vietnam

=Vietnam=

LUTHER NGUYEN-PHAM

Fact File
Population: 87,375,000 Capital City: Hanoi Largest City: Ho Chi Minh City Language: Vietnamese, French, small amounts of English Prime Minister: Nguyen Tang Dung Borders: Laos, Cambodia and China Currency: Dong President: Nguyen Minh Triet

Location
Vietnam is situated in the lower south-east corner of Asia and has geographic coordinates of 16 00 degrees north, and 106 00 degrees east. It also borders many other countries such as Laos and is one of the countries that has a border with the Gulf of Thailand. In total, Vietnam borders a small sum of three countries, including Laos, China and Cambodia.

The country of Vietnam has a total coastline of 3,444km, bordering seas such as the South Chinese Sea. Its land boundaries with bordering countries as mentioned before are; China, 1281km, Cambodia, 1228km and Laos, 2130km long, which is the longest out of all borders. In conclusion, Vietnam is close enough to Europe to be invaded, bzut not too far away or as a result, trade routes and international ties would be further made difficult.

Climate
The overall climate of Vietnam is extremely diverse, similiar to China. The southern part of Vietnam is a tropical and warm environment, where, in the Vietnam war, Communist guerillas hid. The Northern and central part of Vietnam are monsoonal, (monsoon means raining season) but are fairly humid and dry.

Although Vietnam is located extremely close to China, it does not experience as many natural disasters. For example, China receives at the bare minimum,3 typhoons a year. Vietnam experiences only occasional thyphoons or disasters. Annually, Vietnam receives an average of 120mm to 300mm, making it an extremely dry and tropical country.

History:
The Vietnamese history has been battered and has endured invasion by France, the civil war and constant demand for democracy. Apparently, Vietnamese history has stretched over 40 centuries, according to ancient folk tales. In 111bc, Vietnam was pushed down from the land we call china today into the region it now resides. As a result of this bloody conflict, many Vietnamese die, only wielding pick axes and axes. Until the 10th century, Vietnam was ruled by the Chinese dynasties. Then 38 years later, Vietnam gained independence from china, only to be colonised by the French in the late 1800s. It is a commonly known fact that many Vietnamese people understand and fluently speak French. This was a result of the French colonisation of Vietnam and French was added into the school curriculum. Many influences of France still remain in Vietnam such as the Hanoi Opera House.

Also, a large conflict known as the Vietnam War destroyed the hint of democracy and plunged Vietnam into widespread famine and discomfort. During the time span of 1959 to April 30 1975, the total casualty list was over 5 million civilians and soldiers. This war was fought by South Vietnam and North Vietnam, whilst the North wanted the South to be part of the North. This was heavily criticised as a result of the North becoming Communist and the South, being a democratic country. When the south refused, a dispute broke out between the two and North Vietnam did not hesitate to call on its allies for a war. South Vietnam also called on the U.S.A and the phrase "When America sneezes, Australia catches the cold" was put into action. The war resulted in the takeover of the Republic of South Vietnam, and a staggering unemployment rate, made no better by the famine. Many others died after and the flock of refugees poured over all countries of the world. France was the most preferred country because most could speak French.

Economy:
The Vietnamese economy is now considered to be one of the fastest developing countries around the world and is the second fastest developing country in Asia. This is contradicted by the fact that Vietnam still remains one of the poorest countries of the world. Although, Vietnam has come a long way from the Vietnam War, Which wreaked destruction and the demolition of the economy. from 1990 to 1997, Vietnam annually received 8% extra in the GDP. On the 7 of November, Vietnam became a member of the World Trade Organisation, exporting larger amounts of goods. These goods include crude oil, marine products, rice, coffee, rubber, tea, garments, shoes and imports items such as machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer, steel products, raw cotton, grain, cement and motorcycles. Many motorcycles are imported yearly because cars are too expensive in Vietnam. Their main import partners are China 17.1%, Singapore 12.5%, Taiwan 11.2%, Japan 9.5%, South Korea 9.3%, Thailand 7.1% and Malaysia 4%. Their export partners on the other hand, are US 21.3%, Japan 12.3%, Australia 9.4%, China 5.7% and Germany, 4.5%.

Although, 10 000 Dong is only worth 80 cents, displaying the differences in the Australian and Vietnamese economies. In total, Vietnam has a total of 44.58 million people in the total workforce. 56.8% of these large numbers of people work in the agricultural business; wheras 37% work in the industries. Only a measly 6.2% work in the services. An appalling figure of 19.5 % of all Vietnamese civilians are all below the international poverty line, meaning almost 1/5 of all Vietnamese people are starving or are dying from diseases such as SARS. Etc.

Government Vietnam has a parliamentary system exactly the same to China and North Korea commonly known as a Communist State. Communism was widespread throughout the ages and many major countries such as Russia have all experienced the faults of communism. The basic principle of communism is fairly acceptable but in a real world, the principle of everyone becoming equal is extremely unlikely. The complete full name of Vietnam is the Socialist Republic Of Vietnam. Hanoi, which is the capital, is located with geographical co-ordinates of 21 02 N, 105 51 E.

Vietnam has 59 provinces in total and 5 municipalities. The government of Vietnam is unicameral, meaning there is only one house and the laws can be passed without review. Although, there have been an extreme amount corruption allegations and false citizenship. This happens because of the low level of security and the extreme need for money. The singe house is called the National Assembly, which contains a total of 600 seats, elected for five-year terms by the government. The last monarch ever in Vietnam was king Bao Dai, and his holiday residence may be found in Da Lat, Vietnam

Geographical Features. Vietnam boasts of rare beauty, such as Ha Long bay, which is listed as a UNESCO world heritage site. Also, Vietnam boasts many caves that hide unknown mysteries such as legends painted on the wall. Fan Si Pan is the tallest mountain, measuring 3444m. The mountainous regions of Vietnam are stunning sights. The Mekong River is the best-known river in Vietnam, and was a large battlefield in the Vietnam War. Pollution is at a bare minimum in Vietnam compared to China and the UK.