I'm in Hanoi. Tried to click on the link. Blocked. BBC.com totally blocked here.
I use unblock-us.com for my home network.
Honestly, I don't see how they plan on enforcing this except for having a look see at already well known dissident bloggers.
And, frankly, I think this 9X generation, which seems to be drowning in unprecedented narcissim will flip this whole place on its head when they get a bit older. Vietnam will be an even more interesting place than it is now when that comes to pass.
It's a good point about the 9Xers. I don't know how politically aware or motivated they are, but I do know that, like the rest of us, they want free access to information and communication. Even if it is just to send instagrams of their bun cha.
First, the 9X kids, as I mentioned before, want what the rest of the world already has. They've had a taste and I don't think they are willing to concede.
Second, a lot of Viet Kieu (Vietnamese from abroad) are returning and they have a lot of money. They're going to also want to maintain some semblance of what they've grown accustomed to in Canada, US and Australia. If there is anything I've learned from living here, money can buy almost everything.
The rest of SE Asia is growing at a faster rate. Vietnam is only really beating Indonesia.
I think what most people don't get is that communism here doesn't mean what you probably think it does. Capitalism is huge here and it's only going to get bigger. So, one or the other is going to have to give.
Finally, this decree is kind of toothless. They have neither the money or the knowledge on implementing it. Their idea of blocking facebook was (Facebook is generally available anywhere now) to block some DNS entries.
>classical music
What?
Ofcourse, make sure that the certificate you get is actually from a non-vietnam authority. I think you can enforce this by running chrome.
The decree, known as Decree 72, says blogs and social websites should not be used to share news articles, but only personal information.
The law also requires foreign internet companies to keep their local servers inside Vietnam.
It has been criticised by internet companies and human rights groups, as well as the US government.
Vietnam is a one-party communist state and the authorities maintain a tight grip on the media.
Dozens of activists, including bloggers, have been convicted for anti-state activity in the country this year.
The new law specifies that social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook should only be used "to provide and exchange personal information".
It also prohibits the online publication of material that "opposes" the Vietnamese government or "harms national security".
Last month the US embassy in Hanoi said it was "deeply concerned by the decree's provisions", arguing that "fundamental freedoms apply online just as they do offline".
Reporters Without Borders, a Paris-based group that campaigns for press freedom worldwide, has said the decree will leave Vietnamese people "permanently deprived of the independent and outspoken information that normally circulates in blogs and forums".
The Asia Internet Coalition, an industry group that represents companies including Google and Facebook, said the move would "stifle innovation and discourage businesses from operating in Vietnam".