Don’t damage national image when abroad, HCMC decrees

By Mai Nhat August 26, 2022 | 04:48 am PT

Giang Quoc Co (L) and Giang Quoc Nghiep pose with Vietnamese flags and their Guinness medals in Girona, Spain, on Dec. 23, 2021. Photo courtesy of Hai Vu Nguyen

The HCMC Department of Culture and Sports has issued a regulation requiring artists of affiliated agencies to refrain from actions that can damage the nation’s image when they are abroad.

The department issued on August 22 a regulation on management and approval of civil servants, public employees and artists going abroad.

One of the requirements in the regulation says, among other things, that artists must follow Vietnamese laws and the laws of other countries and territories, preserve national image and report Vietnamese officials in case they overstay their visas.

If the artist needs to stay longer abroad for personal reasons, he or she must provide a written explanation.

If the overstay is for objective reasons, he or she must notify the leader of Vietnam's delegation immediately via official email, phone call, or other means and forms of communication, and submit the application immediately.

Giang Quoc Co and Giang Quoc Nghiep, brothers who are circus artistes, said that they carefully research cultural aspects of the host country before they travel abroad.

"The most important thing for us is to understand the law and how to work with local units to avoid any unseemly incident or action that tarnish the Vietnamese people's image," Quoc Co said.

In July, Spain's Majorca Daily Bulletin said two Vietnamese male citizens accused of "sexual assault" by a British citizen were a 37-year-old and 42-year-old "actor and musician."

The two men had traveled abroad for personal reasons; neither applied for permission from Hanoi authorities. After seizing their passports pending investigation, Spanish authorities have returned them and allowed the Vietnamese citizens to return home.