VNA
Party leader asks army to improve overall quality Party General Secretary Nong Duc Manh has called on the army to grasp the line of the Party in safeguarding the nation, the Party, and the socialist regime. The army must join the whole political system to continue building the Party and maintaining stability in the country. It must also resolutely combat 'peaceful evolution', and be prepared for all situations, the Party leader told a political-military conference of the Vietnam People's Army (VPA), which was held in Hanoi on November 16-17. Mr Manh also asked the VPA to take part in economic development activities and strengthen national defence-security in strategic areas such as the highlands, border, coastal, and island regions. Soldiers should join efforts with the local people in fighting poverty and stand ready to help the local people control and overcome the aftermath of natural calamities, the Party leader noted. He required the army to improve overall quality, with the ultimate stress being the improvement of its political quality. He elaborated that at present, the political quality of the army serves as not only the foundation for improving the combined quality but also the direct strength to combat and foil any wicked schemes by hostile forces and opportunists in the political, ideological, cultural, and lifestyle fronts. Apart from raising political quality, it is a must to improve the quality of training, Mr Manh said. He also laid stress on the need to improve the leading capacity and combativeness of Party organisations and party members in the army. The conference, organised jointly by the Communist Party of Vietnam's Central Military Commission and the Defence Ministry, drew more than 300 command officers. The participants were of the same view that the VPA basically achieved targets set for 2001. Facing complicated developments, the army has shown its loyalty to the Party, the nation and the people, serving as the core force in safeguarding the nation. (VNA) **** National United Front's Anniversary marked Many activities have been held to mark the 71st anniversary of the Vietnam's National United Front (November 18, 1930 - November 18, 2001). The Fatherland Front Committee of Haiphong northern city held a get-together on November 16 to mark the event and to receive medals and certificates of commendation from the Vietnam Fatherland Front for four individuals and ten collectives in recognition of their positive contributions to the Front's activities. The Ninh Binh northern province's Fatherland Front held a meeting on the event. Through a campaign to call on the locals to build a new lifestyle in residential areas launched by the provincial Fatherland Front, to date, 50% of the residential areas have been recognised 'good areas' at provincial level. The Fatherland Front of Hung Yen northern province held a get-together for its members of different period. Forty members were presented 'For the Cause of National Great Unity' medals from the Vietnam Fatherland Front for their contributions to the Front. Also to join the occasion, the Committee for Religious Affairs of Can Tho province held a get-together for 170 religious dignitaries and followers. At the meetings, delegates expressed their firm belief in the Party and promised to together with the whole nation successfully implement the Party's policies and laws. They also said they wished that more exchanges between the local leaders with religious believers in a bid to help promote the strength of national great unity, to fight against the enemy�s scheme of sowing discord between people and religious followers so that the non-Catholics and Catholics people can live in peace with each other and successfully implement the campaign to call on the whole people to unite to build a new lifestyle in residential areas. **** EC to provide US $498,000 to flood victims The European Commission (EC) will provide EUR 550,000 (US $498,000) as relief to Vietnamese flood victims in the Mekong delta. The donation, to be sent through the EC Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO), was announced on November 14. The current floods in the Mekong delta, the largest in 50 years, have claimed 385 lives as of November 12, of whom 302 were children. The floods have submerged more than 5,000 classrooms and 320,000 houses. Losses are estimated at more than VND 1,260 billion (US $84 million). In addition, the EC has supported Vietnam's natural calamity control activities through the European Community's Humanitarian Office Disaster Preparedness Programme (DIPECHO) project. During this project, the EC sponsored a conference on natural disaster preparedness South East Asia which was held in central coastal Da Nang city from November 13-15. (VNA) **** Aid continues for storm victims The prime minister on November 16 decided to allocate VND 45 billion from the natural calamities control reserve-2001 as relief aid to three Lingling storm-hit provinces along the central coast. Of the amount, Binh Dinh and Phu Yen will receive VND 20 billion each, while Quang Ngai will have VND 5 billion. Also, the Vietnam Farmers' Association has disbursed VND 8 million from its budget to help storm victims in Binh Dinh, Quang Nam and Phu Yen provinces in central coastal areas. Though also hit by Lingling storm, Central Highlands Dak Lak province has sent VND 80 million as relief aid to Phu Yen province and another VND 50 million to Binh Dinh province. The relief aid to Phu Yen alone has so far amounted to more than VND 1 billion. The provincial authority itself has spent VND 4.1 billion in helping locals return to normal life. Electricity supply sytems in the storm-hit areas are under repair, reports the Vietnam Electricity Corporation. In Binh Dinh, for example, 95% of the damaged power transmission stations have been restored. Lingling storm has reportedly damaged around 40,000 hectares of shrimp ponds at 1,355 farms, and swept away 1,427 fishing boats, sunk 281 and damaged 295 others, driving thousands of shrimp-raising and fishermen families across the region into difficulties. The storm has also injured eight locals in Dak Lak province, and left thousands homeless. (VNA) **** Assistance given to natural calamity-hit victims Local administrations continue to provide practical help to people affected by Lingling storm hit the centre early last week and floods in Mekong river delta over the past months. As many as 5,000 young volunteers of Binh Dinh province have contributed 16,000 working days to help the local people overcome the aftermath of the Lingling storm. They have repaired 200 classrooms, 496 houses, communications and irrigation works damaged during the storm. The Department of Logistics of Military Zone 9 has sent 33 groups of doctors to flood-hit provinces in Mekong river delta to provide them with medicine worth VND 100 million. The administration of Ba Vi district of Ha Tay northern province has support VND 400,000 to each household which had to evacuated due to landslide. As of mid-month of November, administrations of Thai Nguyen northern province and its district of Phu Binh have provided VND 130 million to flood-affected households. The Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment has asked the government to spend VND 3.2 billion to buy chemicals to purify water polluted after the floods in the Mekong delta. Dong Thap province have distributed over 1,000 tonnes of paddy rice sponsored by the Food and Agriculture Organisation to the locals for their winter-spring crop. Can Tho province has spent VND 2 billion to buy rice strain for local farmers to help them grow the winter-spring crop in good time. The Hanoi Labour Confederation has disbursed VND 120 million from its budget to donate three province in the centre and five others in Mekong river delta to overcome the consequences of the natural calamities. People in Binh Phuoc southern province have collected VND 661 million and other necessities for flood-hit provinces. Quang Nam central province's post sector has given 120 concrete poles and 15 kilometres of cables to Phu Yen to help the province repair its electricity supply system, heavily damaged after typhoon Lingling. **** German organisation assists central province The German International Solidarity Organisation (SODI) organised a Vietnam-Germany artistic programme in Berlin on November 16 to raise money for construction of schools and kindergartens in war-torn central Quang Tri province. Martial artists and music players of the Vietnamese community as well as junior secondary school dancers in Tiergerten precinct performed at the programme. Martial artist Chu Tuan Cuong and German Olympics Marathon Champion Waldemar Cierpinski called for more support and assistance to the locals in Quang Tri province who are rebuilding their villages. SODI has established a hot line to raise money for the province until this December, said SODI Secretary IIona Schleicher. As many as 100 households in the province are now living in new houses that were built under an initiative by German actress Kaethe Reichel. (VNA) _________________________________________________ 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] __________________________________________________
