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http://news.scotsman.com/latestnews/Vietnam-fury-at-plan-to.4638334.jp
VIETNAM is considering banning small-chested motorcyclists from its roads – a proposal that has provoked widespread disbelief in a nation of slightly-built people.
The ministry of health has recommended that people whose chests measure less than 28in should be prohibited from riding motorcycles – as would those who are too short or too thin.
Motorbikes account for more than 90 per cent of the vehicles on Vietnam's chaotic roads, which are among the world's most dangerous.
The proposal is part of an exhaustive list of new criteria the ministry has come up with to ensure that Vietnam's drivers are in good health.
As news of the plan hit the media this week, Vietnamese expressed incredulity.
"It's ridiculous," said Tran Thi Phuong, 38, a Hanoi insurance agent. "It's absurd."
"The new proposals are very funny, but many Vietnamese people could become the victim of this joke," said Le Quang Minh, 31, a Hanoi stockbroker. "Many Vietnamese women have small chests. I have many friends who won't meet these criteria."
It was unclear how the ministry established its size guidelines or why it believes that small people make bad drivers. An official declined to comment.
The average Vietnamese man is 5ft 4in and weighs 121lb. The average Vietnamese woman is 5ft 1in tall and weighs 103lb.
Statistics on average chest size are unavailable.
The draft, which must be approved by the central government to become law, would also prohibit people from riding motorcycles if they suffer from anarray of health conditions such as enlarged livers or sinusitis. The rules would cover the vast majority of Vietnam's 20 million motorcycles. It would not apply to drivers of cars or lorries. Nearly 13,000 road deaths were recorded last year, and Vietnam has one of the world's highest rates per 100,000, according to the World Health Organisation. The majority of accidents involve motorbikes, which many workers in the nation of 85 million need to do their jobs.
When Nguyen Van Tai, a motorbike taxi driver, heard about the proposal, he immediately had his chest measured. Much to his relief, Mr Tai beat the chest limit by 3in.
"A lot of people in my home village are small," said Mr Tai, 46. "Many in my generation were poor and suffered from malnutrition. And now the ministry of health wants to stop us from driving to work."
Vietnamese bloggers have been poking fun at the plan, envisioning traffic police with tape measures eagerly pulling over female drivers to measure their chests.
"From now on, padded bras will be best-sellers," said Bo Cu Hung, a popular blogger in Ho Chi Minh City.
Newspapers were inundated with letters yesterday from concerned readers worried that they wouldn't measure up.
"I'm not heavy enough, what am I going to do?" Le Thu Huong asked in a letter to Tuoi Tre newspaper. "And what about people whose chests are small? Most of them are too poor to afford breast implants!"
http://news.scotsman.com/latestnews/Vietnam-fury-at-plan-to.4638334.jp
VIETNAM is considering banning small-chested motorcyclists from its roads – a proposal that has provoked widespread disbelief in a nation of slightly-built people.
The ministry of health has recommended that people whose chests measure less than 28in should be prohibited from riding motorcycles – as would those who are too short or too thin.
Motorbikes account for more than 90 per cent of the vehicles on Vietnam's chaotic roads, which are among the world's most dangerous.
The proposal is part of an exhaustive list of new criteria the ministry has come up with to ensure that Vietnam's drivers are in good health.
As news of the plan hit the media this week, Vietnamese expressed incredulity.
"It's ridiculous," said Tran Thi Phuong, 38, a Hanoi insurance agent. "It's absurd."
"The new proposals are very funny, but many Vietnamese people could become the victim of this joke," said Le Quang Minh, 31, a Hanoi stockbroker. "Many Vietnamese women have small chests. I have many friends who won't meet these criteria."
It was unclear how the ministry established its size guidelines or why it believes that small people make bad drivers. An official declined to comment.
The average Vietnamese man is 5ft 4in and weighs 121lb. The average Vietnamese woman is 5ft 1in tall and weighs 103lb.
Statistics on average chest size are unavailable.
The draft, which must be approved by the central government to become law, would also prohibit people from riding motorcycles if they suffer from anarray of health conditions such as enlarged livers or sinusitis. The rules would cover the vast majority of Vietnam's 20 million motorcycles. It would not apply to drivers of cars or lorries. Nearly 13,000 road deaths were recorded last year, and Vietnam has one of the world's highest rates per 100,000, according to the World Health Organisation. The majority of accidents involve motorbikes, which many workers in the nation of 85 million need to do their jobs.
When Nguyen Van Tai, a motorbike taxi driver, heard about the proposal, he immediately had his chest measured. Much to his relief, Mr Tai beat the chest limit by 3in.
"A lot of people in my home village are small," said Mr Tai, 46. "Many in my generation were poor and suffered from malnutrition. And now the ministry of health wants to stop us from driving to work."
Vietnamese bloggers have been poking fun at the plan, envisioning traffic police with tape measures eagerly pulling over female drivers to measure their chests.
"From now on, padded bras will be best-sellers," said Bo Cu Hung, a popular blogger in Ho Chi Minh City.
Newspapers were inundated with letters yesterday from concerned readers worried that they wouldn't measure up.
"I'm not heavy enough, what am I going to do?" Le Thu Huong asked in a letter to Tuoi Tre newspaper. "And what about people whose chests are small? Most of them are too poor to afford breast implants!"
