Vietnam Issues Ban on Satellite TV

[John Corn]

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) Only top Communist Party and government officials and a few others will be allowed to watch international satellite TV in Vietnam under a new government order, state-controlled media said Monday.

Prime Minister Phan Van Khai signed the directive last week as part of a recent retightening of control over the media by the ruling Communist Party.

All TV stations in Vietnam are operated by the government, and all newspapers are published by government or party-controlled organizations. The media are viewed as the mouthpiece of the Communist Party.

http://tv.yahoo.com/news/ap/20020624/102493440000.html

[Adam Richey]

I feel so sorry for those people. Learning about communism in U.S. History this past year in school, I really do realize how much of a stranglehold that communist parties keep on their people. Satellite TV is yet another example of them not allowing luxuries.

[gcutler]

Are any of these countries really communist anymore, or just Totalitarian Dictatorships which kept a Red Star on their flags and they like to use the word Comrade.

[Mike Gavasheli]

Originally posted by gcutler
Are any of these countries really communist anymore, or just Totalitarian Dictatorships ...

You are right. Communism as a utopian dream that nobody believes anymore. Totalitarian Dictatorships is the best way to describe those countries, now or before.

Mike (citizen of former Totalitarian Dictatorship)

[Geronimo]

We take a lot for granted here. rage's comments notwithstanding we live in one of the freest and most open societies on Earth. The type of behavior shown by the Vietnamese leadership is typical of the actions of a totalitarian regime. To us it is strange and foreign but it is all too common in human history.

Gee Vitenam is getting more like Canada every day

[Rage]

How many people there even have a TV let alone money for a sat system?

[Geronimo]

Same comment was made about radios at one time. the point is that they stop ANYTHING from coming in. Sad. But that is life in a totalitarian regime.

[Cyclone]

Its not sad, they fought and died to be communist. Now they get everything that the fought for. Oppression and Poverty.