RFA Perspectives — Nepal’s streets have exploded in protest. Thousands of young people, angered by a government ban on social media, are standing up against corruption and inequality. In Vietnam, the youth are watching closely, because Nepal’s story feels eerily familiar. Video: Why Vietnam is paying attention to the protests in Nepal (RFA) Why Vietnam cares So why are Vietnamese youth paying attention to what’s happening in Nepal? Because Nepal’s uprising highlights struggles they know all too well. Censorship, corruption, unemployment, and the communist party – these challenges echo in…
Tag: Vietnam
US warships patrol South China Sea after two Chinese ships collide
The US has briefly deployed two warships in a disputed South China Sea shoal where two Chinese ships collided earlier in the week while trying to drive away a smaller Philippine ship in a high-seas accident that raised alarms about maritime safety. Both China and the Philippines claim Scarborough Shoal and other outcroppings in the South China Sea. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also lay overlapping claims in the contested waters. The USS Higgins, a guided missile destroyer, and USS Cincinnati, a littoral combat ship, were shadowed by a Chinese…
Map: Tracking Typhoon Wipha
1-day forecast precipitation Precipitation intensity Very light Heavy Extreme 1-day risk Share of customers without power Sources and notes NYT
Vietnam to ban gas-powered motorbikes in central Hanoi next year
Vietnam will ban fossil-fuel-powered motorcycles and mopeds in the heart of Hanoi starting in July 2026 in an effort to reduce air pollution, state media reported on Monday, curbing the main mode of transport for many of the city’s 8 million residents. Issued by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, the directive applies to the area within the main ring road around central Hanoi, home to much of the city’s business activity. The city has nearly 7 million motorbikes and a million cars. vietnam-motorcycle-ban A man transports orchids on his motorcycle…
PERSPECTIVE: Why Vietnam’s To Lam moved so quickly to restructure the government
Read about this topic in Vietnamese In less than a year as general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, To Lam has made moves likened to the drastic cuts that U.S. President Donald Trump and Elon Musk have implemented to U.S. federal agencies through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). To Lam has merged ministries and central government agencies, reduced the number of provinces and cities by half, and dismantled district-level administrative units. Why did To Lam move so fast with reforms, and what are the political, social, and…
Treatment of ailing independent journalist in prison ‘a disgrace to Vietnam’
Independent journalist Le Huu Minh Tuan, who is serving 11 years for “conducting propaganda against the state,” has told his family that he is facing serious health problems in prison. A human rights group says his treatment is “a disgrace to Vietnam.” Tuan, a member of the Independent Journalists Association of Vietnam, is incarcerated at Xuyen Moc Prison in the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau. According to his family, on April 19, Tuan made his monthly phone call home and reported that he had been suffering from prolonged rectal…
Lawyers fear Vietnam’s new licensing rule could have chilling effect
Lawyers across Vietnam are voicing concern over a new government decree regulating the issuance and revocation of law practice licenses, with many taking to social media to publicly express their grievances. Decree 121, issued on June 11, shifts the authority to grant, revoke, and renew law practice licenses from the Minister of Justice to provincial chairpersons — a move seen as part of a broader agenda to restructure Vietnam’s state apparatus. Government officials have not offered a direct explanation for the decree. However, law professionals have raised alarms over the…
Party chief To Lam’s son promoted to top ranks within Vietnam’s police force
To Long, believed to be the only son of Vietnam’s top leader To Lam, has been promoted to a senior position at the Ministry of Public Security, online posts showed, in a move that may be intended to cement support for Lam from police. Information and images circulated on social media platform TikTok showed Col. To Long had been appointed as director of the ministry’s Department of External Security at a June 4 ceremony. Experts said Long’s promotion is the latest in a series of appointments by Lam to consolidate…
Tax enforcement drive in Vietnam leads to mass closures of shops, small businesses
Images of deserted markets and shuttered shops are circulating across Vietnamese social media – not the result of a pandemic, but as the visible impact of a government policy. In recent weeks, the Vietnamese government has rolled out a sweeping campaign to crack down on counterfeit goods and to enforce a new tax collection regime. The primary targets have been small businesses. The prime minister issued a directive on May 24 urging all levels of government to “step up the fight against counterfeit goods.” The government also introduced Decree 70,…
US resettlement freeze leaves Vietnamese refugee fearing deportation from Thailand
Vietnamese asylum seeker An and his family had one foot in the door to resettlement in the United States — until President Donald Trump issued an executive order that closed it. The Jan. 20 executive order was just the beginning of his problems. On May 27, his wife Ngoc got a phone call from her husband. “I’ve been arrested by the police,” An told her. He’d been arrested by Thai police in Bangkok where his family of four had sought asylum seven years earlier and were waiting patiently for resettlement.…