Global Voices » Vietnam

Southeast Asia: Climate Change and Smallholder Farmers

Mong Palatino — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 01:56:16 +0000

The World Agroforestry Centre has released a study on the climate change adaptation options for small farmers in Southeast Asia.

Vietnam's “Bad Education Stories” of 2011

Mong Palatino — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 22:57:59 +0000

VietNamNet Bridge posts an article about the “bad stories in the education sector in 2011.” Some of the bad stories include cases of corporal punishment, school bullying, and low performance of schools.

What Makes Vietnamese Coffee Unique?

Mong Palatino — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 22:38:30 +0000

Nathan Beyerlein writes about the coffee culture in Vietnam and learns the difference between Vietnamese coffee from its Western counterparts.

Vietnam: Database of Political Prisoners

Mong Palatino — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 22:28:38 +0000

Vietnam Reform Party publishes Voices of Conscience, a document containing summaries of individuals in prison for political charges in Vietnam.

Vietnam: 2012 Predictions

Mong Palatino — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 04:04:54 +0000

Adam Bray lists his predictions for Vietnam's economy, politics, tourism, and environment sectors.

Southeast Asia in 2011: A Year of Protest

Mong Palatino — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 15:28:37 +0000

The Arab Spring and Occupy Wall Street are localized protests that still made a tremendous impact in the world in 2011. They were organized in response to place-specific issues, but their appeal and influence were immediately global. In Southeast Asia, Global Voices was able to feature several protest movements in 2011 that echoed the radical politics of Arab Spring and Occupy.

Malaysia’s Bersih (Clean) was the most outstanding protest event of 2011 in the region. The event, which was initially organized to ask for very sensible and doable electoral reforms (e.g. cleaning up of the electoral roll and the use of indelible ink), in the end became a pro-democracy action because of the massive participation of the civilian population in the streets – and the violent reaction of the state.

And like the tech-savvy Arab protesters, the Bersih marchers maximized social media to broaden the movement’s appeal among the apolitical segments of the local internet community.

Perhaps to prevent another Bersih, the Malaysian Parliament has approved the controversial Peaceful Assembly Bill which gives police and government authorities broad powers to control and even ban street assemblies and protests. Rallies were also organized to oppose the bill

Bersih rally from the FB page of Yuvanesh Prabakaran

Next to Bersih were the various Occupy protests in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. They didn’t succeed in sustaining big crowds, (Singapore’s Occupy flopped) but through their militant and creative actions, they were able to highlight the worsening poverty in their societies.

The Occupy protests in the Philippines were joined by students and other young people who used planking as a unique and funny way of expressing their anger over the state budget cuts on education and other social services. Early this month, the Occupy-like campout protests of students near the presidential palace were violently dispersed by the police.

Mass planking protest. Photo from participant

Perhaps the most underrated protest of the year was the rally of Cambodian villagers who dressed up like the Na'vi tribe from the 2009 science fiction film Avatar in opposition to the government’s plan to convert the Prey Lang forest into plantations and mines. Prey Lang is the largest remaining primary lowland dry evergreen forest in the region.

Prey Lang Avatar

Environmental protests actually intensified this year, and one of them succeeded in forcing Myanmar's government to cancel its hydroelectric dam project on the Irrawaddy River.

Not all those who fight for land rights, even through non-violent means, are able to freely express and organize their campaigns – a fact underscored by the experience of seven activists in Vietnam who were arrested, charged, and found guilty of overthrowing the government.

The protesters whose actions perhaps most symbolized the deep hatred and frustration of the poor against an oppressive system were Pham Thanh Son of Vietnam and Sondang Hutagalung of Indonesia. Son burned himself early this year in front of Da Nang’s municipal office to protest the confiscation of his family’s property by local authorities, while Sondang set his body on fire just a few weeks ago in front of the presidential palace to condemn the anti-poor policies of the government.

Source: http://www.facebook.com/ngochoang.qb.vn

There were no London-like urban riots in Southeast Asia this year, but the great floods that destroyed rice fields and food crops in almost all countries of the region could lead to food and rice protests next year. Delays in the rehabilitation of flooded communities could also ignite more anger and political backlash. During the Thailand flooding, residents removed flood barriers and defied authorities in protest to what they perceived as unfair government policy to ‘save’ central Bangkok from flooding at the expense of nearby towns.

Human rights advocates decried the continuing crackdown of democracy protests in West Papua and the various activities of their supporters in Indonesia.

We also recognize the SlutWalk protest in Singapore for its brave articulation of equality and sexual freedom through a rare protest assembly in the city.

Protest hashtags of the year: #bersih, #bersih2, #bersihstories, #occupydataran, #campoutph, #walk4freedom, #sawangsawa

Vietnamese Students in the US

Mong Palatino — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 05:34:49 +0000

Rahul Choudaha notes that the number of Vietnamese students in the United States had grown by more than six times in a decade.

Vietnam: Situation of Sex and Drug Rehabilitation Centers

Mong Palatino — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 05:10:17 +0000

Anand Grover, the UN's Special Rapporteur for the Human Rights Council, found Vietnam's rehabilitation centers as “ineffective, counterproductive, and a violation to the right of health.” His final report will be released this June

Vietnam: Memorable Statements of Public Officials in 2011

Mong Palatino — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 01:09:59 +0000

Mai Chi reviews some of the memorable statements made by Vietnamese officials in 2011

Vietnam: Video of a Child Laborer in a Garment Factory

Mong Palatino — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 00:49:53 +0000

Blue Dragon uploads a short video of a kid working in a garment factory in Central Vietnam.

Vietnam: What’s New at Barcamp Saigon?

Mong Palatino — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 23:03:51 +0000

More than 550 people registered and participated in the fifth Barcamp Saigon last week in RMIT International University, Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam. The attendance surpassed the record number of participants in the last Barcamp Saigon which was held just five months ago.

Barcamp registration. Photo from @Vietnam720

Preetam of Singapore lists the highlights of the event

The highlight this year was 1.seeing more Vietnamese leading sessions, both in English and in Vietnamese language, 2.the participants moving away from presentations to running discussions and 3.meeting such active participants. The Saigon barcamp is a good venue to get the pulse of VN technology and popular culture scene. Thanks to the #barcampsaigon organizing team and volunteers. I am eagerly waiting for the next one.

Barcamp in session. Photo from Preetam

Some of the topics discussed were technopreneurship, designing mobile apps, internet governance, startup fundraising, and future of web programming. The presentation on internet governance was already uploaded on Slideshare

Internet governance and the filtering problems

View more presentations from Tan Tran

Saigonist writes about the idea of Barcamps

1. BarCampSaigon should be the genesis of the next BarCampSaigon, and also BarCamps in other Vietnamese cities - BarCampCanTho, BarCampDaNang, BarCampDaLat. People should understand what a BarCamp is enough to organize simple ones in their hometowns, and do it without worrying about significant funding or caring how many people will show up. Clothing and caffeination optional.

2. Things should start at BarCamp. Ideas should be formed and relationships forged out of discussions among people who should have been meeting more regularly but hadn't. It shouldn't be a place to launch or announce your finished product, although if you started from a previous BarCamp that would be thrilling news. Sessions should not just lead to greater understanding, but cause new questions and avenues of inquiry to be developed.

One of the sessions in Barcamp Saigon. Photo from Preetam

Photos of the event are available on Flickr. Here are some reactions made through the hashtag #barcampsaigon

@tomosaigon In hindsight, my favorite part of #BarCampSaigon was hundreds of people QUEUEING to register

@jodiehuynh first session will start at 10:30am, due to long lines at registration, more people this time. Yeah!

@tvthinh91 I think Barcamp Saigon should have 2,3 computers in front of the hall to vote for topics from everybody

Vietnam: Deadly Legacy of Agent Orange

Mong Palatino — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 23:03:47 +0000

De Tran writes about the deadly legacy of agent orange in Vietnam. During the Vietnam War, more than 20 million gallons of herbicide were sprayed over the rural communities and jungles of the country.

Vietnam: Questions on the ‘New Seven Wonders' Contest

Mong Palatino — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 22:00:35 +0000

Tim of Come and Go Vietnam questions the credibility of the ‘New Seven Wonders of the World' contest. Vietnam's Halong Bay was included in the initial list of winners.

Vietnam: Campaign to Support Families of Detained Activists

Mong Palatino — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 08:10:01 +0000

“Speak Up Now!” is a letter writing initiative to support families of detained youth activists in Vietnam. The goal is to collect at least 300 letters by Human Rights Day on December 10

Vietnam: Halal Restaurants

Mong Palatino — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 16:37:49 +0000

GoHalalPlanet is a website that provides information on Halal restaurants in Vietnam