A Vietnamese court has sentenced the pastor of a banned Mennonite church to 11 years in prison for undermining national unity. State media reported Tuesday that Nguyen Cong Chinh was found guilty of writing and spreading material that slandered government authorities and “distorted Vietnam’s domestic situation.” It also accused him of having affiliations with anti-government […]
Vietnamese Pastor Jailed for ‘Undermining National Unity’
Posted March 27th, 2012 at 3:30 am (UTC-5)
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Reports: Vietnam Blocks Visit by Vatican Delegation
Posted March 26th, 2012 at 1:55 pm (UTC-5)
Vietnam is reported to have blocked a Vatican delegation from visiting the Southeast Asian nation. Both the Catholic press service AsiaNews and the French news agency said Monday the Hanoi government revoked the visas of a delegation of the Vatican Commission, which was due in Vietnam last week to speak to people who knew the […]
China Defends Arrest of Vietnamese Fishermen Near Disputed Islands
Posted March 22nd, 2012 at 6:10 am (UTC-5)
China has defended its detention of 21 Vietnamese fishermen in a disputed area of the South China Sea, after Vietnam called for their immediate release. The fishermen were detained recently near the Paracel Islands, which are controlled by China but claimed by Vietnam. Vietnam’s foreign ministry on Wednesday demanded the “immediate and unconditional” release of […]
China Detains Vietnamese Fishermen in New South China Sea Dispute
Posted March 21st, 2012 at 4:55 am (UTC-5)
Chinese authorities have detained 21 Vietnamese fishermen near a contested island in the latest territorial dispute in the potentially oil-rich South China Sea. A Vietnamese official said Wednesday that Chinese authorities intercepted two fishing boats on March 3 near the Paracel Islands, which are controlled by China but claimed by Vietnam. He said Beijing is […]
Vietnam Jails 8 Ethnic Hmong for Unrest
Posted March 14th, 2012 at 9:30 am (UTC-5)
A court in northwestern Vietnam has sent eight ethnic Hmong tribesmen to prison for up to 30 months, for what the government describes as disturbing social order and inciting separatist unrest last year. Supporters say the minority Christian defendants were participating in a religious convocation. The official Vietnam News Agency, in a report Wednesday, described […]
44 Nations Attend Food Conference in Vietnam
Posted March 12th, 2012 at 2:05 am (UTC-5)
A senior U.N. official says rising food prices and frequent natural disasters are making it harder to ease hunger and malnutrition in the Asia-Pacific region. Hiroyuki Konuma, an assistant director general of the Food and Agriculture Organization, made the remark Monday to representatives and observers from 38 countries at a conference in Vietnam. He said […]
44 Nations Attend Food Conference in Vietnam
Posted March 12th, 2012 at 12:45 am (UTC-5)
Ministers and senior officials from 44 countries are in Hanoi Monday at the start of a five-day conference organized by the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization. The FAO says the agenda calls for in-depth discussions on policy and regulatory issues, including the state of food and agriculture in the Asia-Pacific region, and an initiative to […]
Vietnam Says Cases of Viral Disease on the Rise
Posted February 21st, 2012 at 5:50 am (UTC-5)
Vietnamese health officials say nine infants have died from a virulent form of hand, foot and mouth disease in the first six weeks of 2012. The fatalities are among over 6,000 reported cases of the viral disease since the beginning of January, seven times higher than during the same period in 2011. The Health Ministry […]
South Korea to Open Free Trade Talks With Vietnam
Posted February 13th, 2012 at 3:45 am (UTC-5)
South Korea says it is preparing to enter free trade talks with Vietnam. In a news release Monday, South Korea’s finance ministry said the talks will be aimed at strengthening ties with the fast-growing Southeast Asian market. Vietnam’s economy has been growing at 5 to 8 percent a year and South Korean exports to Vietnam […]
US Gives Vietnam Help in Testing TB
Posted February 6th, 2012 at 3:55 pm (UTC-5)
The United States has given Vietnam new equipment to help speed up the diagnosis of a drug resistant strain of tuberculosis. The U.S. Agency for International Development says it delivered the first two of 17 planned laboratory devices to test for the disease Monday. It says the machines allow for technicians to diagnose multi-drug resistant […]
