“No experience or degree required. Salary of VND 20-30 million per month ($852-1,279). Company-covered accommodation.” Such social media ads are bait used to hook Vietnamese people to work in Cambodia. Unfortunately, there are many takers for such too-good-to-be-true offers. Recently, many human trafficking and bonded labor cases in Cambodia have …
Read More »Horror flick sole Vietnamese entry in National Day fray
“Cu Lao Xac Song” (Lost in Mekong Delta) is the only Vietnamese movie that will compete with international blockbusters to be screened in theaters on September 2, the National Day. Directed by Thanh Nam and rated 18+, the horror flick is set in an island downstream the Mekong River. Local …
Read More »Clash of views on LGBTQ+ in Vietnam
“One’s true gender is unchangeable. If we, parents of LGBTQ+ people, want happiness for both us and them, we need to change our mindset.” Meet Nguyen Lang Mong, a woman living in HCMC, whose advice this is to people who face a psychological battle in accepting their LGBTQ+ children. She …
Read More »Celebrity musician has wrist slapped for traveling abroad without permission
After temporary arrest by Spanish police on an accusation of sexual assault in June, musician Ho Hoai Anh had been released and returned to Vietnam to face minor disciplinary action. According to Le Anh Tuan, director of the Vietnam National Academy of Music where Ho Hoai Anh teaches the traditional …
Read More »Rape-accused musician has wrist slapped for traveling abroad without permission
After temporary arrest by Spanish police on an accusation of sexual assault in June, musician Ho Hoai Anh had been released and returned to Vietnam to face minor disciplinary action. According to Le Anh Tuan, director of the Vietnam National Academy of Music where Ho Hoai Anh teaches the traditional …
Read More »Why Vietnamese workers abroad don’t want to return home
Tam, 32, has been working in Taiwan for 10 years and does not want to return to Vietnam, because he cannot find a good enough job. Fourteen years ago, after graduating high school, he had struggled to find a well-paid job. With his family’s help he paid a broker around …
Read More »Adopted Vietnamese-American boy meets birth mother after 18 years
When the car arrives at an inn in Binh Phuoc Province’s Dong Xoai Town, Samuel Ian Ettore rushes out to hug his biological mother and they both burst into tears. Hope Ettore from California, the U.S., smiles as she steps out of the car. The 51-year-old is holding up her …
Read More »Hanoi to host international circus festival in December
Local and internationa circus artists are set to perform at International Circus Festival 2022, scheduled to take place in Hanoi between Dec. 1-10. Performers will showcase acrobatics, juggling, tightrope walking, magic tricks and others to the judging panel consisting of two local and three foreign experts. The event, held at …
Read More »Four Seasons includes Hoi An in luxury jet tour
Canadian-based hospitality company Four Seasons has announced the launch of a private luxury jet tour in 2024, passing seven Asian destinations including Hoi An ancient town. The tour called New Asia Unveiled is scheduled to last 16 days from Jan. 16-24, allowing visitors to discover UNESCO heritage sites and wonders …
Read More »Show movies until 2 am, not round the clock: cinema department
Vi Kien Thanh, head of the Cinema Department, supports theaters staying open late but not after 2 a.m., adding this should happen only in areas with a thriving nightlife economy. Thanh said last weekend he was in favor of the proposal from cinema chains – CGV, BHD Star, Galaxy, and …
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