The National Administration of Tourism have said they have asked police to investigate Chinese tour guides who are believed to be working illegally in Vietnam.

Many Chinese guides are believed to be illegally working in Vietnam

Local tour guides have protested to Danang Department of Tourism on July 1 that they aren’t being employed and claimed that illegal Chinese guides were used. Vietnamese guides are only hired to pretend to meet the current legal requirements that insists that foreign tourists have to be shown around by Vietnamese tour guides.

Another concern is that there are many Chinese tourism companies in Vietnam who are also working illegally and avoiding taxes. Each sitting guide is paid 300 Chinese yuan a day because the companies refused to use Vietnamese dong.

An anonymous tour guide said he resigned after acting on the tours. The anonymous guide claimed "They often lie about the culture and history of Vietnam. One of my colleagues was talking with tourists then a Chinese guide just snatched her mic and said the East Sea belongs to China."

It is reported that a Chinese guide said the architecture of the Imperial Citadel in Hue looked Chinese, because this area previously belonged to China.

Tran Chi Cuong, deputy director of Danang Department of Tourism said he had received video clips, recordings and photos about the illegal Chinese guides. In one of those clips, Cuong claimed the Chinese guide said Vietnam was a part of China 14th centuries ago and even though it had become independent, it was still dependent and had to contribute to China. He continued saying that Danang beach belonged to China.

Nguyen Van Tuan, head of the National Administration of Tourism, said similar cases had been reported in other provinces of Khanh Hoa and Quang Ninh. On June 23, the Government Office sent official documents to ask local authorities deal with illegal Chinese and South Korean tourism companies and guides.

"China is a huge market. When the number of tourists surged in a few locations, we are unable to meet the demand for some services and tour guides. Our management and supervision are still weak," he said. "This is a complicated case so we'll seek help from the police too."

Tuan went on to say that they asked local authorities to tighten management and the police to review and expel illegal guides. Violators will face strict punishment and may have their licences revoked.

Danang Department of Tourism is checking the facts so when they expel anyone, they will send exact names of all illegal guides to Chinese management agencies. On June 30, Danang People's Committee proposed to establish a tourist police force.