ANALYSIS: Vietnam weighs patriotism against diplomacy in China spat

Jun 27, 2011
By Marianne Brown
Source: Monsters and Critics

Hanoi - As anti-China protests in Vietnam enter their fourth week, Hanoi's recent rapprochement with China has raised the question of how well the government can balance diplomatic requirements with the public's patriotic demands.

A joint press release issued Sunday showed an easing of tensions between the neighbouring countries over their competing claims in the South China Sea. But some elements of the public have expressed anger at Hanoi's perceived stepping down, which according to some observers has provided a boost to anti-government activists.

Outside the Chinese Embassy in the Vietnamese capital, gatherings of dozens of people have been a familiar sight for the past month, waving banners and chanting 'the Spratly Islands belong to Vietnam' and 'China: big country, ignoble behaviour.'

The Spratlys lie in an area thought to be rich in mineral and fish resources, and are the subject of competing territorial claims by China and Vietnam, and several other South-East Asian countries.

Tensions spiked in recent weeks after Vietnam accused China of harassing seismic survey ships and fishing boats in the contested area, while Beijing alleged that Vietnamese boats had entered its waters illegally and endangered Chinese fishermen.

Vietnamese authorities have so far been unusually tolerant of the anti-China demonstrations. But diplomatic imperatives could force their hand after the joint press release, issued following a visit to Beijing by Vietnam's Deputy Foreign Minister Ho Xuan Son at the weekend.

The talks, according to the joint statement published on Vietnam's Foreign Ministry website Monday, 'laid stress on the need to steer public opinions along the correct direction, avoiding comments and deeds that harm the friendship and trust of the people of the two countries.'

Some elements in Vietnam have said they do not want their opinion steered in that direction, and have criticized the government's approach of conciliation towards China.

Banned pro-democracy group Viet Tan recently said the government was 'incapable' of resolving the maritime territory dispute. But it said that the situation shone a useful light on the government's shortcomings.

'The issue of China is a good opportunity to see clearer the government is unfit to lead the country,' said US citizen and Viet Tan member Nguyen Quoc Quan, who served six months in prison in 2008 for preparing pro-democracy leaflets.

For retired US diplomat and journalist David Brown, Vietnam's participation in 'bilateral negotiations', after insisting for months that any talks should be under the aegis of the Association of South-East Asian Nations, 'does appear to be a step back for the Vietnamese,' and could further stoke public resentment.

Sunday's joint statement went further than the usual lip-service to good relations, he said.

'There is a huge amount of institutionalised contact between the Chinese and Vietnamese elite,' he said, adding that every such contact produces a feel-good statement. 'But this one is something more than that,' he said, and could well provoke public resentment.

He explained that '99.5 per cent of the Vietnamese live in the here and now,' and are more concerned with not losing face than a long-term solution. 'The real problem is now having had three or four weeks of bashing China now they are trying to cut a deal,' he said.

But Brown said he did not think that this would provide much useful grist to the mill of the pro-democracy movement. This opinion was shared by Carl Thayer, expert on Vietnam and South-East Asia at the Australian Defence Academy, who said that anti-China sentiment is far from being a threat to the government.

The demonstrations have been small and well-managed, and the very fact that the people are calling on the government to take action 'is reaffirming its legitimacy to handle foreign affairs,' he said.

He conceded that there was chance the government could be seen to be selling out to China. But the alternative, he said, was incurring 'Chinese anger that is going to affect some of the economic and other relationships.'

The government could do more to make the diplomatic course of action more widely understood and acceptable, he said.

'Why can't the defence ministry go to the National University in Hanoi and give a talk?' he said. That would be a chance to explain to the public that 'You can't just kick China in the shins without thinking of what will happen next.'

And trouble-making nationalists could be defused if the government can 'make them understand that diplomacy isn't in black and white in this particular case,' he said.

Thailand election too close to call as Cambodia border dispute looms large

Jared Ferrie

Jun 28, 2011
Source: The National

CHIANG MAI // Thailand's prime minister is campaigning across the country to shore up votes as his ruling party deals with a border dispute with Cambodia and the backlash over a security clampdown during last year's protests.

Sunday's election is too close to call, analysts said, and the results could set the stage for reconciliation, or they could spark further turmoil in this fractious nation that saw more than 90 people killed in anti-government protests last year.

Meanwhile in The Hague, judges are deliberating whether to wade into a border conflict between Thailand and Cambodia. If their ruling comes before Sunday, it will drop like a bombshell into an already tense campaign.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is considering a request by Cambodia to clarify a 1962 ruling that gave it ownership of an 11th-century Hindu temple and demarcated a section of border. Thailand has conceded the temple - much to the chagrin of nationalists - but says the court had no jurisdiction to draw the border, and that it relied on flawed maps.

The dispute has led to military clashes such as those that killed at least 10 people in February. It has become a political lightning rod in Thailand in the past few years during which confrontations with Cambodia have become more frequent.

Paul Chambers, an analyst at Chiang Mai's Payap University, said parties have consistently used strong rhetoric about the border dispute to gain support from Thai nationalists who form the backbone of the Yellow Shirt political movement. Yellow Shirt leaders meanwhile use the border issue to pressure parties into taking up their agenda.

"The Yellow Shirts really took up this issue in anticipation early this year that there would be elections," he said.

Perhaps in response, the prime minister, Abhisit Vejjajiva, has strongly protested Cambodia's petition to the ICJ, asking Cambodia to withdraw its case and stating that the court had no right to demarcate the border.

As part of its request, Cambodia also asked the ICJ to order Thailand to withdraw troops from a disputed section of the border. The ICJ has not said when it will reach a decision, but an announcement during the campaign could be disastrous for Mr Abhisit, making him appear weak on the border issue.

Already he is struggling to win back Yellow Shirts whose support was crucial in installing him as prime minister in 2008, after a court decision removed a Red Shirt aligned party from government. But after throwing their weight behind the Democrats, many Yellow Shirt leaders have accused him of failing to reclaim from Cambodia what they consider Thai territory. Some have started a "vote no" campaign, encouraging supporters to withhold their votes from all parties.

If successful, the campaign will surely hurt Mr Abhisit and his Democrats, who desperately need votes from Bangkok's middle and upper classes, many of whom have supported the Yellow Shirts.

The party has already lost some of its support in the south, where the government is entrenched in a conflict with Islamic insurgents. Some Democrat MPs in that region refused to run for re-election, saying they did not stand a chance of winning, Thai media reported.

The Democrats are also unlikely to receive a majority of votes in the north or north-east, areas that predominantly support the Red Shirt movement, which is aligned with the opposition Phue Thai Party. The Red Shirts draw much support from the rural poor, who feel they have been excluded from Thailand's growing economy.

At a recent rally in the district of Mae Rim, Mr Abhisit was working hard to reverse that perception among a few hundred farmers. Hitting on a key issue, he spoke about rice subsidies his government had been maintaining, and promised to increase them.

But Mr Abhisit will have a tough time winning over Red Shirts. Many are still bitter that parties they elected to government were removed from power, either by a military coup or through judicial means.

That anger exploded last year when Red Shirts converged on Bangkok and occupied the city's financial district for almost three months until they were forced out. Ninety-one people died during the standoff between the Red Shirts and the military, and not one government official has been arrested in connection with the killings.

"If you are a supporter of the Red Shirts, you're not going to vote Democrat," said Napisa Waitoolkiat, a political scientist also at Payap University. "They really disapprove of the Democrats and how they dealt with the crackdown."

She said the most likely outcome of the election would be a majority win for Phue Thai. Ms Waitoolkiat said that such a scenario could allow a period of stability during which Thailand's deeply divided political movements could learn to coexist peacefully - provided that neither the military nor the courts intervened again.

Mr Chambers was more sceptical. He said a Phue Thai win would probably bring Yellow Shirts back into the streets agitating for change, which could come again in the form of a coup or judicial decision. A Democrat win could spark more protests from the Red Shirts.

Cambodia reinforces troops at Thai-Cambodian border: Thai army

June 28, 2011
Source:Xinhua

Cambodia reinforced its troops at the border of northeastern Surin province after Thailand quitted the World Heritage Convention on Saturday, Thailand's Army Region 2 spokesman said on Monday.

Col Prawit Hookaew told local media that there was some redeployment and reinforcement of the neighboring country's troops along the border followed withdrawal of the country's membership of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Convention.

There is some arms training taking place, such as using grenade launcher and artillery on Cambodian side, said Col Prawit, while Thai troops remain on alert at the border and are strengthening their outposts.

The Thai army chief and the commander of Army Region 2 have instructed troops stationed along the border to exercise the utmost restraint, but to retaliate proportionally in case Cambodian troops attack, or start the fighting, according to the Army Region 2 Spokesman.

Col Prawit also urged local residents not to panic, assuring them that the army is on alert around the clock.

Thailand decided to pull out from the Convention as the World Heritage Committee (WHC) put the Phnom Penh-proposed management plan for the 11th-century Preah Vihear Temple on the meeting agenda during the 35th session of WHC in Paris. Thai government has insisted the WHC postpone consideration on the plan until the two neighbors finish demarcation.

The ancient temple has frequently been the flashpoint between the two countries and in the recent border clashes in February and April, at least over a score of soldiers were killed. Even though the International Court of Justice (ICJ) rewarded the temple to Cambodia, both countries have laid claims over the ownership of the 4.6 square-kilometer (1.8 square miles) scrub of land surrounding the ruins.

Myanmar joins in City travel expo

June 28, 2011
VNS

HCM CITY – Myanmar will be the fourth country besides Laos, Cambodia and Viet Nam participating in the HCM City International Travel Expo 2011 under the theme "Four Countries-One Destination".

"After joining the conference among four tourism ministers of Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar and Viet Nam at last year's ITE, Myanmar as an observer proposed to be a member of the event," Nguyen Van Tan, director of the representative agency of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in HCM City, said.

The organisers of ITE 2011 announced that nearly 70 per cent of booths at the exhibition had sold out, with the participation of foreign tourism organisations of India, Cambodia, Taiwan, Laos, South Korea, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar and Australia.

Leading travel companies registered to enter the event, as well as domestic tourism promotion organisations from 15 provinces.

The event is expected to attract 15,000 visitors and 210 exhibiting organisations and companies from 15 countries and regions, 170 buyers from North America, northern Europe, western Europe, Japan, South Korea, mainland China and ASEAN member countries.

The seventh edition of the ITE in HCM City will be held from September 14-17 at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre (SECC) in District 7.

"To satisfy the demand of buyers as surveyed, the event will last for four days instead of three days as previously," said Nguyen Bao Anh, deputy head of the Tourism Promotion Division under the city's Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism. It will open to trade visitors and buyers on the first two days, and to the public for the final two days.

La Quoc Khanh, deputy director of the HCM City Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said the expo would have special programmes including destination and service introductions and promotions..

Several networking opportunities will be available, including invest-ment workshops to develop tourism potential in the four countries. – VNS

Death Toll From Storm Haima In Vietnam Reaches 16

June 27, 2011
BERNAMA

HANOI, June 27 (Bernama) -- Tropical storm Haima, the second of its kind to hit Vietnam this season, had left 16 dead, four missing and 63 injured so far, according to the Central Steering Committee for Flood and Storm Prevention and Control.

Besides causing human losses, the storm, which brought heavy rains, submerged over 10,000 ha of rice and other food crops in northern and north central provinces, Vietnam News Agency (VNA) reported.

Right after flood waters receded, affected localities have taken urgent measures to overcome storm consequences, harvesting ripe rice and draining off water to save newly planted rice.

They have also sent cadres to remote areas to encourage and give support for flood victims and clean up the environment.

The central province of Nghe An is urgently repairing important roads damaged by flash flood and helping local residents repair houses and restore production activities.

In the neighbouring province of Thanh Hoa, all pumping stations are running at full capacities to drain off water from flooded fields.

Districts such as Nong Cong, Quang Xuong, Tinh Gia and Trieu Son have implemented measures to protect important dykes.

China and Vietnam Agree to Talks on South China Sea Dispute

By EDWARD WONG
Published: June 26, 2011

BEIJING — China announced Sunday that it and Vietnam had agreed to hold talks on how to resolve conflicts arising from a sovereignty dispute over the South China Sea, an issue that has escalated tensions between them and led to angry protests by the Vietnamese.

The announcement came after Dai Bingguo, the senior Chinese official in charge of foreign affairs, met with Ho Xuan Son, a Vietnamese vice foreign minister and special envoy, on Saturday in Beijing, according to Xinhua, China’s state news agency.

Xinhua said both countries had agreed to “adopt effective measures to jointly safeguard peace and stability of the South China Sea” and to take seriously a multination pact reached in 2002 that was supposed to help resolve territorial disputes. The pact has long been ignored.

The Chinese and Vietnamese navies held joint exercises this month despite the intensifying maritime tensions.

Xinhua’s report gave no details of how the China-Vietnam talks would proceed. The dispute over the South China Sea, which is believed to be rich in oil and gas deposits, has festered for years, and neither country has made any concessions despite conflicts involving fishing vessels, maritime surveillance boats and oil exploration ships. In January, Nguyen Van Tho, Vietnam’s ambassador to China, said the two sides would hold more talks at some point on the dispute, and that he was optimistic. The talks never took place.

Then in two episodes in May and June, Vietnam accused Chinese vessels of severing cables to Vietnamese oil exploration ships. Chinese officials said any such events were accidental or provoked by what they called Vietnam’s unilateral oil exploration. China has insisted that countries should only explore jointly in the region.

Taiwan, Malaysia, the Philippines and Brunei also have made claims to all or parts of the sea.

Cambodian gold rush lure foreign giants

June 27 2011
AFP

REUTERS

Squinting in the harsh midday sun, Ry Kuok emerges slowly with a bag of rocks on his back from a hand-dug mine in a remote corner of Cambodia known as the “Gold Forest”.

He's one of hundreds of prospectors searching for the yellow metal in the isolated village of O'Clor in northeast Mondulkiri province, where a modern-day gold rush is threatened by the arrival of foreign mining giants.

On a good day, the 29-year-old can earn about $12.50. Not bad in a country where a third of the population survives on less than a dollar a day.

The work is dangerous, difficult Ä and completely illegal.

Carried out by tens of thousands of Cambodians across the impoverished country, the practice has been quietly tolerated by the government for decades.

But that is about to change as companies move in and invest millions of dollars to develop a gold mining industry, leaving no room for illegal prospectors.

“I don't expect we can mine here for much longer,” said Kuok as he sifted through his dirty rocks looking for any glints of gold.

“We have been told that a company has bought the area and we are not allowed to dig deeper tunnels.”

Cambodia is known to host at least 19 gold deposits that have attracted the interest of mining firms from Australia, China, South Korea and Vietnam.

Industry experts estimate the country is about five years away from large-scale gold extraction but the true extent of the nation's gold assets remains unclear.

In what was hailed as a promising discovery, Australian miner OZ Minerals last year announced a 605,000-ounce gold find in Mondulkiri province but it recently said further drilling projects had disappointed.

Even so, Richard Stanger, president of the Cambodian Association of Mining and Exploration Companies, said the mining industry “could be a major contribution to the economy of Cambodia in the future.”

The illegal O'Clor mine is located in Prey Meas, which translates as the “Gold Forest”, and is a treacherous five-hour drive from the province's main town of Sen Monorom.

Stripped of its vegetation to make way for a large pit, the mining village's brown, barren landscape is dotted with wooden shacks, piles of litter and shallow pools Ä a sharp contrast to the green and hilly surroundings.

But to miners like Kuok, whose family moved to the area in 1981, it is home. For now.

The government has granted a Chinese firm the rights to search for the precious metal in the forest and it has already begun its exploration work right next to the O'Clor mine, which lies in the firm's concession area.

A guard at the site said the company's name was Rong Chheng but few details have been made public about the firm or its concession agreement, a lack of transparency that critics say is typical for the country's mining sector.

“There is still very little information about the process of allocation of mining rights in Cambodia and what payments are made for their receipt,” said George Boden from environmental watchdog Global Witness.

Gold prices have struck record highs on international markets and even broke through the $1,500 an ounce barrier in April as investors sought a safe haven in the face of economic uncertainty and high inflation.

Most of the illegal miners in the “Gold Forest” earn several hundred dollars a month selling their specks of gold to local traders, income that has been boosted by the soaring bullion price.

“We can survive because gold is expensive now,” said 51-year-old Sum Sokhon, raising his voice over the noise of his stone-crushing machine.

But life in an illegal gold mine town is far from easy. “The area is so dirty,” said Sokhon. “We worry about our health. People get sick a lot.”

Hazardous materials such as mercury or cyanide are often used in the gold extraction process in illegal mines and can pose serious health risks, said Glenn Kendall, an advisor for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Cambodia.

The chemicals can cause anything from headaches to damage to the nervous system, according to experts.

There are also few safety measures in place and mine blasts and tunnel collapses have claimed lives in O'Clor over the years.

“Small-scale mining is a dangerous occupation,” said Kendall, adding that the choice to become an illegal miner was usually driven by poverty.

He said the fate of the illegal workers was in the hands of the government, but with the right regulation, small-scale miners could co-exist with the professional mining companies.

Kong Pisith, chief of Mondulkiri's industry, mining and energy office, said the “Gold Forest” miners would eventually have to halt their activities.

“When the extraction starts, they can't mine here anymore. They may become workers for the companies or they will have to change jobs,” he said.

Prospectors like Sokhon fear the Chinese mining firm will reap the rewards of their hard work.

“Cambodian people found the gold, but the company is getting the gold,” he said. - Sapa-AFP