Street Markets at Risk

I am trying to be more on top of local news this time around, so I have made the Thanh Nien Daily, a local English language newspaper, our homepage. This morning, I was horrified to read the news of government action towards doing away with local markets. With the impending ban on cyclos on the streets, it is obvious that the Vietnamese government is trying to go the way of Singapore - modern, sterile and relatively culturally neutral. This is not to say that  I don't love Singapore, but I will never know what it was like 20, 30, 50 years ago because everything is so new. Viet Nam's charm, in large part, is due to the life on it's streets, while obviously modernizing, still bustling with life as it was many years ago. Not to mention the loss of livelihood that this decision could cause millions of villagers and townspeople who earn their living selling food out of their homes, carts and in the countless local markets throughout the country. Luckily, for now,  the decision has been overturned, not due to the great potential harm it could cause, but for the nonspecific nature of the language in  the bill. I hope that coverage of this story sparks more opposition. I am all for progress, but not at the expense of culture and the people who depend on these markets for their livelihood.

Read the complete news story in Thanh Nien Daily here.