Chickens cast shadow over monkey ahead of Tet in Vietnam
HANOI : Vietnam ushers in the Year of the Monkey this week, but people might be forgiven for thinking it is the chicken that will rule the roost over the next 12 months.
Bird flu outbreaks in nearly half of Vietnam's 64 provinces and cities have thrown a dampener on celebrations in the run-up to Tet, the Vietnamese festival marking the start on Thursday of the Lunar New Year.
"The Year of Monkey is considered a year of difficulties and worry by elderly, superstitious folks because the monkey is a grimacer," said Hoang An, a 46 year-old Hanoi businessman.
"I don't believe in such superstitions but it is ironic that this week we will celebrate the new year under the shadow of the deadly bird flu epidemic."
The World Health Organization has confirmed that four people in Vietnam have died from the highly contagious H5N1 virus that has triggered an Asia-wide health alert. Vietnamese experts have blamed it for the deaths of nine others.
The outbreak has also resulted in the death or slaughter of at least two million chickens in the country.
Hundreds of thousands of more birds are likely to be culled before the current Year of the Goat comes to a close, spelling further misery for poultry farmers and traders during what should have been their most profitable week of the year.
The four-day Tet festival brings together extended families in the hope of ushering in good fortune for the coming year. It is also a time when chickens are traditionally widely consumed.
This year, however, many families are planning alternative menus.
"I will still prepare chicken for our main Tet meal because it is our tradition. I think it will be safe if you buy live, healthy chickens," said Luc Thi Tam, a 48-year-old housewife in the capital.
"But compared to previous Tets I will serve less chicken than usual, and I will also cook pork and fish. Only rich people can afford to completely replace chicken with seafood and other meat."
Health experts say there is no proof that eating infected poultry is the cause of transmission from chickens to humans.
There has also been no evidence so far to show that the virus can spread from person to person. All the human infections are believed to have come from contact with droppings from sick birds.
The World Health Organization, however, has warned of dire consequences if the virus mutates, saying that it has the potential to be far more serious than last year's Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak.
If that happens, the Year of the Monkey will live up to its reputation in Vietnam.
According to the Vietnamese horoscope representing the cycles of the lunar year, being born under the monkey sign is considered a harbinger of a difficult and unsuccessful life.
Superstitious Vietnamese also believe that even those born in different years will suffer misfortune during the monkey's 12-month reign.
Few poultry farmers and traders would disagree with them.
For Bui Thi Hoan, a poultry seller at the Cho Hom Market, one of the biggest wholesale markets in Hanoi, said the bird flu outbreak had spelt disaster.
"Over the past few days I have only sold a few chickens at very low prices. I have lost a lot of money. I just hope I can sell all my chickens before Tet starts," she said.
Fellow vendor Pham Thu Thuy added: "It is a catastrophe. I have lost everything. I am afraid that my children will have nothing else to eat but chicken during Tet because I can't sell them."
Compounding their worries is the fact that Tet is a time when Vietnamese feel compelled to purchase new clothes and consumer goods to prove their status among their peers.
Agence France Presse - January 18, 2004
EU offers expertise to Vietnam to combat bird flu outbreak
The European Union offered Friday expert help to assist Vietnam in fighting a bird flu epidemic which has been blamed for the deaths of 13 people and triggered an Asia-wide health scare.
Following an appeal from the World Health Organisation, EU Health Commissioner David Byrne said EU experts "with outstanding knowledge and expertise" were available to travel to Vietnam at short notice.
Byrne, who was on a long-scheduled visit to Vietnam Friday, noted that the EU had last year tackled an outbreak of avian influenza which killed a veterinarian in the Netherlands.
In a statement issued in Brussels, the Irish commissioner said that "having gone through that experience, I understand fully the challenges facing Vietnam".
Vietnamese authorities on Friday ordered the slaughter of all chickens in the 12 regions grappling with the bird flu epidemic in a bid to contain the deadly outbreak.
Japan, South Korea and Taiwan are also battling outbreaks of bird flu, which comes amid a re-emergence of the SARS virus in southern China.
Authorities in Hong Kong, where six people died of the H5N1 bird flu in 1997, have banned all live poultry from affected areas. Cambodia, China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Thailand have announced similar bans.
For its part, the EU said it does not import any poultry from Japan, South Korea or Vietnam.
Agence France Presse - January 16, 2004
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