President Truong Tan Sang: China Not to Mine Bauxite in Vietnam

August 12, 2011 (Tuoi tre News, repub. by Vietnamica.net) – Meeting with voters in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 4 yesterday, the newly elected president said: “I would like to confirm to you that the politburo has decided not to allow Chinese investors to exploit bauxite in the Central Highlands.” Asked about the fact that there were Chinese workers at the Nhan Co Aluminum Plant in Dak Nong Province and the Tan Rai Aluminum Bauxite Plant in Lam Dong Province, he said some Chinese contractors had won bids to build the two plants and had brought their workers to Vietnam for the construction.
“When the work is complete, the workers will return to China.”
The Vietnam Coal and Mineral Industries Group had been entrusted with mining bauxite, he said.
“It is normal for workers to go from country to another to work. The issue is that those workers must comply with the laws of the country where they are working.”
As for Chinese workers working in some provinces without work permits, he blamed it on local labor management agencies, which he said had failed to exercise control.
Replying to some people who said the National Assembly was not properly supervising construction projects, he said: “The NA will have to renovate itself to improve its supervision activities.”
“To know if [something] has been built in accordance with the design or meets quality standards, we need to have an independent appraisal organization.”