This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

031037Z Mar 06

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FM AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 0502
INFO AMEMBASSY HANOI 
ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE
AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L  HO CHI MINH CITY 000229 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL:  3/3/16 
TAGS: PGOV PREL SOCI PHUM VM LABOR DPOL HUMANR
SUBJECT: (SBU) HCMC NEWSPAPERS PUSH BOUNDS OF POLITICAL DEBATE 
 
REF: A) HCMC 218; B) HCMC 31; C) 05 HCMC 1151; D) 05 HCMC 1155; D) 05 HCMC 55 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: Robert Silberstein, Political Officer, ConGen 
HCMC, State Department. 
REASON: 1.4 (d) 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: Consul General Seth Winnick 
REASON: 1.4 (d) 
 
¶1.  (C) Summary:  Although all of HCMC's newspaper are subject 
to Party control and censorship, two of its leading national 
dailies -- Tuoi Tre and Thanh Nien -- have become more 
assertive, even on some political matters.  The newspapers, 
financially independent, politically well-connected, and 
increasingly professionally staffed, are challenging some Party 
red lines.  They are reporting more vigorously and objectively 
on a wide range of sensitive issues.  Tuoi Tre has become the de 
facto voice of the reform camp in the run up to the 10th Party 
Congress.  The two newspapers have pushed the envelope of 
permissible political discussion, although this political debate 
is modest by Western standards.  End Summary. 
 
Introduction:  HCMC's News Dailies 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (U)  Communist Party doctrine calls for newspapers to be 
"tools of the Party, a forum for the people."  All of HCMC's 
newspapers are affiliated directly with the Party or with mass 
organizations under Party control such as the Fatherland Front 
or Women's Union.  The newspaper with the widest circulation in 
HCMC is the "Cong An Thanh Pho Ho Chi Minh" (HCMC Police), with 
over 500,000 copies daily.  A true tabloid, the paper features 
coverage of blood-and-gore crimes, prostitution rings and street 
violence.  "Phu Nu HCMC" (HCMC Women), administered by the 
Women's Union, has a circulation of 200,000, but sticks to a 
narrow social agenda.  The bland and statist "Saigon Giai Phong" 
(Saigon Liberation) -- the Party's official mouthpiece in HCMC 
-- has a declared circulation of 80,000, but is largely 
distributed to Government and Party offices and State-owned 
enterprises.  Other specialized HCMC dailies include the 
Vietnamese and English-language editions of the Saigon Economic 
Times, and the business news daily Saigon Times.  There are two 
religious newspapers in HCMC:  "Giac Ngo" (Englightenment) and 
"Cong Giao va Dan Toc" (Catholicism and the Nation), with very 
limited circulation. 
 
¶3.  (SBU)  Over the past few years, Tuoi Tre, with a circulation 
of 370,000, and Thanh Nien, with a circulation of 200,000, have 
emerged as more objective and professional -- and popular -- 
voices on the HCMC media scene.  The two dailies, technically 
under the HCMC Youth Union and Youth Federation, respectively, 
have spearheaded open debate on a variety of issues such as 
education, the business environment, state monopolies, official 
corruption, land laws, night club regulations, transportation 
and protection of intellectual property rights.  Tuoi Tre in 
particular has risked publishing articles by pro-reform 
activists, especially in the run-up to the 10th Party Congress. 
 
Government and Party Control.... 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶4. (C) In theory, all newspapers must take instruction from 
their parent organizations.  Each newspaper also has its own 
Party cell; the Secretary of that Party cell acts as a 
quasi-political commissar and often sits on the newspaper's 
editorial board.  Additionally, the party's Ideology and Culture 
Committee, both locally in HCMC and in Hanoi, closely oversees 
the content and political and editorial tone of HCMC's dailies. 
The Ideology and Culture Committee organizes weekly meetings 
with all senior newspaper editors.  In these meetings, Party 
representatives review the past week's editions, criticize or 
praise newspapers on what they have published and give 
"directions" on how to report on key social, domestic and 
foreign policy issues.  A Party insider tells us that a common 
reproach is that Tuoi Tre and Thanh Nien are too negative about 
the Party and the GVN, and fail to build a "constructive mood in 
society." 
 
....Leads to Overt Censorship 
----------------------------- 
 
¶5. (C)  Our contacts within the industry told us of a number of 
recent incidents in which the Party clamped down or altered how 
the HCMC press managed news and advertising: 
 
--  In December 2005, Tuoi Tre ran a report of violent land 
disputes in China between police and villagers.  The Party's 
Ideology and Culture Committee reprimanded the paper, which 
stopped reporting on the matter.  (Comment:  Although smaller in 
scale, conflicts over land and land compensation are often a 
source of friction and resentment between ordinary Vietnamese 
and GVN and Party officials.) 
 
-- HCMC's two major dailies ran extensive, early coverage of the 
January 2005 confrontation between Vietnamese fishermen and the 
Chinese Navy in the Gulf of Tonkin, in which eight Vietnamese 
fishermen were killed.  Reporting was hostile in tone, 
describing in detail the anguish of the deceased's families. 
Within a week, the central-level Committee for Culture and 
Ideology Committee sent a directive ordering discontinuation of 
reporting so that the GVN could quietly settle the matter with 
China.  The newspapers complied, albeit grudgingly, according to 
our contacts. 
 
-- HCMC's "Nguoi Lao Dong" (Workers' Daily) took the lead in 
reporting on a series of strikes at foreign-owned enterprises in 
industrial zones in HCMC and neighboring provinces (Refs A and 
B).  The newspaper was sympathetic to worker grievances and 
leaked a GVN decision to raise the minimum wage.  The paper 
allegedly used its trucks to distribute newspapers to striking 
workers.  In addition to pressure from the Party, which 
criticized the paper for its activism, Nguoi Lao Dong's Chief 
Editor was criticized by HCMC People's Committee Standing Vice 
Chairman Nguyen Thien Nhan and ordered to "report wisely." 
Following the meeting, the newspaper ceased focusing on employee 
grievances and instead began calling for calm and joint efforts 
to find a solution to the unrest. 
 
-- To promote its latest model of the Mondeo, Ford Vietnam ran a 
series of ads in major HCMC newspapers, featuring the White 
House and an American flag as background.  Party authorities 
reportedly banned the ad.  After Ford replaced the background 
with other symbols, the ad ran smoothly. 
 
¶6. (C) Reporters who are invited to study or participate in 
activities abroad such as the International Visitor Program must 
seek approval from their parent organization as well as the 
Party's Ideology Committee.  According to some of our IV 
candidates, the invitee can be expected to be grilled on 
clandestine linkages or personal arrangements with the inviting 
organization.  In major newspapers, reporters' passports are 
held by their parent organizations and released only a few days 
before a trip (if the person is allowed to go), and retrieved a 
few days after return.  If the nature of the trip is considered 
particularly sensitive, approval must come from Hanoi.  In one 
case, a reporter from Thanh Nien invited to take part in 
"Counter Terrorism and U.S. Foreign Policies" IV program had to 
be approved by Deputy Prime Minister Vu Khoan. 
 
....And Self-Censorship 
----------------------- 
 
¶7. (C)  After decades of Party "direction," reporters and 
editors have a good sense of where the red lines are; they tell 
us that they routinely self-censor to avoid subsequent problems. 
 For example, political arrests and trials do not get reported 
unless explicitly approved by the Party.  Reports of domestic 
unrest, such as protests in the Central Highlands, are only 
covered well after they take place, and are spun to support the 
Party line that the "instigators had admitted their mistakes." 
Editors focus on ensuring appropriate size and placement of 
photos and news about Party and GVN leaders.  International 
affairs reporters know better than to refer to hunger in North 
Korea.  The color revolutions in Eastern Europe were reported as 
major international events, but pro-democracy NGOs were accused 
of conspiring to cause upheaval. 
 
¶8. (C) Although press coverage of corruption has increased, even 
seasoned and professional reporters are reluctant to push many 
investigations to their logical conclusion.  One reporter told 
us that he could easily identify the many and lavish properties 
belonging to the Party elite and their children, but "would not 
dare" to file a report.  No editor would touch the story in any 
case, the reporter said.  In late 2005, Tuoi Tre published a 
series of articles on the near-collapse of a key bridge in 
downtown HCMC, linking the issue to corruption in the 
contracting process.  The director of the building company 
responsible for the bridge's construction is a younger brother 
of HCMC People's Committee Chairman Le Thanh Hai, but his name 
was omitted from the series of articles.  After the city moved 
quickly to repair the damage, press coverage was dropped. 
 
Changing Tide? 
-------------- 
 
¶9. (C) Despite the pressure and self-censorship, Thanh Nien and 
Tuoi Tre have become somewhat more assertive.  Both papers are 
financially independent.  They also are cash cows for their 
administering bodies.  For example, in 2004, Thanh Nien provided 
12 billion VND (over USD 750,000) to the central-level Youth 
Union, topping the list of contributors.  The two papers also 
flex their financial muscle to build popularity by supporting 
local charity and scholarship initiatives. 
 
¶10. (C) As the newspapers' financial strength rests on sales, 
editors recognize that the desires of the Party must be balanced 
against demands from the general public for greater and more 
 
objective coverage of pocketbook issues such as land 
registration, water supply, taxes, healthcare and education. 
Invariably, problems, and the subsequent media's focus involve, 
corruption and Government mismanagement.  In Vietnam's opaque 
political system, Tuoi Tre and Thanh Nien feed off political and 
personal rivalries within the Party.  Scandals "uncovered" by 
the press often come from tip-offs from police with the support 
from groups or individuals in the Party or Government. 
 
¶11. (C) Tuoi Tre and Thanh Nien have many staff members who are 
relatively young with an open worldview.  They have no direct 
"American War" experience.  Their formative years were in the 
poverty-stricken, post-war period of Marxist-Leninist orthodoxy 
in Vietnam.  They value Doi Moi -- economic reform -- and want 
to see the process continue.  Some have studied journalism in 
Europe, Australia and the United States.  Among them are a few 
Fulbrighters, Humphrey Fellows and IV grantees.  (Thus far, the 
Party has not permitted Tuoi Tre journalists to travel on the IV 
program.)  A number of journalists have described to us their 
ambition to be as independent and professional as their 
colleagues overseas.  They routinely bypass GVN firewalls to 
read blocked websites (including Radio Free Asia and Voice of 
America), although they cannot cite or use information from 
these sources.  Our contacts are annoyed by the constraints that 
the Party places on them and want to speed up the slow pace of 
change.  Senior editors see their futures in building strong 
print and Internet news companies that they could profit from 
when they are eventually equitized. 
 
Pushing the Envelope:  Tuoi Tre in the Lead 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶12. (C) Although the Party has periodically attempted to rein in 
Tuoi Tre, going as far as to replace its Chief Editor in June 
2003, its coverage remains progressive.  For example, it 
showcased former Prime Minister Vo Van Kiet's calls for 
aggressive political and economic reform (Ref C), resisted 
direct orders from Hanoi to attack democracy activist Hoang Minh 
Chinh (Ref D) and organized an unprecedented defense of one of 
its journalists (Lan Anh) after police accused her of "revealing 
State secrets" when covering the GVN role in steep price hikes 
in medicine. 
 
¶13. (C) In the immediate run up to the 10th Party Congress, Tuoi 
Tre has further pushed the envelope of permissible political 
discourse.  In January, after considering the matter for a 
number of months, the newspaper ran a three-part series by 
Nguyen Trung, a former Vietnamese Ambassador to Thailand and 
aide to former Prime Minister Kiet.  Trung argued that the Party 
lacks the intellectual and moral capacity to cope with new 
challenges, and requires urgent reform or risks losing power. 
In one article, he noted that "the Party is a leader, not the 
entity that holds all power."  In another, he criticized the 
lack of political pluralism in Vietnam.  The newspaper followed 
up by printing readers' feedback in support of Trung.  Within a 
few weeks, conservatives in the Party, including former head of 
the Central Party's Ideology and Culture Committee Tran Trong 
Tan, reportedly attacked the newspaper and Trung in private 
Party meetings, according to a Party contact.  Newspaper 
insiders tell us that, for several weeks following the internal 
Party critique, Tuoi Tre management backed off, refusing to 
publish a "fiercely critical" article by a reformist, former 
HCMC People's Committee Chairman Vo Viet Thanh, and an article 
advocating a multi-party system by Vice Chairman of the HCMC Bar 
Association Le Cong Dinh.  (Dinh's article was later published 
by the BBC's Vietnamese news service.) 
 
¶14. (C) By mid-February, Tuoi Tre was back at it.  It printed an 
article by a former Director of the Ho Chi Minh Political 
Academy arguing in favor of Marxist orthodoxy, but used the 
Director's call for strengthened debate of the Party Congress' 
draft political report as an opening to run a series of opinion 
pieces pillorying the director's views.  One such commentary, 
written by a founder of a private bank and former Chairman of 
the Vietnam IT Association, entitled "Who Exploits Whom," lauded 
the role of capitalists in building a modern Vietnam.  (Contacts 
in the paper told us that Tuoi Tre's editors reportedly took the 
highly unusual step of signing a private statement indicating 
that they all agreed with the publication of the piece.)  The 
newspaper also published a warm profile of Le Cong Dinh as a 
model Vietnamese professional days after Dinh was privately 
warned by the Party's Internal Security Committee to desist from 
publishing new articles on political pluralism. 
 
¶15. (C) Thanh Nien has been more careful in the type and tone of 
articles that it publishes.  Nonetheless, it leans towards 
reform.  Thanh Nien's more cautious approach is a direct 
reflection of the discretion of its Chief Editor Nguyen Cong 
Khe, who has run the paper for the past 21 years.  The 
fifty-two-year-old Khe is a true political survivor and has 
allies in both the reform and conservative camps.  He is 
reported to have a close relationship with Politburo members 
HCMC Party Secretary Nguyen Minh Triet and Minister of Public 
Security Le Long Anh.  Khe hired the son of Nguyen Van Chi, 
 
Chief of the Central Committee's Internal Politics Protection 
Bureau, who is currently the head of the international news 
section of the paper. 
 
¶16. (C) Comment:  The quantity and style of public discourse in 
Tuoi Tre is unprecedented in HCMC; a few years back, it would 
have been unheard of for a newspaper to publish articles that 
even tacitly raised the idea of political pluralism or had 
provocative titles such as "Who's Exploiting Whom." 
Nonetheless, the Party has deep reservoirs of power and can 
clamp down on Tuoi Tre if it gets too far out of line.  For its 
part, Tuoi Tre has been exceedingly careful and deliberate in 
expanding the debate one red line at a time, even as it pushes 
to open new space for discussion of reform and greater press 
freedom.  Thus, while some tenets of Marxism-Leninism have come 
under fire, the primacy of the Party and Vietnam's "socialist 
orientation" remain taboos.  End Comment. 
WINNICK 
 
 
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