Communist Vietnam launches massive corruption crackdown, Party members no longer safe
They would have once been untouchable _ a father and son duo with influential jobs in the Trade Ministry. But their alleged involvement in a multimillion dollar corruption scam has put them at the center of an unprecedented house cleaning by Vietnam's communist rulers set on rooting out graft among their own.
Deputy Trade Minister Mai Van Dau and son Mai Thanh Hai were jailed recently as part of a crackdown on officials who siphon riches from the state _ a practice widely known about but rarely publicly addressed in the past by the ruling Communist Party. The crackdown comes as Vietnam tries to burnish its economic credentials in its bid to enter the World Trade Organization by the end of next year. Its latest showcase is an international aid donor's meeting starting Wednesday in Hanoi, at which corruption will be a major theme.
Dau and Hai were jailed for allegedly receiving up to US$1 million (€0.76 million) in bribes for handing out quota allotments for textile and garment shipments to the United States. A dozen other suspects were also arrested. Government-controlled media have widely reported the case, making fun of the father's name by branding him "mai van giau," or rich forever, and accusing the pair of living a playboy lifestyle in a million-dollar villa and changing cars as often as ordinary Vietnamese change clothes. Analysts say Vietnam's action indicates the government is trying to send a strong public message that the country is cleaning up its act.
"For the past decade, the Communist Party has viewed corruption as a major threat to its legitimacy," said Carlyle Thayer, a Vietnam expert at the Australian Defense Force Academy. "In the past, the big cases were notable by the infrequency of them. But now it's ministers, vice ministers and with publicity." Graft is openly acknowledged in Vietnam, but action to curb it was rarely visible in the past. As the country moves toward a market economy, its communist leaders say fighting corruption is a top priority.
"As countries develop, they go through a period of extended corruption," said Klaus Rohland, World Bank country coordinator in Vietnam. "Much more so if you transition from a socialist economy to a market economy because your development is faster than the building up of the institutions that would be the checks and balances for your economic development. German-based Transparency International ranked Vietnam 100 out of 133 nations in 2003 for corruption according to surveys of business people, academics and risk analysts. Only Indonesia and military-ruled Myanmar fared worse in the seven Southeast Asian countries listed.
Vietnam is currently working on a nationwide corruption survey with support from Sweden. The results are expected next year, when the government may pass an anti-corruption law. "I think there are some in Vietnam who consider corruption or the need to take care of various interested parties as a part of the cost of doing business," said Michael Marine, U.S. ambassador to Vietnam. "I think that's a dangerous way to approach the issue."
Despite criticism that it's not moving fast enough, Vietnam has publicly taken down several high-ranking officials recently _ actions that would have been unheard of a decade ago. In March 2003, 155 people were put on trial in the country's biggest-ever criminal case involving crime boss Truong Van Cam, better known as Nam Cam. Three senior officials, including two from the party's elite Central Committee, were shown on national television in striped prison jumpers. They were imprisoned for up to 10 years for taking bribes.
Other graft cases include two vice agriculture ministers who received suspended sentences last year for embezzling US$4.7 million in a scandal that also caused their boss to be fired. Sixteen executives from affiliates of Vietnam's oil and gas giant and 10 others, including the director of a Vietnam Airlines' affiliate, have also been arrested recently in connection to three separate scams which officials say caused losses of more than US$16 million (€12.09 million). Top leaders, who in the past have deflected tough questions about corruption, have now started admitting there are problems.
"I think that any effort to fight corruption will only benefit trade," Deputy Prime Minister Vu Khan told foreign business leaders last week. "It will not create any cloud over the sky but rather make the sky clearer."
The Associated Press - December 01, 2004
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