Agree. But the alternative would be a diem-type junta that also killed people in large numbers but didn't care for the 90% of the population that were peasants. You'd probably get something closer to a central african state where multinationals exploit and the political class gets rich at the expense of the majority
The current government doesn't care about the working class either. They're too busy siphoning cash off into their offshore nest eggs. A political elite class getting rich at the expense of the majority describes modern Vietnam exactly.
That's why minimum wage got bumped 13-15% in 2015? Geez. Thailand and Malaysia have barely progressed since 2000. Vietnam's growth has been off the charts.
Inflation has also been out of control. Ask any random working class Vietnamese and they'll tell you they're having more trouble making ends meet now than several years ago. And most people are predicting a huge banking crisis thanks to bad loans made to cronies of the party leaders. I wouldn't trust economic figures coming out of Vietnam any more than I would from China.
Centralized economies encourage corruption and stifle growth. Vietnam is no exception.
I've been in and out of Vietnam since the 90s. It takes a long long time to bring up the working class. You could substitute your statement for Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand; all of which have had democracies for a long time. All corrupt without exception.
And Vietnam doesn't have a centralized economy any more. And neither does China. Your rants sound like the standard rants of everyone who wants to be willfully ignorant of development in these countries. "They aren't progressing because their stats are false. Why? Because I said so!". Nevermind the rise in real wages and standards of living.
