VNE – Thứ hai, 30/1/2023, 12:24 (GMT+7)

Chen nhau dâng lễ, rót dầu vía Ngọc hoàng

TP HCM – Nhiều người chen vào chánh điện chùa Ngọc Hoàng, quận 1 để dâng lễ và rót dầu nhằm mong làm ăn suôn sẻ, bình an…, sáng mùng 9 Tết.

Mùng 9 tháng Giêng (30/1), nhiều người đổ về chùa Phước Hải hay còn gọi là chùa Ngọc Hoàng (đường Mai Thị Lựu, quận 1) để vía Ngọc hoàng. Theo quan niệm dân gian: “Mùng 8 cúng sao, mùng 9 cúng chư thiên, mùng 10 cúng đất”. Do đó vào ngày này nhiều người đổ về chùa cúng vái cầu mong may mắn, bình an cho bản thân và gia đình.

Đọc tiếp Chen nhau dâng lễ, rót dầu vía Ngọc hoàng – Du khách thi nhau chà tiền “đánh bóng” chùa Đồng trên đỉnh Yên Tử →

[TĐH: This is a very good economic lesson on monopoly. In this case, the monopoly in selling tickets of entertainment shows, and how the monopoly was formed.]

Protesters outside the Senate this past week.Kenny Holston/The New York Times

Đọc tiếp Industry gatekeepers →

VNE – Thứ năm, 19/1/2023, 06:00 (GMT+7)

BÀ RỊA – VŨNG TÀU – Tiết trời không thuận lợi nhưng 1.000 cây mai 12 tuổi trồng trên dải phân cách ở huyện Châu Đức nở hoa đón Tết Quý Mão.

Đây là năm thứ 5, những cây mai trồng trên dải phân cách quốc lộ 56 và một số trục đường chính ở thị trấn Ngãi Giao nở hoa đúng dịp Tết Nguyên đán. Những cây mai này hơn 12 tuổi, được chính quyền mua lại từ các vườn nhà dân trên địa bàn với giá một triệu đồng mỗi gốc.

Đọc tiếp 1.000 cây mai trên dải phân cách bung nở ngày Tết →

Analysis by Philip J. Heijmans | Bloomberg

The Vietnamese flag flies atop the Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX) in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Monday, Sept. 10, 2018. Vietnam has averaged economic growth of 6.3 percent between 2005 and 2017, multiplying its per capita income six-fold to $2,385 last year from $396 in 2000, according to data from General Statistics Office in Hanoi. Photographer: Maika Elan/Bloomberg (Bloomberg)

washingtonpost – January 11, 2023 at 5:42 p.m. EST

Vietnam’s Communist Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong has likened his anti-graft campaign to a “blazing furnace,” one that’s caught hundreds of senior officials, business executives and others in its blast over the years. While the country’s position has improved by more than 30 spots over the past decade on a global corruption perception index, it was still at 87th place out of 180 ranked in 2021. Now as Southeast Asia’s fastest-growing economy seeks to bolster its appeal as a destination for foreign investment in the midst of mounting trade tensions between the US and China, the fight seems to be flaring again.

Đọc tiếp How Vietnam’s anti-corruption fight keeps expanding →

CNN
“My behavior encroached on the physical and mental health of minors,” read a court-ordered apology issued by a tattoo artist in China’s Shaanxi province in September. “I am deeply aware of my mistakes,” he added. 

The man, who had admitted giving tattoos to 43 minors, became one of the first people charged under a new age restriction law, which came into effect in June. But while many countries enforce similar rules banning young people from getting inked, Chinese state media coverage suggested that protecting minors was as much about ideology as medical welfare. 

At the time, tabloid newspaper Global Times argued that tattoos are “driving minors away from establishing socialist core values,” as they can convey “harmful ideas” such as “feudal superstition,” “gang culture” and “overseas culture.”

An op-ed in Beijing Youth Daily meanwhile said that tattoo subculture “clashes” with the mainstream. The legislation, which bans people from even encouraging those aged under 18 to get tattoos, is just the latest move in an expanding crackdown on body art in China. 
Đọc tiếp Inside China’s crackdown on tattoo culture →

Oakland’s Next Mayor Highlights Political Rise of Hmong Americans

new york times – Sheng Thao, the daughter of refugees, will become the most prominent Hmong American politician when she leads the California city of 440,000 residents.

Sheng Thao at Joaquin Miller Park in Oakland last month. Carolyn Fong for The New York Times

By Amy Qin – Dec. 28, 2022

Over platters of fried rice, egg rolls and crab rangoon, Sheng Thao took the microphone and asked for support in June from several dozen people gathered at a Hmong restaurant in Wisconsin.

Ms. Thao, 37, was running to become the mayor of Oakland, Calif., but she took a detour to the Upper Midwest because it has some of the nation’s largest communities of Hmong Americans.

When Ms. Thao spoke, Zongcheng Moua, 60, found himself nodding along, never mind that he lived 2,000 miles away from California. Like Ms. Thao’s parents, Mr. Moua landed in a refugee camp in Thailand after fleeing the war in Laos nearly 50 years ago. His siblings, like Ms. Thao’s parents, struggled to adapt to life in the United States after arriving with no money, formal education or language skills.

world bank – APRIL 28, 202

Watch the clip here

The poverty and equity agenda is no longer only about raising minimum living standards and tackling chronic poverty; it is also about creating new and sustainable economic pathways for a more aspirational population.

Report download

FULL REPORT (ENG) | OVERVIEW (ENG) | OVERVIEW (VN)

—-

Launch event materials

EVENT POSTER [JPG]  | PRESENTATION (ENG) | PRESENTATION (VN)

Main messages

There was significant progress in poverty reduction from 2010-2020, but Last Mile challenges in tackling poverty remain.

Đọc tiếp 2022 Vietnam poverty and equity assessment – From the last mile to the next mile →

By Staff reporters       DEC. 31, 2022

As the clock struck midnight, crowds across the country burst out in cheers, applauses and exchanged hugs as the fireworks exploded to welcome the new year.

Bangkok, Hanoi, Jakarta (GMT+7)

OldestLatest

• 00h10Fireworks explode in Saigon
  Fireworks explode over the Saigon River. Photo by Quynh TranPeople capture photos of exploding fireworks in HCMC. Photo by Thanh TungA girl sits on her parent’s neck to watch the fireworks. Photo by Thanh Tung
Đọc tiếp Vietnam rings in 2023 →

By VNExpress staff reporters   December 29, 2022 | 06:15 am GMT+7

The first year after the pandemic, Vietnamese people have moved forward, overcome and stayed resilient. But challenges still loom.

VNN – December, 30/2022 – 18:13

Deputy Prime Ministers Phạm Bình Minh and Vũ Đức Đam (right) are no longer members of the 13th Party Central Committee. VNA/VNS Photos

HÀ NỘI — Deputy Prime Ministers Phạm Bình Minh and Vũ Đức Đam are no longer members of the 13th Party Central Committee, according to a decision made on Friday.

Phạm Bình Minh’s membership at the Politburo was also removed, according to the decision made at the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Việt Nam’s extraordinary meeting held Friday afternoon.

During the meeting, the Committee also gave opinions on two individuals that the Politburo would recommend to the 15th National Assembly to be approved as deputy prime ministers for the 2021-26 term.

Đọc tiếp Deputy PMs Minh and Đam resign from the Party Central Committee →

16/12/2022: Eye on the ball

For years, controversy has surrounded FIFA’s choice of the 2022 World Cup host. Thanks to new Qatargate revelations, scathing headlines will haunt this year’s World Cup well after the final showdown between Argentina and France this weekend.

Last Friday, allegations emerged that the Qatari government has bribed current and former members of the European Parliament and their staff to tone down criticism in the lead-up to the prestigious tournament and win other favours.
European Parliament’s Bureau met without Eva Kaili, who has been implicated in the Qatargate scandal, on 12 December. Photo: Daina Le Lardic/European Parliament

Belgian authorities have already conducted 20 raids, seized 1.5 million euros in cash and arrested four people – including Eva Kaili, now-former Vice President of the European Parliament. If corruption allegations are true, they would explain why last month Kaili praised Qatar’s progress on labour rights despite well-documented abuses.
Đọc tiếp Transparency International – The week in corruption →

vietnambriefing.com  

December 15, 2022Posted byVietnam BriefingWritten byMark BarnesReading Time:4 minutes

Intellectual property (IP) law reform and enforcement in Vietnam has been at the center of a broad range of trade agreements the country has signed onto. But change has been slow, and enforcement has been lacking. Here’s how a spat between a cartoon wolf and a cartoon pig could change that.

The owners of the UK’s Peppa Pig, EOne, are suing Vietnam’s Sconnect, the owners of popular YouTube cartoon Wolfoo, alleging trademark and copyright infringement. More specifically, EOne is alleging Sconnect created Wolfoo to look and feel like Peppa Pig to imply the two cartoons were connected.

In its complaint, EOne claims that parts of Wolfoo’s audio have been taken directly from episodes of Peppa Pig and that images of Peppa Pig herself appear on items like clocks and watering cans in the background of Wolfoo videos.

This is currently before the courts in the UK.

But the courts have not been EOne’s only means of recourse.

YouTube, for example, took down 2,000 Wolfoo videos from August to October this year for copyright infringement at the request of EOne. This cost Sconnect US$2 million in lost revenue up to October, according to their own estimates.

In response, Sconnect has made overtures to the Vietnamese government looking for support. It has also countersued in Vietnam and has launched a lawsuit in Russia where, earlier in the year, a copyright infringement case brought by EOne was dismissed in response to sanctions imposed over the war in the Ukraine.

Đọc tiếp Intellectual property in Vietnam: One Little Pig and a Big Bad Lawsuit →