Viet Maz

1. Monk captures pagoda thieves using dustpan Monk chases, captures pagoda thieves in southern Vietnam Stealing money is no laughing matter, especially so when it is stolen from a sacred place like a pagoda. But video footage of a monk chasing down thief with a dustpan at the Van Phuong Pagoda in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province certainly raised a laugh or two. 2. Hanoi publicizes sex workers’ hangouts Alleged sex workers and potential customers on Lieu Giai Street, Hanoi, a night in 2014. Photo by VnExpress/File In a bizarre attempt at shaming those engaging in sex work, authorities recently revealed 10 spots that most sex workers hang out waiting for customers. These include several streets, a park and a bus station in the districts of Hoan Kiem, Hai Ba Trung, Hoang Mai, Bac Tu Liem, and Ba Dinh. But the public was not impressed. They said they could not care less about the hangouts. They would, however, be very interested in the publicizing of government officials' assets. … [Read more...] about An eccentric retrospective on 2018 stories

Nguyen Thi Thanh, 43, from the central province of Ha Tinh, was stopped at the border checkpoint in Nakhon Phanom, a northeastern province in Thailand as she was sitting in a bus from Thakhek in the Lao province of Khammuane, the Bangkok Post reported. When police searched her luggage, they found 930 items of elephant tusks and ornaments worth an estimated $60,340. Thanh faces criminal charges for smuggling and possessing ivory without permission, and can be jailed for up to six years under the Thai Penal Code. The woman told the police that she was paid $61 by an unnamed Lao citizen to carry the ivory products to a bus stop in Nakhon Phanom for another person to pick up, police said. However, authorities suspect she is a member of a smuggling syndicate. The global trade in elephant ivory, with rare exceptions, has been outlawed since 1989 after populations of the African pachyderms dropped from millions in the mid-20th century to around 600,000 by the end of the 1980s. Vietnam also … [Read more...] about Vietnamese faces six years in jail for smuggling elephant tusks into Thailand

Nguyen Thi Thanh, 43, from the central province of Ha Tinh, was stopped at the border checkpoint in Nakhon Phanom, a northeastern province in Thailand as she was sitting in a bus from Thakhek in the Lao province of Khammuane, the Bangkok Post reported. When police searched her luggage, they found 930 items of elephant tusks and ornaments worth an estimated $60,340. Thanh faces criminal charges for smuggling and possessing ivory without permission, and can be jailed for up to six years under the Thai Penal Code. The woman told the police that she was paid $61 by an unnamed Lao citizen to carry the ivory products to a bus stop in Nakhon Phanom for another person to pick up, police said. However, authorities suspect she is a member of a smuggling syndicate. The global trade in elephant ivory, with rare exceptions, has been outlawed since 1989 after populations of the African pachyderms dropped from millions in the mid-20th century to around 600,000 by the end of the 1980s. Vietnam also … [Read more...] about Vietnamese woman faces six years in jail for smuggling tusks into Thailand