Vietnam finds itself shrouded in culture of secrecy
HANOI - Vietnam may have begun opening up its economy to the outside world in the late 1980s, but the inner workings of the government and state- run institutions remain as opaque as ever.
Corruption and vast, overlapping layers of bureaucracy are often considered the main barriers to continued market reforms in a country that is rich in natural resources and has a cheap, hard-working labour force.
However, the secrecy of the system is also a major hindrance to foreign investors as well as to Vietnamese themselves. Information is extremely difficult to obtain.
"I am disconcerted by the question of knowing who is in charge. It is a collective system, but that means no one ever really takes responsibility," said one foreign diplomat.
Other diplomats based in the political capital Hanoi and the southern commercial hub of Ho Chi Minh City have many different interpretations about how the system works and who decides what.
"Everyone has their own theories or analysis, but everyone is wrong. The reality is that no one knows how it works," says another envoy.
"The Vietnamese hardly know any more than us. One day I had a meeting with someone who I considered was very reliable. "He assured me that it was out of the question that Vietnam would sign a trade agreement with the United States. However, a few days afterwards, the agreement was signed," he said, referring to the July 2000 US-Vietnam trade pact.
No one really knows what lies behind the public face of unanimity of the communist regime.
Decision No 28 of November 2002 theoretically obliged all foreign embassies, companies and institutions based in Vietnam to present their public documents, statements and reports to the Ministry of Culture and Information for approval.
Not surprisingly, the directive has been widely ignored, but nevertheless it remains in force.
"The habits of secrecy die hard in the Vietnamese system. If something has not been explicitly cleared to share with foreigners, in effect, it's a state secret," said Raymond Burghardt, US Ambassador to Vietnam, last month.
His views are widely held among foreign community within Vietnam.
A flow chart of the power structure in Vietnam can produce surprises. In the government or a state-owned company, the number two is some-times more powerful than his supe- rior.
For investors, this can often prove a crucial issue. "In certain public enterprises, one does not know who is responsible," said one lawyer for an overseas firm.
"I saw a Hong Kong company signing a contract with a state company before realising that the document was invalid. It had not signed it with the correct person. The legal concept of ‘appearance' does not exist in Vietnam."
Agence France Presse - March 03, 2003.
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