International

The tax department of Ho Chi Minh City and ride-hailing firm failed to find common ground at a meeting organized by the local court to sort out a tax dispute. The department continued to insist that Uber has to pay its back taxes and the firm insisted that it was not subject to them in the first place. Ho Chi Minh City has been trying to make Uber B.V. pay taxes since last year, saying that the Netherlands-based company had operated in the city as a transport firm. Uber B.V. did not just provide technology services, but directly managed and carried out all transportation business activities, from assigning drivers to setting prices and running promotions, and it paid drivers, which it described as partners, once a week. The company should be subjected to taxes like any other transport company, a tax department representative told the reconciliation at the court on Friday. In September last year, the department ordered Uber B.V. to pay VND66.7 billion ($2.91 million) in back taxes and … [Read more...] about Uber and Saigon tax man still at odds

The Cho Ray Hospital announced on Friday night that 12 of its patients have been infected with the influenza virus A/H1N1 so far. This makes it the second swine flu hotspot in the city after the Tu Du obstetrics hospital. The virus was detected in the Nephrology Department of the hospital after five kidney patients were tested positive for the A/H1N1 type influenza on June 11. Professor Nguyen Truong Son, director of the hospital, said it as the first-ever swine flu outbreak at Cho Ray, one of the country’s oldest hospitals. He said the hospital was working with the Pasteur Institute in the city to deploy measures to monitor and prevent the epidemic from spreading. All infected patients have been quarantined for treatment and the hospital immediately isolated the Nephrology Department for disinfection, Son said. A medical staff of the hospital with symptoms similar to that of the viral infection has been asked to stay home for observation. On May 30, a 26-year-old woman in Saigon … [Read more...] about Swine flu detected in Vietnam’s oldest hospital

A court in Ho Chi Minh City sentenced two Chinese nationals to four years in prison on Friday for cheating local merchants to the tune of VND370 million ($16,165), using fake credit cards. Lu Lei, 31, and Zhang Qiyu, 23, were charged with “using computer networks, telecommunications networks, Internet or digital devices to misappropriate property.” According to the indictment, in June 2016, the Chinese men bought iPhones 7 worth VND48 million ($2,097) from a shop in District 3, using a counterfeit visa card for payment. When the shop staff got suspicious and asked the duo for their passports, they said they did not have it on them. They returned the next day with the passports, but were arrested by police officers who seized four fake credit cards on the spot. A raid of the suspects’ residence following the arrest netted 32 bank cards without account information printed on them. Investigations confirmed that the Chinese men had swindled $16,165 by using 12 forged … [Read more...] about Chinese duo get 4 years in jail for using fake bank cards

By Di Vy  &nbspJune 23, 2018 | 12:00 pm GMT+7 French photographer François Sully himself a war veteran  who'd fought against the Nazis, achieved legendary status as a journalist covering Vietnam's wars against France and the United States. His photographs of Saigon in the sixties captured everyday life for posterity. Rex theater in March 1964. A suburb street of Saigon in the summer. On a rainy day in 1964. Vietnamese New Year in January 1966, on Nguyen Hue Street. Flower market in the city centre. People line up at the ticket counter of Air Vietnam, the only commercial airline of Vietnam from 1951 to 1975, in District 1. Xa Loi Pagoda in District 3, March 1964. A group of people on their way to a village festival, June 1968. Women and children at a construction site.  In 1971, Sully jumped from a height of 75 feet from a helicopter in flames. He was the lone survivor, but succumbed to his injuries the same year. He was 44. He is buried at the … [Read more...] about Saigon in the 60s: a black and white portrayal

Recently, the Ministry of Finance proposed a fuel tax hike in order to “reduce emissions” and “pay off national debts.” If passed, the hike would increase the current environmental tax rates for petroleum and diesel to the highest level permitted for fuels, at VND4,000 ($0.18) per liter. Every morning, I commute to work on my old, trusty Yamaha-brand motorbike. Every week, I stop by gas stations twice to buy four liters of gasoline for my bike. If the fuel tax hike proposal is passed, I would have to spend an extra VND16,000. Every month, VND64,000 would go from my pocket into the national budget. It’s not about the money. VND64,000 is only worth about three cups of coffee or two bowls of pho, though I have to I admit that paying taxes is nowhere near as fun as drinking coffee or eating pho. But look at what’s happening right now. My neighborhood is still infested with trash. Thick clouds of dust rise from the ground as cars and motorbikes rush down … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s latest tax hike proposal could fuel resentment