VIETNAM TRIAL: CORRUPTION SCANDAL

Fiona Werge z Londýna: The two men are the latest senior government officials to be implicated in a major corruption scandal. If found guilty, they face up to twelve years in prison. They're accused, along with six other government employees, of embezzlement, abusing power and intentional wrongdoing. The case centres on the director of a company, La Thi Kim Oanh, run by the agriculture ministry. She's accused of using bank loans for bribery and personal expenses. The two former ministers are charged with signing documents helping her to obtain the money. She then defaulted on nearly five million dollars worth of loans. The opening of the trial was broadcast live on national TV, the second time this year that a corruption case against senior officials has been televised. The ruling Communist party has made fighting corruption one of its top priorities in an effort to win the confidence of foreign investors. Many say red tape and officials who take bribes are major obstacles to doing business in Vietnam. VOCABULARYcorruption - korupce embezzlement - zpronevěra bribery - podplácení to default - nesplatit, nesplácet půjčky red tape - rozbujelá byrokracie