August 27, 1997 Thai Binh, Vietnam: Berlin Wall of Asia
REUTERS NEWS By Adrian Edwards

HANOI, Aug 27 (Reuter) - Residents and officials in an area of northern Vietnam stricken by recent unrest said this week the situation there remained highly charged, but Hanoi appeared to be adopting a softly-softly approach to restoring calm.

They reported the recent deployment of 1,200 members of a special police force around hot-spots in coastal Thai Binh province, and said senior officials, including politburo member Pham The Duyet, had visited within the past week to assess the situation.

Reliable details remain hard to come by, but an official, who declined to be identified, told Reuters that residents in Quynh Phu district -- an area of some of the worst disturbances -- had erected loudspeakers and were appealing for support from neighbouring communes.

He said some villagers had sought to take advantage of the situation by declaring provisional local control, but added that in most cases such efforts had been short-lived.

``Some bad elements and people who've been expelled from the party are taking advantage of the situation to cause disorder,'' he said. ``The authorities are scared.''

The troubles in Thai Binh -- which is about 80 km (50 miles) southeast of Hanoi -- began in May when thousands of villagers converged on the provincial capital, angered by alleged official corruption and an increase in local fees.

The situation turned violent in late May and June after the authorities allegedly refused to address the concerns.What followed was some of the worst-known unrest in Vietnam in years in an area traditionally considered the cradle of the communist revolution.
In Quynh Phu, the homes of several officials were razed to the ground and reports from some areas spoke of running battles in which police and others were beaten.

Troubles have been reported in most areas of the province and many villages remain off-limits to police and officials.

Residents said this week that daily protests by groups of women, elderly people and children were continuing outside the People's Committee headquarters in the provincial capital.
But they said the police had not moved to intervene and suggested they were under direct orders from Hanoi not to take action that might spark further trouble.

Hanoi has made little official comment on the troubles so far, but diplomats say the government is deeply concerned by the problems, which have focused new attention on rural issues such as falling commodity prices and widespread under-employment.

The foreign ministry said earlier this month that local officials in Thai Binh were being punished for ``untransparent financial activities,'' and said efforts were being taken to stabilise the situation.
Residents and the official confirmed this picture. They said the authorities were seeking to calm matters by identifying ``official culprits'' and by isolating alleged troublemakers before arresting them.

However, they added that the situation remained tense as farmers had finished harvesting rice and were into the ``between-crop'' period when many rural workers are redundant.

Foreign journalists have not been able to visit the area.