Questioned by police but not charged

Walking their dog after dinner has always been a favorite daily activity of Tho Pham and his wife, a Vietnamese couple who live with their 39-year-old son in Garden Grove City, California. But not in the last few months as the wave of anti-Asian violence and harassment has terrified him. "I do not dare go out without my children because I am afraid someone will knock me to the ground or stab me to death just because I am Asian," he laments, adding that the hate crimes have disrupted his daily life. Many other Vietnamese share his apprehension, especially older people. Wally Ng, a member of the Guardian Angels, patrols with other members in Chinatown in New York City, New York, U.S., May 16, 2020. Photo by Reuters. Violence and hatred directed at Asian Americans, which also includes mugging, have surged across California since the beginning of the Covis-19 pandemic as Asians are blamed for its origin in Wuhan, China. Videos of an Asian woman being punched in the face on a subway platform and a Thai man being pushed to the ground in San Francisco have sparked fears, and the Vietnamese community is traumatized. Hoai Nguyen, a housewife in San Jose, home to the largest Vietnamese population in America, says: "It is annoying and scary when you go out and have to keep looking behind your back to see if you are being followed by someone suspicious." She has been called "coronavirus" several times while walking and shopping, but she had not expected the discrimination and hatred to turn violent and even murderous. Last month the Vietnamese community in San Jose was shocked after a 64-year-old woman was robbed in front of Dai Thanh Supermarket during the Lunar New Year holidays. Nguyen says with a sigh: "I cannot do that (go out) on my own because they may kill me. How weak I am and how cold-hearted those people are." Since older people are targeted, no one is comfortable letting their parents or grandparents go out alone though the first …

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All of the fresh patients in Hai Duong are F1 contacts who previously came into close contact with confirmed cases and they had already been placed into quarantine at concentrated isolation facilities. The detection of the latest patients lifts the national infection tally to 2,507, including 1,584 domestically-transmitted cases, along with 923 imported cases. With regard to the COVID-19 vaccination programme, the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases along, the Hospital for Tropical Diseases of Ho Chi Minh City and Hai Duong province, the nation's current biggest epicenter are set to start inoculation on March 8. Moving forward, vaccination plans will be based on the principle of ensuring maximum safety for citizens. "It can be affirmed that 100% of vaccinated people who contract the disease will be milder and not lead to death. This is a very important factor in deploying a large-scale vaccination plan. People need to get a better understanding of the benefits of vaccines as well as unwanted reactions in order to have confidence in vaccination as the best way to protect themselves from the virus," Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long said. According to the official, priority will be given to those on the front line in the fight against COVID-19, including health workers, army personnel, police forces, along with customs and immigration officers. In addition, those working in sectors which offer essential services such as aviation, transport, tourism, and education will also be prioritised. This is along with people suffering from chronic illnesses, those above 65 years old, people living in pandemic-hit areas, the poor, and beneficiaries of social welfare. Due to the complicated nature of developments relating to the pandemic, the People's Committee of Kinh Mon town in the northern province of Hai Duong has recently issued a decision to continue implementing social distancing measures in line with Government Directive No16 for 10 communes and wards in …

[Read more...] about Local infection count rises to 1,584 after six further cases found in Hai Duong

The Hanoitimes - The number of tourists to Hanoi dropped 91.2% from April 30 to May 2 compared to the same period of 2019. During this year’s holiday season, Hanoi welcomed just 1,123 international tourists, a decrease of 97.7% compared to the same period of last year, data of the municipal Department of Tourism showed. Most of them have been stranded in the city due to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the Immigration Management Division of the Hanoi Municipal Police Department. They came from 50 countries and territories in Asia, Europe, the Americas and Oceania. International tourists in Temple of Literature before the order of closure for tourist destinations. Photo: Lai Tan From April 30 to May 2, tourist arrivals to Hanoi plunged 91.2% over the same period in 2019 to 21,123. Total revenue from tourism reached VND68 billion (US$2.9 million) during the three days, down 84.4% inter-annually. From April 30 to May 3, the prices of hospitality services remained unchanged. The average occupancy of three- to five-star hotels reached about 13.4%. It's noteworthy that hospitality businesses around Hanoi, especially those in Son Tay and Ba Vi, saw demand for their services increase on the national holidays of April 30 and May 1, according to the Hanoi Tourism Department. As the social distancing order was loosened, many local residents wished to spend their leisure time at facilities near Hanoi. Some resorts in the city's outskirt reached occupancy rate of 65%, in the case of Asean Resort, or 60% of Tan Da and 30% of Khoang Xanh, the vacation spots nearby. Despite reopening before the holiday season of April 30 and May 1, shopping malls and catering facilities witnessed experienced a 90% drop in visitors from the same period of 2019. The number of tourists coming to the places of interest including the Hanoi Old Quarter Cultural Exchange Center, Hanoi Ancient House at 87 Ma May street, Hanoi Book Street, Bao Son Paradise Park, Ba …

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