USA TODAY International Edition
Vietnam at crossroads in choosing identity
One of the HO CHI MINH CITY first stories I ever worked on in Vietnam, almost nine years ago, was a look at how the country’s higher education system was letting down its students, favoring hidebound teaching methods and outdated curricula that left graduates unprepared to enter the workforce.
A visiting scholar I interviewed posed a question that still pops into my head from time to time: What kind of country is Vietnam going to be? Thailand? Or Taiwan?
The phrasing was shorthand for the challenge facing many developing countries. Thailand, though a great vacation destination, is a country whose path to prosperity has been blocked by poor governance, while Taiwan made the leap from exportdriven growth to an open and highly advanced economy.
Covering President Obama’s visit here over the past week brought the question once again to the fore. The spotlight focused by Obama’s visit helped me see with fresh eyes how much Vietnam has grown. Physically, its cities have tipped from low- lying and sleepy, if chaotic, to modern urban centers with real skylines and construction cranes as far as the eye can see.
Talking to Vietnamese high school and college students this week, I was struck by how much worldlier they seem than their counterparts five or 10 years older. Digitally savvy and with startlingly good English, they casually discussed Obama minutiae, one mentioning how cool his mic drop moment at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner a few weeks ago was.
At the same time, Obama’s visit has been a potent reminder of things that haven’t changed.
Vietnam’s human rights record has been on inglorious display this week. There were reports Tuesday from the White House and Human Rights Watch that several members of civil society groups were detained on their way to meet with Obama in Hanoi. Human Rights Watch estimates there are more than 100 political dissidents held in Vietnam, and Amnesty International condemned the recent arrest of six activists protesting the government’s indifferent response to a major ecological crisis that killed tons of fish along Vietnam’s central coast.
Somewhere between incredible growth and regressive policies, Vietnam is reaching the next inflection point in its growth.
Economically, Vietnam has made major strides but remains top- heavy, with a bloated and inefficient state apparatus dominating many sectors.
Culturally, I wonder what kind of voices Vietnam’s thinkers, artists, writers, musicians and filmmakers will have. The creative spirit is easy to find, but the cultural atmosphere remains sorely underdeveloped, stifled by censorship and restrictive licensing.
Somewhere between incredible growth and regressive policies, Vietnam is reaching the next inflection point in its growth, one where choices and responsibilities shift and in some ways get more difficult. How do you transition from a country that makes sneakers and assembles smartphones into a place that innovates? How do you draw on all the talent and potential of an eager, young and dynamic population?
The World Bank — in conjunction with Vietnam’s Ministry of Planning and Investment — laid out a road map to 2035 that highlighted the need for private- sector- led growth, greater social inclusion and building modern government institutions. Vietnam’s own Constitution lays out the framework for a more open and equitable society, providing for freedom of speech, freedom of the press, the right to assemble and the right to demonstrate.
Putting those steps into practice will require openness, transparency and inclusiveness from Vietnam’s leadership that we’ve rarely seen.
This week, I caught up with an old friend in Hanoi over lunch, and the conversation turned to her son, who’s studying in the USA. Her rundown of his accomplishments was jawdropping. A brilliant engineering student, he also was a talented artist, linguist, musician, leader of a student group, entrepreneur … the list went on and on. I halfjokingly said he should come back to run the country someday.
“I don’t know if he will come back,” she replied.
Somehow the question so many years ago seemed airier, more theoretical. As Vietnam continues to grow, it becomes more urgent: What kind of country is Vietnam going to be?