A recent proposal by the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade to ban the sale of beer on the sidewalk, among several other locations, has triggered mixed reactions from government officials, beer drinkers and sellers, and other members of the public.
Obviously, the idea is not welcomed by beer lovers.
Nguyen Phu Trung, who drinks a couple of beers at a sidewalk table after playing football (soccer) in the afternoon, said it is a matter of convenience.
“I just stop by any of the beer cafés next to the football stadium for quick refreshment,” the white-collar worker based in Ho Chi Minh City told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Thursday.
“I only have time to grab a few glasses before going home, while going to a restaurant or eatery means you have to drink more, and lose more time.”
Trung said if sidewalk beer stalls no longer existed, he would probably resort to going to legal locations to have a drink.
“But sport players like us do not like crowded and stuffy spaces like restaurants,” he added.
Le Thu Huong, a beer vendor, is concerned that she will have nowhere to relocate to if she is banned from selling on the street.
“I could not afford larger premises than the sidewalk,” Huong said from her spot near a football field in Tan Binh District.
Huong admitted that she had previously been asked by market management officers to stop occupying the sidewalk, but this has only happened a few times, and she has continued her business.
“I’m wondering if the profits are enough to cover a leasing fee if I have to relocate to larger premises,” she said.
Thach Son, who runs a small beerhouse on Bui Vien Street, dubbed the “backpacker area,” in District 1, said vendors would have no choice but to follow the rule banning them from occupying the sidewalk.
Son has placed several tables on the sidewalk in front of his business “to be able to serve more customers.”
“I would have problems if the ban was enacted, as the space inside is very narrow,” he said.
The general director of a beer production company, meanwhile, criticized the ban as “ridiculous” and impossible to enforce.
“So people drinking beer on the sidewalk will be in violation of the law. But which law is it? What type of units will check café by café to determine if they are selling beer?” the executive said on condition of anonymity.
“This is ridiculous. If regulatory agencies think that banning beer sales on the street can help mitigate the negative effects of alcohol abuse, this is a solution with little feasibility, if not impossible,” he concluded.
Strong support
The Ministry of Industry and Trade’s proposition also seeks to ban beer sales via the Internet or through vending machines, as well as at locations such as schools, hospitals, and public offices.
Beer would also be prohibited from being sold to people under 18 years old, people showing signs of being under the influence of alcohol, pregnant and breastfeeding women, and people with diseases caused by alcoholic abuse.
“We did not simply make up these regulations,” a chief official from the ministry’s Light Industry Department said.
“They were created based on regulations of the government and the Ministry of Health on minimizing harmful effects of alcohol abuse.”
The official, who preferred to remain anonymous, said the proposal is not a final decision, as the ministry is soliciting feedback.
Feedback and comments from members of the public and relevant ministries, industries, and localities will be acknowledged, and amendments can be added to the draft decree, he said.
“The ministry is expected to finalize the draft and submit it to the government later this year,” he added.
Le Thanh Tuan, chairman of Pham Ngu Lao Ward, home to the “backpacker area,” believes that the ban on sidewalk beer cafés will not affect tourism.
“Foreign tourists prefer sidewalk cafés, but they will be willing to listen if asked to drink beer inside beerhouses,” Tuan said.
Ho Thi Ha, who lives near a sidewalk beer café in Go Vap District, said she is “counting down the days to the ban taking effect.”
As the sidewalks are meant for public use, it is unfair if beer vendors occupy them for their business, Ha said.
“It is unacceptable that people cannot walk on the sidewalk just because of the beer stalls,” she added.
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