Our people has been suffering for so long, from French colonialism to the ravages of the Vietnam War. And now, after 30 years our people are still living under party dictatorship that is only slightly better than Kim Jong Il's North Korea or Than Shwe's Myanmar. The corruption disease is spreading fast with no end in sight, and the people are still being repressed and denied the right to freedom and a Democratically elected leadership.

When will the suffering will end?

move to america

we just need more oil.

the suffering will never end until the communism is completely vanished in the world

not really , the suffering is just beginning

communism is just a concept

Unfortunately the overwhelming majority don't have the luxury of moving to the free world.

boredom is true suffering



maybe losing all hope is freedom

Looks like the Communists Party is determined to stay for another 20, but there are tremendous pressure for Vietnam to change both from within and outside the party the party; I think whatever side peopel take, at heart Vietnamese wants a more prosperous and less corrupt Vietnam; we just disagree on how to do this. I don't think communism (not just the theory, but the party itself) is viable in the long term. This said democracy might necessarily be the end for Vietnam either and Vietnam could either become fully democratic or end up a semi-autocratic state like Singapore even if industrialization is achieved; it depends on much the people care about governing themselves. The key though is for economic and industrial progress first to establish a strong bourgeois middle class united and educated enough to challenge the party's sole claim on power. Vietnam should look to Meiji and post-war industrial Japan as a model. Focus on the economy and double national income, then use people's power to demand democratic changes.


--------------------------------------------------
Vietnam congress mixes old with new
By Nga Pham
BBC News, Hanoi

Standing tall on the podium, the newly re-elected General Secretary Nong Duc Manh completed his closing speech with the slogan: "Long live the Communist Party of Vietnam".

This slogan, which has been on display at numerous party and government offices for many decades, sums up the spirit of the 10th National Congress, which closed on Tuesday in Hanoi.

The message is clear: the party is here to rule the country for many years to come.

"The Vietnamese people chose the Communist Party as it is the only party capable to lead the nation from victory to victory," said Pham The Duyet, chairman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, a party-affiliated mass mobilisation organisation.

he said in an interview with the BBC.

The congress dedicated much time to discussions of ways to "enhance party leadership and combative strength", after the general secretary admitted that corruption and other wrongdoings among the party's cadres posed a great threat to the "survival of our regime".

A major corruption scandal that broke just days before the opening of the congress has highlighted the urgency of the anti-corruption process, and in his speech Mr Manh promised to enforce the fight.

The congress has agreed on ambitious economic targets, including the maintenance of a high growth rate of 7.5-8.0% a year, and for Vietnam to achieve the status of an industrialised country by 2020.

In order to do so, Mr Manh said, the party is committed to "create a clear transformation and aim for a higher quality" in party building.

New generation

The newly elected Politburo, which serves as the top organ in the party's hierarchy, has been half replaced by younger members.

Current Premier Phan Van Khai, President Tran Duc Luong and the National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Van An all announced they would not seek to continue their positions after age limitation has been reinforced.

Nguyen Tan Dung, a former police boss who, at 56, is considered very young as a Politburo member, is widely expected to become the new prime minister.

Nguyen Minh Triet, 64, is likely to take over the presidency.

Top ministerial jobs such as ministers of trade, finance and natural resources and environment are also expected to be awarded to a younger set of personnel.

"It is a very positive sign that the party leadership now has many younger people," said 30-year-old Nguyen Xuan Hoa. "But age is not as important as the mindset - we need leaders with young minds."

A businessman who wanted to remain anonymous said he had not seen any breakthrough in the thinking of the party's leaders.

"I think the party is opting for a gradual process, rather than a breakthrough. But I hope they [the leaders] will change. They are under huge pressure to change," he said.

Economic challenges

Analysts say economic and therefore social and political pressure is building up as Vietnam prepares to join the World Trade Organization.

That leads to the re-consideration of many tenets of communist doctrine, including exploitation, private ownership and the capitalist economy.

The party now has to fulfil the hugely challenging task of safeguarding its political leadership while many of its core principles are brought under public scrutiny and debate.

The newly elected 160-strong Central Committee, which comprises the party's elite of central and provincial levels, now has 25 members who are serving officials of the defence and police ministries.

The heavy presence of such personnel compared with other ministries is seen as an indication of the party's desire to maintain political and social stability inside the country.

Retaining overall control over society, while at the same time seeking more vigorous economic growth, may seem an extremely challenging mission.

But according to party documents, that is what the new Vietnamese leadership plans to do.

Now all eyes are set on how they are going to make that plan a reality.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/asia...fic/4941792.stm

Published: 2006/04/25 11:05:39 GMT

© BBC MMVI

Even a democracy isn't truly free.. it's just a form of governing which allows 51% of the population to oppress the other 49%..

Be more specific. "Truly free" from what? from crimes, from corruption, from communism, from...

And TRANSIC is right, even in true democracies, people are not truly free. You are only free as long as you don't invade the freedom of others. People are still bounded within the confines of laws and societal norms. It's the job of politicians to shell out money to convince the masses that they are free, when in fact, they are not.

The answer to your question is Vietnam will never be truly free.

It is all about the weight of the adjective free. I would ask the question differently, when will we be courageous enough to fight and win the etablishment of a republic where the fundamentals rights are respected and the corrupts are righteously punished ?

aint no one free, americans or vietnamese. when theres law you can never be free

i think what cookie_lover means by being "truly free" is to be freed of communism and having a chance at the possibility of equal opportunity. We all know that their is no such thing as freedom cause "freedom is slavery, slavery is freedom" --just wanted to throw out a common paradox...japan, s.korea, and the united states have the freedom to dream and make dreams come true whereas if you live in vietnam and are not born into a rich family, your chance for an education, a job, and a good family just decreased tremendously.

i agree with herosword's words--vietnam's chance of overthrowing communism within the country is to increase wealth economically and to double the national income so that the power will be stronger in the hands of the vietnamese people to speak of overthrowing the communist party. the vietnamese public is relying on the communist party to live, to survive---instead of the communist part relying on the vietnamese public to survive. must weaken the communist party and begin reconstruction!

the things you own , end up owning you

^^ It's better than owning nothing at all

Most Vietnamese are too worried about or busy making a living, earning some money to support themselves and their families, and they couldn't care less about luxury things like freedom, democracy, elections,etc.... Only when the people's living standard is substantially raised, then perhaps they can afford to think about those luxuries. A man can not think any further than his stomach allows.

Asians don't like freedom. Freedom is a Western concept.

Crap.


More crap.

Well, the Americans didn't finish freeing Vietnam the last time they were there, you know their philosophy "It's necessary to destroy the city in order to save it", so the saviors need to come again, "to end the sufferings"?

Now, with more than 80 millions souls, it's probably more worthwile to eventually drop those two nukes

http://www.globalissues.org/HumanRights/Me...nda/Vietnam.asp

Once Vietnam is saved, it can have democracy like Iraq...

Socialism and Communism are also Western concept.

At least they have the opportunity to elect the group that best represent the majority's interests. Under communism, you have no choice but to be screwed around and hope that it won't be screwing up the country too badly.

Stop complaining and start a REVOLUTION. Vietnam can only get rid of communism thru a revolution. War have alway been Vietnam way of settling things

^War is not good for VietNam or ASEAN as a group, a political revolution is more likely.

Where are the overseas Vietnamese? I see many overseas Vietnamese in Southern California. They are well educated and prosperous. They can do something to help Vietnam get rid of communism if they try.

Communism in Europe and USSR has been vanquished. Why does Vietnam still have it? Where is the People revolutions? Perhaps Vietnamese are more tolerant of oppression.

When you guys finally become Capitalist and Republic/Democratic But, your gov. is doing fairly well 8+% growth rate

I agree. The "Chong Cong" idiots are too stupid to realize what the Vietnamese people really want. Go to Vietnam and say that you're going to give them $100-dollar bill or shiet like "democracy or election" and see which option they would choose.

That's the reason why the VCP is adopting capitalism. The Party is letting the population know that you have the opportunities to get rich all you want but we also want what we want and that is one political party

The reason why VCP is adopting captialism is because "monkey sees China, monkey does".

And the motive?

Monkey sees China gets rich and stays in the power the same time (after the Tiannamen Square), monkey does.

Doi Moi started in 1986, not 1989.

1989 that's when China truly embraced Capitalism, it already has its Doi moi time 11 years before that. China had its door open by Deng Xiao Ping in 1978

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_economic_reform

Sees so much similarities

That's why most foreign investors called Vietnam as the alternative 10-years-behind little China

What exactly can they do? The first generation is slowly dying off and many 2nd generation Vietnamese don't care. Changing the government in Vietnam can only be done by the people IN Vietnam, no one else.

If people who "Chong Cong" are "idiots" then I guess there are lots of "idiots" both inside and outside of Vietnam.

Why VN adopt capitalism???? Because the Mother Communist Soviets is dead and that means no allowance for little commie like Vietnam. Remember the time when Vietnamese people were starving "eating bo-bo instead of rice" because of socialism and communism therefore socialism/communism is not the way to go. Why is there a Communist Party in Vietnam today? look at my sig below.....

Capitalism is good for Vietnam but it's a sweet deal for the VCP members because they have access to the tax payers money and loans from other countries and the World Bank. Capitalism is good but its much better if there a check and balance in the political system. Vietnam does not have that yet. Corruptions are destroying the culture and holding back the country developments and one-political party system is not going to help much. Why? because its the cause of corruptions in the first place.

Nguyen Tien Trung wrote " One major contradiction is that the Communist Party always say "Vietnam is for the people", Party members are servants to the people but in reality, the Party see itself above all else and only gives favour to the people. The Party and the government survive by the taxes of the labor of the people for them to serve the People."

So if the Party wants one-political party then Vietnam gets one-political party? What if the other 80 million Vietnamese don't want one-political party?

Party or no Party or multi-party, people always want to go up and they don't need the Party to tell them that. Vietnam will go farther and faster up if there is political freedom. With the pace Vietnam is going, Vietnam needs another 179 more years to catch up to Singapore which is a tiny country created in 1967.

Vietnam is "free" when the people have the freedom to elect their leaders and they have the right to protest and criticize their government. It is baisic human rights. do you get it???

Kill everyone..and we'll all be free....

just kidden...

..Communism must be destroy.....

"VC propaganda blah blah b!tch, moan and cry some more"