Already delayed until June (as described here), the impending new rules mean one less obstruction on the busy streets, but a possible end to employment for many. As the article says,
The ban will affect some 60,000 people in the city whose livelihoods depend on these modified vehicles, among which is the famous cyclo.
A large number of city dwellers will also suffer since these vehicles perform many essential services like collecting garbage, selling food and vegetables, and transporting goods.
Another aspect to be concerned about is the practical one. These modified vehicles are the only ones able to squeeze through Saigon's maze of alleyways to deliver items, collect trash and much more. Commentators are shocked that the government is considering this without any viable alternative forthcoming. Of course other forces could be at work, as suggested by this editorial.
Up in the north there's a storm over the street vendors.
This story was reported all over the world in newspapers and online news sites, with a headline something like : Hanoi to ban street vendors. See this story here from Thanh Nien called Sidewalk Shuffle.
The idea is to 'reclaim' the streets. The article says :
'The impending ban of Hanoi vendors from street side space raises public frustration over policies targeting low-income laborers.'
The city has already backed down once, the ban now coming into force on Feb 20th, significantly, after TET holiday (see the article 'Hanoi's street vendors given temporary reprieve'
In an interview with Thanh Nien, Nguyen The Thao, chairman of the Hanoi People Committee, said street vendors could be permitted in some alleys and lanes.
“City officials believe sidewalks must be returned to pedestrians,” Thao said.
Ahh the sidewalks. Saigon actually has some great sidewalks. Wide and well paved.
Of course the problem is, as pedestrians, most of the time they are difficult to navigate. That and the heat just puts me off walking anywhere in the city. Here's some typical sidewalks from the city center.
And here's some opinion on the issue from Viet Nam news, do street sellers get up your nose? Streets with street traders are increasingly becoming targeted by police. This article by Clare Walters in Thanh Nien (my favorite news source by the way) describes what is happening : Reclaiming the streets takes its toll on locals.
Slowly but surely, familiar sights are disappearing. This street used to be packed full of market stalls :
I'm not claiming the stalls have been permanently removed, but restrictions are tightening. The question is this: reclaiming the streets, the roads, the sidewalks, is it a necessary part of this country's development? I won't allow sentiment to get the better of me, and I am sure this is inevitable change which will lead to more organized, less chaotic cities (read KL, Singapore...). On the other hand, I'm sure that as usual the restrictions will be hard to police properly and that the total disappearance of cluttered sidewalks, street vendors and spluttering three wheeled delivery vehicles is still a long off. Watch this space.
Slowly but surely, familiar sights are disappearing. This street used to be packed full of market stalls :
I'm not claiming the stalls have been permanently removed, but restrictions are tightening. The question is this: reclaiming the streets, the roads, the sidewalks, is it a necessary part of this country's development? I won't allow sentiment to get the better of me, and I am sure this is inevitable change which will lead to more organized, less chaotic cities (read KL, Singapore...). On the other hand, I'm sure that as usual the restrictions will be hard to police properly and that the total disappearance of cluttered sidewalks, street vendors and spluttering three wheeled delivery vehicles is still a long off. Watch this space.
22 comments:
if they intend to beautify the city, then they should put out more waste baskets in the public places or plant more trees in the city... instead of targetting on others' bread baskets, overtime, economic development will require people to adapt..., even for India, in term of economic development is years ahead of VN, they still have rickshaw carts on the streets... "if it ain't broke, dont fix it"
I lived in Jakarta in the early eighties. Same issues. The government decided to ban the betjaks and other three wheeled contraptions. Protests. The compromise included banning them from the major roads first. I don't know what happened after that.
I am one of the 'anonymous' posters on your site. I just scrolled thought most of it...and I'm loving it. Please keep it up! Many thanks.
Jon - the sidewalks you show as "congested" are far too free of obstacles! I wouldn't mind a partial ban on sidewalk motorbike parking to make the city more pedestrian-friendly.
Indeed Chris, I wasn't satisfied with them either....but it's all I had to work with!
Ban them and ban them all.
Selling crap on the streets isn't "culture". Its been done that way because this country was poor. Now its time to change for the better.
Also, ban the dirty ass xe om drivers in district 1. NO! I don't want BOOM BOOM Karaoke! NO! I don't want girls!
I found your blog a few weeks ago and absolutely love it! You are one lucky man...living my dream :P
Keep up the excellent work!
Selling crap on the streets isn't "culture". JJ. I just had a peek at your blog. Poor puppy... if there is one lost viet kieu in Vietnam, it must be you. This aside, the three wheelers will go eventually. Let's just hope that the city elders will, at least try to do it in a responsible manner.
Thanks Sarah! Although when I drive to work spluttering in the clouds of poison washing over me, I often wonder about that dream..! But I suppose I am living my own dream, what I really wanted since I first started traveling.
As for JJ - selling 'crap' on the streets? You mean like food? I can't think of anything more cultural in Vietnam or indeed SE Asia than the local market and street vendors hawking food and other items!
I've debated for a while on whether to respond on this topic but I thought I should reply in support of jj. Though I feel sorry for the street vendors because they really need the money to just get by, saying that street vending is a part of Vietnamese culture is like saying selling oranges at stop lights in America is a part of Hispanic culture, or that dog fighting is a part of Black culture. Street vending evolve in Vietnam because of it's previously impoverish state, it has nothing to do with being "Vietnamese". Ao dai, pho, cai luong, etc. are a part of Vietnamese culture, street vending is just something that is common in poor countries.
There are street vendors in every country are there not? Not that I have been, but can't you buy hotdogs and coffee from street vendors in New York? You can on the streets of London.
What it says about the state of a country's economic condition has little to do with whether it is part of the culture. The question is, are many Vietnamese familiar with / and purchase from street vendors. The answer must be overwhelmingly yes. This means it is part of the culture, part of the fabric of society here. Yes people are beginning to go to supermarkets as more get built, but still trading on the street is a familiar way to buy goods.
The analogy 'it's like saying dog fighting is part of black culture'....you are referring to the American Footballer who was caught? This analogy has me confused, it seems to say - just because one black person was caught dog fighting it doesn't mean they all do it...so just because one person buys from a street vendor it doesn't mean all Vietnamese do it...is that what you are trying to say? Sorry if I am missing something here!
I'm with John Hoff on this one...street selling is alive and well in many Capitals of the world. In Toronto's Chinatown -which also happens to be one of the most interesting and most visited areas of the city, for example. I hope the Saigon managers will be able to find some balance and not turn Saigon into something like Singapore which, after the entire population was chased off the streets and into soulless large scale housing projects has about as much charm as a dentist's waiting room.
I'm not sure about London but I believe in NY you need a permit to sell stuff on the streets, but even then I know at least during the Giuliani administration they were trying to crack down hard on them. Here's a link to an old article about it:
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D00E4D81331F93AA15755C0A961958260
It's a ten year old article but you can see that even in NY they are trying to do the same thing. But even these hot dog sellers are generally poor immigrants trying to make a living, so again I like to make the argument that it's has more to do with economics than anything to do with culture. You even said that there's street vendors in every country, so how can you then go an say that it's something innate and part of "Vietnamese" culture. Also, I would like to differentiate between street markets which I'm fine with because people who go there are there to buy stuff and a street vendor who decides to drop all there stuff in the middle of a random street which can really impede traffic especially in areas with heavy pedestrian traffic. Again, I would like to say that I do feel sorry for these people and hope they can figure out a way to solve the issue, but it really irks me when people like to make the excuse that they should be left alone because it's part of Vietnamese culture. And this brings me to the point about why I mention the issue about dog fighting and black culture. When Michael Vick, a famous American football player, got caught being associated with dog fighting, people were saying that he should be shown some leniency because "dog fighting was a part of Black culture" and this issue was debated among the American public a while. In this situation I like how Charles Barkley, a famous former basketball player, said (I'm paraphrasing a lot here since I don't remember the exacts words he used), "I'm tired of people associate negative things as being a part of Black culture. When I grew up I never got involve in dog fighting, etc...". I guess the reason I brought it up is because I hate how people are trying to use the same sort of excuse to protect the street vendors. I would like to end by saying that I have nothing against Jon and I love reading his blog, this is just one issue I disagree with him on.
The link didn't come out very well, I'll cut it up:
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/
fullpage.html?
res=
9D00E4D81331F93AA15755C0A961958260
Just copy and paste it back together if you want to see it =).
Don't hesitate to disagree with me!
EXACTLY. Not only is the policy going to degrade the overall cultural atmosphere and ruin the lives of thousands of struggling vietnamese. It is completely unrealistic!
How on earth are you supposed to enforce it upon cities of over 3 million??
I mean if they want to create more space in their cities then they should end their development of modern high-rise buildings.
Its sad. I think Asia's
"modernization" is gradually phasing into "westernisation".
Asia seems destined to become one huge, overpopulated, polluted metropolis devoid of all culture.
I sure hope that's not the case.
Whoa hang on, eliminating street sellers on certain streets does not lead to "one huge, overpopulated, polluted metropolis devoid of all culture." That's just crazy talk.
I suspect Vietnamese culture will survive just fine.
How can anyone compare the streets of London and NY to Saigon, you can walk on the pavements in London. What are pavements for? Walking on or for vendors? OK so if there was a ban these people will suffer at first but have been through worse (not saying that's an ethical view, just the way things are here), some may go back to there own provence where the law will be less strictly imposed. I once had my job taken away by moving times and had to look for a new trade, it happens everywhere. On a whole I am in favour of banning street side vending and converted (death trap) vehicles except cyclos. The average Saigon resident will benefit from this ban and the ones I talk to are in favour of it too.
Geoff, I didn't compare the sidewalks of London to HCMC, I said both cities have street vendors. We were talking about whether it was part of culture or not.
Secondly, the vendors are in the city because it is the only place they can make any money - if they could make a living in their own town/province, I am sure they would - rather than living away from family.
Whether it is the responsibility of the government to find alternatives for these people who will become unemployed is another matter altogether!
OK Yes I think it is part of culture, but I still think the city needs to move forward, not stand still. I was criticising the state of the sidewalks here rather than your comment. Sidewalks are part of the infrastructure and city infrastructure is clogged up. I know the Vietnamese are not great fans of walking and it's easy to see why. It is hard one I know, even the government don't really know the answer. From what I understand street vending has been illegal for ages, but the law can bit a bit blurry here. If it is illegal then any help from the gov will be unlikely.
Indeed, that is the fatal flaw that probably makes this argument irrelevant anyway...law enforcement is pretty pathetic. I am noticing a lot of slacking on the helmets at the moment, we shall see if it persists after TET.
I absolutely agree that the city needs to move forward, and this will come at a price.
I agree with Geoff that pavements are for walking, not for dodging parked bikes and vendors heckling for crap. However Vietnam is still dirt dirt poor despite the supposedly 10% annual growth, time for it to move on is not there yet. Saying street vendors are a part of the Vietnamese culture is both right and incorrect in my opinion. They are an economic necessity, and will last until Vietnam gets to the level of say, Singapore. So now it is an intergral part of people's life, but it will go away, probably without any regrets from anyone then. It is just supply and demand, dude. By the way, the Vnmese don't want to walk not because of the vendors on the pavement. They don't want to do it because 1. it is too hot. 2. some of them have thyroid problems, hence cannot walk for long. 3.the idea of walking as exercise has not become popular or acceptable yet. 4. walking can mean that you don't have other means of transport - hence walking makes you losing face, a definite no no.
I am not even remotely Singaporean, but it is definitely not souless. In fact it is the expats' heaven in Asia.
Another thing is some people are just so limited. They just read some random stuff from the press and generalise. Who on earth in their right mind can use dog fight as an example of the African American culture? And they have the guts to call them "Blacks"?
Alex
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