[news] Various news about VN

[AnHai Doan <anhai@cs.washington.edu>]

Cua Lo prepares for sea tourist season
By Ngoc Huong


Nghe An

Unlike other beaches such as Do Son (Haiphong), Bai Chay (Quang Ninh) or
Sam Son (Thanh Hoa), the natural beauty of beaches in Cua Lo, which
extend over an area of 8 km, boasting white sandy stretches and blue
waves breaking on the shores of Ngu and Mat Islets, Lan Chau Cave and
Rong Tip, have attracted the interest of visitors from far and wide to
the shore of Nghe An Province.

In the tourist season of 1996, Cua Lo received 112,000 visitors, 75% of
them came from other provinces; the total receipts reached VND22.4
billion, an increase of 15% compared with 1995. This contributed
significantly to the socio-economic development of Cua Lo. Particularly,
Cua Lo beaches have begun to stir the interest of international
travelers from Thailand, Malaysia, Laos and France. In 1996, according
to the statistics of the Cua Lo Municipality People's Committee, 420
foreign visitors came here, a fourfold increase in comparison to 1995.

As predicted by tourist experts, this summer, the number of visitors to
Cua Lo will increase a great deal compared with 1996, estimated to be
150,000-160,000. Twenty-six guest houses and hotels, including Hon Ngu,
Thai Binh Duong, Hoa Binh and Hoa Dong Tien, with about 700 rooms, have
been renovated.

Cua Lo is one of the focal points for the investment and development of
tourism of Nghe An Province. This month, Cua Lo is hurriedly preparing
for programs reserved for the tourist season of 1997, with a wide range
of cultural, art and sports activities, including traditional
festivities and boat-racing; these will surely be unforgettable
experiences for tourists from home and abroad.



Life in brief


v Eleven Vietnamese take part in Asian Youth Orchestra 1997

The Asian Youth Orchestra '97 has officially selected eight students
from Hanoi Conservatory to take part in a performance tour of Asia's big
cities, beginning July 1. They are: Tran Thu Van and Tran Vu Van Anh
(cello), Nguyen Tuan Loc (clarinet), Do Kien Cuong (oboe), Ngo Toan
Thang (double-bass), Nguyen Nhat Quang (drum), and Bui Tuan Duong and Le
Hoai Nam (violin). Together with three students from HCMC Conservatory,
Nguyen Quoc Truong, Nguyen Phuc The Khai and Ta Ton, Vietnam has 11
students taking part in this orchestra; a total of 126 young musicians
from 11 Asian countries will be playing.  


v Paintings by Ha Cam Tam on display in HCMC

A painting exhibition by painter Ha Cam Tam is being held at the HCMC
Fine Arts Association between May 24 and June 4. More than 30 paintings
featuring flowers, horses and scenery, and some abstract works are on
display here. Painter Ha Cam Tam was born in 1933 in Cao Lanh, Dong
Thap. He graduated from Gia Dinh Handicraft School in 1954 and is
currently teaching art in different states and cities in the U.S.   


v Vietnam to print textbooks for Cuba

Vietnam will print 5,000 textbooks for Cuba. The books, which will be
read by primary pupils, feature the life and revolutionary career of
Cuba's national hero Jose Marti. It is planned that they will be
published by The Gioi (World) Publishing House. This is thought to be of
great assistance to Cuba as it is launching a nationwide campaign to
raise funds for printing textbooks for primary pupils who have yet to be
provided with a textbook each. Cuba is currently wrestling with many
difficulties under the hostile embargo of the U.S.


v Collecting old drum in Central Highlands

The Vietnam Musical Institute has collected a drum of Ede people in
Central Highlands. The drum is made from a log which is one meter in
diameter, and 1.25m high. The two surfaces of the drum are made of
leather more than 1cm thick each. According to Mr. Dang Hoang Loan, vice
rector of the institute, the drum was made about 300 years ago.  




Shark hunting in the southwestern seas

In recent years, the seas of Kien Giang and Minh Hai have become a
"battlefield" for shark hunting. Boats from the Northern and Central
regions unceasingly compete with local boats to hunt down sharks. The
sea is smeared with blood, and shark carcasses are at times found
floating and washed ashore. Some ruthless "hunters" cut off the fins and
throw the shark back into the sea to suffer a painful death.

By Nguyen Hoang Tuan
AN GIANG

Mr. Bay Keo, a professional shark-hunter in Rach Gia, said, "We hunt
sharks mainly to get their fins. A set of shark fins includes those on
its back, sides, tail and some other places on its body. A 500kg shark
produces 30kg of fins, selling for some million dong. The same amount of
shark meat sells for just VND1 million. Shark-hunting is considered a
lucrative occupation, but it requires a large investment; 10 km of
fishing line, 1,000 hooks and a 5,000m net costs many taels of gold."

In the shark-hunting season, boats make use of every single hour to
search for sharks, and return only when the deck is full of dead sharks.
Chin Ruou in Bac Lieu, who is also a professional shark-hunter, said,
"If shark meat is made into canned food, we hunters can thrive. At
present, people buy shark meat to make dried food. Shark fins are cooked
to obtain fin-fiber, each kilogram of fin-fiber costs VND1 million-VND5
million, depending on the kind. In HCMC, shark fins are processed into
food, each bowl containing sharks' fin is said to cost about VND500,000.

Shark-hunting is a lucrative occupation, it's true. But it is dangerous
as well. As "king of the sea," a shark will not hesitate to attack other
living creatures. When hooked, and when the shark feels threatened, it
can become merciless toward its captors. Each shark-fishing boat is
manned by tens of practiced fishermen, and each shark-fishing trip
usually lasts 25 days. 

So far there are no regulations or plans for the exploitation of sharks.
An association for shark-hunters is not in existence now even though
such an association would be of great help to group them together, seek
consumption markets for shark products and avoid haphazard exploitation
of sharks that could cause depletion of shark numbers. Sharks, in some
areas of the world, have been hunted to near extinction, due to lack of
foresight and ignorance.