A ‘rice ATM’ and charity groups offering free meals have emerged recently in Long Xuyen City in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang to give support to people in need. On July 13, the ‘rice ATM’ at My Binh Ward, Long Xuyen City was relaunched after a brief pause, giving free rice to households, ticket vendors, and hawkers, who lost their jobs because of the COVID-19. The Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee in My Binh Ward has enlisted needy households eligible to receive free rice and given them rice tickets. When coming to get the free rice, the locals would submit the ticket, sign their name, and then 'withdraw' 3.5 kilograms of rice each time. Tran Thi Kim Dung, 61, a resident with an adult son who has lost his working ability in Binh Long 2 Hamlet, My Binh Ward, was furloughed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, rice, among other food items, is the most necessary for her. “I work as a garbage collector, but I had to stay home during the period of social distance,” …
Readers help little boy with severe burns
Dantri readers have sent nearly VND500 million to support a two-year-old boy in Quang Binh Province who is suffering from serious burns. Dinh Thi Ngoc Lan, deputy head of the Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs and Dantri representative transfer the donation to Tan's family According to the family, two-year-old Doan Nhat Tan and his six-year-old brother went to a relative's house to play. While playing with each other, they found petrol stored in the house, poured it onto the floor and lit it up to celebrate a mock birthday party. Tan was admitted to the hospital with 40% burns. 10% of his body was third-degree burns and 30% of the body was fourth-degree burns. Tan's father is a small communal official and his mother is a nursery teacher. They can't even afford a house and stay in a dilapidated house of a sister. After Tan was admitted to the hospital, they had sold everything they could but it was not enough. On July 22, the representatives of …
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What’s on July 26-August 1 (Daily updated)
EXHIBITION Hanoi-Exhibition showcases Vietnamese and Italian landscapes Until August 23, 8.30am-5.30pm Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, Nguyen Van Huyen Street An exhibition titled Italian Routes and Landscapes of Vietnam Photographs featuring the beauty of the mountains and common culture of mountaineering between Việt Nam and Italy. Hanoi-Art Showcase: Illusion Until Aug 15, 10 am – 07 pm Mo Art Space, 136 Hang Trong Street, Hoan Kiem District From the organizer: This July, Mơ Art Space would like to invite Hanoi art lovers to visit the art showcase Illusion by Le Brothers ( Le Ngọc Thanh and Le Duc Hai). Illusion is the name of the latest art project of Le Ngoc Thanh and Le Duc Hai, as known as Le Brothers, a pair of twin artists originally from Quang Binh province but living and working in the city of Hue for the past 20 years. The project was first showcased for the first time in 2020 at Le Ba Dang art center – Hue …
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COVID-19: Nearly 1 million free meals offered to needy people nationwide
Rice and instant noodles are given to patients as part of the charity programme (Source: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Close to 1 million free meals worth 15 billion VND (653,274 USD) have so far been offered to disadvantaged people who are affected by COVID-19 across 28 provinces and cities nationwide since April. The meals were as part of a charity programme launched by the Vietnam Youth Federation (VYF) Central Committee. In Hanoi, it is scheduled to run from July 24 to August 7, providing meals, each valued at about 25,000 VND, for poor people, freelancers, employees losing their jobs, patients and their families, among others. As of July 28, 1,140 meals had been distributed in the capital city. Also on July 28, the VYF Central Committee and other organisers of the programme presented 470 food packages worth 82 million VND to patients who are receiving long-term treatment at the Hanoi kidney hospital. Each package consists of 10kg of rice and a box of instant …
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Canadian shares pandemic burden with Vietnam’s poor
Derek William Page, a Canadian national living in District 5, Ho Chi Minh City, is a prominent member of a charity group which has been delivering free meals to the needy throughout the pandemic. In the last few days, Page and his friend Tran Thi Minh Van have prepared more than 100 meals for needy residents in District 10 and Tan Phu District. He has been in love with Vietnam ever since his first visit in 1995. “I was astonished by how positive and clever Vietnamese people were," he said. "It really inspired." In fact, he was so inspired that after years of working in the Philippines, China, Switzerland, and several other countries, the Canadian man decided to make a permanent move to Vietnam Along with Van, Page is now doing his best to give back to the country he has called home for the past 15 years. “Derek and I run a photography studio, but the pandemic stalled our business," Van said. "Instead of standing by and watching the situation unfold, we decided to …
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More effective pandemic bailout actions urged to avoid further trickling support
Local charity groups mobilised their members to distribute money and food. Photo: Le Toan In early June, the government adopted Resolution No.68/NQ-CP to offer VND26 trillion ($1.13 billion) financial support to employees and employers facing difficulties amid the pandemic. However, there is a dire need for detailed directions and guidelines to accelerate the actual implementation of the policies and disburse support to as many workers as possible. Le Van Phat, the owner of a spa in Tay Ho district of Hanoi, had to close the business for almost a month during the latest outbreak. During this time, Phat still had to pay around VND10 million ($435) for rent as well as other overheads, without actually generating revenue. “Last year, when I heard that the state will provide financial support for those affected by the pandemic, the whole neighbourhood was excited and hopeful. However, we were being sent back and forth between the authorities where we live and our hometown where we …
Volunteer crew delivers food to quarantine areas
Wearing stuffy protective suits and climbing into cabins with antiseptic odors, the crew kickstarts the engine to prepare food and meals to send to quarantine areas and field hospitals. It was 4 pm. Tran Van Chinh, 32, a driver of the van fleet carrying goods free of charge 24/7, still had not had lunch because he had to leave for charity catering units to deliver meals to quarantine areas and field hospitals. Chinh told reporters that in early June, when pandemic developments became complicated in HCM City, the company where he works set up this fleet to give a hand to the fight against the pandemic. This is voluntary work and Chinh had been warned of the risk. But he decided to join the fleet. Pointing his hands to a quarantine area, he told reporters: “At first, my friends and family members were worried about me, because I insisted on entering the areas that everyone wants to escape. But I made up my mind." “When I am in the cabin, moving through the roads, I can see …
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Environment-themed online exhibition features Vietnamese, foreign artists
Environment-themed online exhibition features Vietnamese, foreign artists The Saigon Times A painting by Pham Binh Chuong that is featured at the “Story of the River” online exhibition - PHOTOS: COURTESY OF ORGANIZER HCMC - The Song Foundation is organizing an online exhibition featuring over 20 paintings of Vietnamese and foreign artists to raise public awareness over environmental protection and raise funds for charity and social programs. Huong Giang, founder of the Song Foundation, said she got the idea for the exhibition after witnessing serious drought and saltwater intrusion in the Mekong Delta. “When we stop deforestation and over-exploitation of river sand, we will be able to protect underground water and soil. The whole community needs to join hands for a more sustainable ecosystem,” she said. The “Story of the River” exhibition presents beautiful artworks by Vietnamese artists such as Nguyen Van The, Nguyen Quoc Thai, Le Dinh Nguyen, Ton That Bang, Doan …
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HCM City’s Buddhist Sangha proposes using pagodas as COVID-19 treatment hospitals
Amid the complicated developments of the COVID-19 pandemic in HCM City, Most Venerable Thich Tri Quang, Deputy Patriarch of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha and Chairman of the Executive Council of the HCM City Buddhist Sangha, sent the official dispatch to the city’s leaders and the Department of Health, asking for permission to use the Vietnam National Pagoda in District 10 and Pho Quang Pagoda in Tan Binh district as temporary COVID-19 treatment hospitals for Buddhist monks and nuns. If approved by the city’s leaders and the Department of Health and provided with medical equipment and workers, the HCM City Buddhist Sangha will cover all accommodation and transport expenses. He emphasized that this move will contribute to reducing the medical burden that is currently putting great pressure on hospitals and medical centers in HCM City. The Most Venerable also suggested municipal authorities pay attention to giving vaccination against COVID-19 to Buddhist monks, nuns, and followers …
War veteran joins coronavirus battle
Đệ and his wife receive the certificate of merit granted by Thanh Hà District’s authorities for their contribution to the vaccine fund. VNA/VNS Photo Tiến Vĩnh By Hoàng Việt Battle-hardened Vietnamese soldiers bravely fought foreign invaders during the anti-American war, and now a tough veteran is stepping up in the national fight against a deadly invisible enemy, COVID-19. Our hero is 75-year-old Lê Văn Đệ in Thanh Sơn Commune, Thanh Hà District, in the northern province of Hải Dương. Wounded in the war, Đệ has a deformed hand and pieces of shrapnel still remain in his body. But despite such hardships the former soldier has used his retirement savings as well as family money to donate VNĐ4.5 billion (US$196,000) to the national coronavirus vaccine fund. “Đệ is a war invalid and his wife is a retired teacher. They have led a decent life being kind to their neighbours,” says Đoàn Văn Nằng, a Thanh Sơn resident. “This family of a veteran and teacher used to be the …
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