What happened in October 2014: Socio-cultural, literary, and political news and events relating to Viet nam and to the Vietnamese diaspora.
Events
• The Archaeological Institute of America’s Art & Architecture of Vietnam & Cambodia (land tour) starts in November 2014.
• VIETNAM: ELI Youth Initiative at Idealist Fair in various cities from November 3 to 12.
Viet Kieu in the news
• Nina Pham “is getting the best treatment possible and will pull through”
• Refugee sisters renew ties with the church that sponsored them in 1979.
• Michelle Phan’s book, Make Up details how she achieved “her unconventional career success.”
• The Gia Lai Team car rally raises awareness to help the needy children of Vietnam.
• Fifty Catholic Vietnamese asylum seekers will be released from the Yongah Hill detention centre.
• Former Vietnamese model submitted U.S. documents as part of her anti-defamation lawsuit against a Vietnamese news website.
News about Viet Nam
• Vietnamese firm a21studio wins the World Architecture Festival 2014 best building award.
• Vietnamese activists are rallying for demonstrations against the government’s planned wasteful spending instead of invest ing the “money in education or health care, which are essential for life.”
• Compare to other southeast Asian counties, Vietnam leads in video Consumption.
• Missing Vietnamese oil tanker has been released by pirates.
• Nguyen Hoang Diep’s film, Dap Canh Giua Khong Trung (Flapping in the Middle of Nowhere) won the best film category at the International Critics’ Week
• Motorbikes remain the most convenient means of transportation for most Vietnamese and its number is rising quickly.
Other News
• The US may partially lift its decades-old lethal weapon embargo to help Vietnam boost its maritime security.[Reuters][Economist]
Special thanks to Viet Thanh Nguyen for providing many of the news items.
Peace!
RP