To Ban Or Not To Ban
By Quynh Thu
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| The family plays a crucial role in tackling online game addiction |
Banning online games at night is controversial. But some strict regulations should be introduced to reduce the adverse effect of video game addiction.
At first sight, if Saigon has something comparable to other metropolises in Southeast Asia, say Singapore or Manila, it will be the availability of the Internet. In fact, although the worldwide web in Vietnam traces its history back to December 1997, the upsurge in popularity of the Internet in Saigon is a phenomenon. And the ubiquity of Internet shops in town bears testimony to this argument.
Yet behind this “achievement” is a social problem tabled again these days by the local press: Online game addiction!
Net Index 2010, a survey by Kantar Media, shows that HCM City remained the leading market among the four cities where the poll took place (see more in “Greater Spending On The Internet,” the Weekly No. 26-10 dated June 26, 2010, p. 18). More than 90% of Saigonese Netizens access the Internet to read online news, according to the poll. However, almost one in every two of them surfs the Net just to play online games.
The local press has exemplified cases in which video game addiction led to disasters. Enter a Net shop in town early in the morning and you’ll see it’s still full of customers. It’s not rare that some of the Net surfers who have stayed overnight at the shop are very young; some are in primary schools.
An old woman who was recently hospitalized tells the following story she overheard at the hospital. One of the patients in the ward has a teen grandchild. When he told her that he would use his own money to buy a gift for her as soon as she recovered and went home, the woman replied, “I don’t expect your gift. If you promise not to use all your time to play video games, I’ll feel well and recover immediately.”
The problem of online game addiction in major cities in Vietnam is so serious that authorities have proposed closing servers providing the games at night. For instance, the Hanoi Department of Information and Communications intended to petition for turning off servers from 11 p.m. until 6 a.m. the next morning. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Information and Communications is working on a draft regulation that would allow video game services only from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
On Monday, Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper quoted Pham Quoc Ban, director of the Hanoi Department of Information and Communications, as saying current regulations rule that Internet shops are allowed to open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. However, inspections show many shops are still operating inside although they have closed their doors. “We can’t go inside without a court decision. So, turning off servers should be a feasible option,” he told Tuoi Tre.
Parents whose children have become online game-addicted may be in favor of the above proposal. However, some others disagree.
Thanh Nien (Young People) newspaper is one of the ardent “naysayers.” Technically, it is impossible, argued an article published in Thanh Nien. Turning off servers is virtually infeasible because the same line is leased from an Internet service provider (ISP) for many purposes other than providing online games.
In an interview with Thanh Nien, Dr. Trinh Hoa Binh, a sociologist with the Vietnam Institute of Sociology, said that every issue is a double-edged sword. “Online games are an Internet entertainment facility. Consequently, it’s impossible to ban them just because of their adverse impacts. What’s more, it’s also impossible to ban young Vietnamese cybercitizens from playing online games via the Internet.”
According to Dr. Binh, families play a crucial role in tackling online game addiction. “Nobody can replace the role of family members.”
Forcibly turning off servers at night may not be wise choice in this regard. However, some regulations to be introduced by the Ministry of Information and Communications to the draft statutes of online game management are worth being pondered over. For instance, the draft stipulates that students in uniform will not be allowed to play online games at Internet shops during 8 a.m. until 5 p.m.; or the total time allowed for a specific game will not exceed 180 or 300 minutes dependant on cases.
Video game addiction is not new and not exclusive in Vietnam. Lessons from other countries should be learned to address the problem in the most effective way.