Local model Thai Ha, who has just been fined VND5 million for exposing most of her breasts in a skimpy outfit in an advertising event, continues to draw public criticism when she appears at other public events in revealing clothes.

Responding to the worry that light penalties cannot effectively deter artists from showing off their skin but only give them more publicity, Vo Trong Nam, vice director of Ho Chi Minh City’s Department of Culture, Sport and Tourism had a talk with Tuoi Tre Newspaper.

When model Thai Ha bared her breasts and was slapped with a penalty, what regulation is the penalty based on?

The incident happened when Thai Ha attended a promotional event for a men’s deodorant product last month. Our decision to fine her and the penalty amount were based on the Decree No. 75/2010/ND-CP on sanctioning cultural activity violations.

How did the department know about the incident?

In the case of Thai Ha, we got the information from online news websites and later worked with the inspection division to handle it.

So if you hadn’t read about the incident on the Internet, Thai Ha’s and similar cases would be overlooked?

That’s normally the case. HCMC is a crowded and complicated environment. There are so many artists and show biz companies operating here tha ... Xem thêm

Local pop singer Cao Thai has recently received a VND4.5million (US$225) fine, becoming the first performer to be fined for lip-syncing a performance, in accordance with the government’s Decree No.75 on sanctioning art performance violators.
At the show in Ho Chi Minh City titled "Qua Tang Tinh Yeu” (The Gift of Love), which was broadcast live on VTV9 on June 23, the singer gave an emotional performance of the song "Anh Sai Roi” (I Was Wrong) with tears on his face. However, there was a public outcry after people found out that Son was lip-syncing during that performance.

The show’s organizers and the performers were later invited to the city Department of Culture, Sport and Tourism to explain the incident. Vo Trong Nam, head of the department, said the singer admitted that his performance was not real singing at the meeting.

"Actually, the lip-syncing was due to a technical problem that went beyond my control. Still, I violated the law and it’s obvious that I have to be fined. This is a precious lesson for me. I’ve never meant to lip-sync on stage and definitely will not let this thing happen again,” Son said.

According to Nam, if the singer repeats the act, he will be sanctioned up to VND6 million and be banned from performing.

Nhac Xanh (Green Music), the show’s organizer, als ... Xem thêm