 more communes of 32 provinces.
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