Perspectives

Martin Rama Livability rankings for cities are often based on criteria such as quality schools, or clean air, or low crime... But I always thought that there was something else about Hanoi, something more difficult to measure. If I had to put a name on that something it would be "lively sidewalks." I am sure that many of the tourists who visit Hanoi would agree with me. And the Hanoians who buy their vegetables in street markets in the morning, take their children and pets out for a walk during the day, or get together to eat, drink and date outdoors in the evening, would also agree. There are many reasons why sidewalks are so full of life in Hanoi. The French urban layout of the city center includes beautiful tree-lined streets, with ample space for pedestrians. Crowded housing encourages people to go out. And Vietnamese food is so good that nobody wants to miss on the chance of a street pho in the morning, or a street bun cha at night. For all these reasons, I feel truly heartened … [Read more...] about Sidewalks and traffic: a false trade-off

Tran Van Phuc My head went blank for a moment.  A few seconds later, I realized I had a broken arm and felt warm blood oozing down my face.  I had been cycling down a steep slope and tumbled into a bush.  It was the summer of 1985. I was delivering some handicraft products my family made to a village a few kilometers away from our home, after a not very successful day at the local market. I was riding down the slope when a truck suddenly appeared towards the bottom. My knee-jerk reaction was to make a sharp turn, as my bicycle unfortunately lacked a brake. Before I knew it, I woke up in a bush, surrounded by pebbles and gravel, with a large, bloody gash on my right temple. I was in panic mode. I called out to passersby for help, but no one bothered. A minute, then two, then five, the blood started to soak my shirt in crimson after I took it off to cover the wound. In the end, I had to help myself up, broken arm and all, and take my bike to a shop to have its burst … [Read more...] about When people die on our streets without help, humanity dies

Dang Hung Vo  Many corruption scandals have erupted around such transfers. Similar huge losses and squander also mark the transfer of land from private hands to the state by eminent domain, the legal provision that gives a government the right to expropriate private property for public use. Many land owners have felt deprived, and this has resulted in the fact land issues account for 70 per cent of all complaints and denunciations by the public. In countries with recognized private land ownership, there is a clear demarcation between public and private lands. Here, the transfer between public and private owners is quite simple and only requires a just determination of the market value and a reasonable benefit-sharing mechanism. Thus, there is less risk of corruption when public lands are sold to private buyers and fewer complaints when the government acquires lands. These countries adhere to the principle of pricing public lands properly when selling them, and taxing … [Read more...] about Inflection point reached, definition of ‘public’ land imperative

Nguyen Tien Dat Just because tourists don’t file complaints doesn’t mean they are satisfied with their experience in Vietnam. We know that many never bother to return, and we only have our irresponsibility and ignorance to blame. Throughout the last 20 years I have worked in the aviation and tourism industry in our country, I’ve witnessed many issues troubling tourists and travelers – traffic jams, dirty streets, unsanitary food, and so on. But today, I want to talk about one issue in particular that is shackling our tourism industry and could potentially cripple it forever. I’m talking about how our tourists are literally stalked in every corner by vendors and beggars, and how we force overpriced products on them, praying on their naivety and lack of knowledge about Vietnamese culture and customs. Take any mountainous area that has tourism potential. A bunch of kids and vendors follow you at every step, trying to sell you something. Even taking pictures … [Read more...] about We are hospitable, but we can also be annoying

Jan Rybnik As they say, life is all about making choices. On any issue, people can choose to act or not. Either way, the choices have consequences. There is also another principle at work in making choices - in order to gain something one has to give/lose something. This can be money, time, effort or something else. In an ideal, rational world, people would make choices that bring them closest to their goals with the least cost involved. The role of the law in guiding choices is more of the stick than the carrot, because that is its nature. The law is not there to reward good behavior but to punish bad behavior that can harm others. It’s meant to act as a deterrent. Once a law is in place, the choice is to follow or disobey it. In an ideal world, the laws are fair and people would make the choice to abide by it an easy, natural one. But, as we know, our world is not an ideal one. Vietnam saw over 4,000 traffic accidents within the first quarter of this year, leading … [Read more...] about Drunk driving thrives in Vietnam because few pay the price