2006年VOA标准英语-Vietnam in Uphill Battle Against Corruption

（单词翻译）

By Matt Steinglass
Hanoi
13 August 2006

		Vietnamese Deputy Transport Minister Nguyen Viet Tien is handcuffed and led from his home in Hanoi (File photo)

As Vietnam prepares to ratify¹ the U.N. Convention Against Corruption², the government continues its campaign to eradicate³ one of the country's most entrenched⁴ economic problems. But, progress is slow and one recent case has raised concerns in the foreign business community.

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Vietnamese government officials are gearing up to adopt new anti-corruption measures when the country ratifies⁵ the United Nations Convention Against Corruption.

Nguyen Van Thanh, head of research at Vietnam's Government Inspectorate, says ratifying⁶ the U.N. convention goes along with a host of other measures that will make Vietnam a more transparent⁷ place to do business.

"From our point of view, it is very important for the investors⁸ to see the developing of our transparency, and if we do that we can get more investors internationally into Vietnam," he said.

Vietnam is involved in a massive anti-graft campaign, and the National Assembly recently passed a comprehensive law on corruption.

Since last year, Vietnamese government inspectors⁹ have uncovered a series of major corruption scandals.

The worst, at the Transportation Ministry¹⁰, involved tens of millions of dollars and cost the minister and other senior officials their jobs.

Other investigations¹¹ have targeted Vietnam Airlines and the government oil monopoly, PetroVietnam.

Soccer stars have been jailed for running illegal gambling¹² rings, teachers have been caught helping¹³ students cheat on final exams, and a top official of the government inspectorate itself has been suspended for accepting bribes¹⁴.

While welcoming moves toward transparency, some foreign investors remain worried.

A recent case of corruption by a government worker has embroiled¹⁵ a foreign company in both civil and criminal lawsuits¹⁶ and raises concerns that the laws are being applied¹⁷ unfairly and arbitrarily.

Incombank, a state-owned bank, has sued ABN AMRO for $5.4 million. It claims the money disappeared in speculative¹⁸ deals the Dutch bank made with an Incombank manager who was not authorized¹⁹ to trade currency. ABN AMRO says the trades were legal.

The manager has been arrested on charges of losing state resources through economic mismanagement. Two local ABN AMRO employees have also been detained.

Incombank spokesman Tran Duy Bich says the police think the Dutch bank is at fault.

Bich says the police decided²⁰ that ABN AMRO had broken the law, and recommended Incombank demand its money back. He says Vietnam could expel ABN AMRO if it does not comply.

Previous finance cases have been investigated by Vietnam's State Bank, not the police. That change has some foreign investors in Hanoi worried.

"We are concerned by the criminalization of some civil cases in Vietnam," said Alain Cany of the European Chamber²¹ of Commerce in Vietnam.

Foreign businessmen still put little trust in Vietnam's legal system, which is not independent of the government or the governing Communist party. Many business leaders say it is impossible to win a case against a state-owned company.