Nightlife in Vietnam

Pham Thanh Kien, Vice Chairman of District 1 People's Committee, confirmed the district's administration has steered subordinate governments to crackdown on the illegal services at the striptease restaurants this month.

The official made the decision right after several articles on Vietnamese ladies offering beer bathing and other nude services to foreigners were printed in Tuoi Tre newspaper.

He said besides strengthening inspections, and education, local authorities had other special methods to stop the violations. Restaurants that repeat the offences several times will have their investment licenses revoked.

With huge profits, the businesses resume operations successfully soon after they are suspended or closed down, Kien complained. Despite this complicated situation, we are determined to deal with the violated restaurants this month, he added.

According to the municipal department of Culture, Sport and Tourism, last year, teams have inspected 230 enterprises that offer entertainment services in the city and found 220 cases in violation. Common violations include operating without a license, offering obscene entertainment services and prostitution activities.

Vietnam has unveiled a five-year plan to repress prostitution, which is widespread but considered a social evil by the authorities.

The plan aims to reduce prostitution by an initial 40% by 2015, the government said in a statement on its website.

A budget of 629 billion dong ($30 million) will fund investigations, job training for former sex workers and anti-prostitution propaganda.

Local media have reported estimates of 30,000-40,000 prostitutes nationwide, and the industry has continued to flourish despite previous campaigns against it.

Forbidding dancing at karaoke bars is a new point in the draft regulations on cultural activities in Vietnam.

According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the regulations help: prevent and roll back the use of ecstasy and many social evils in cultural activities and public cultural services.

The ministry said that it is inconvenient for tourists that discotheques and karaoke bars are not allowed to stay open after 12 at night. The new rules permit karaoke bars and discotheques of five-star hotels in Hanoi and HCM City and of four-star hotels in other provinces to open until 2 in the morning. Dancing, erotic acts, prostitution, and drug us are banned at karaoke bars.

The new decree will take effect on September 1, 2009. The draft decree has been sent to local authorities, ministries and posted on the website of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the online version of the Culture Newspaper for comment until April 30, 2009.