It is not just the government that is suspicious of western writers - many of the people are too

Later this month the country will host US President Bill Clinton.

But the spirit of Doi Moi has yet to reach the media.

I guess I should have realised it would not be easy. After all, Vietnam is still a one-party state. There is a great deal of suspicion of journalists - especially Western ones.

Communist rules

That's not to say that the country isn't changing. It is. Twenty years ago Vietnam was a loyal Soviet satellite. Decades of war and a centrally planned economy ensured that few goods were on sale. The streets of Hanoi were famous for being so quiet - no cars, just a few bikes and nothing going on.

Vietnam has changed and continues to change

But now the capital is buzzing with activity. The economy is opening up - virtually every house has been transformed into a business of some sort. Televisions, videos and everything else you can think of are for sale.

And foreign competition is here. Traditional Vietnamese snake wine, for example - with a preserved snake in every bottle - now has to compete with shelves of vintage burgundy.

I have never before come across protesters who do not want to say what they are protesting about

But in the world of the press, Vietnam is taking few chances. It is true that local newspapers are now permitted to publish some mild criticisms of party policy. But for the most part the old communist rules are still in place.

Foreign journalists need to get government permission if they want to leave Hanoi. In fact, they are meant to get permission before talking to anyone at all. It makes work difficult, if not impossible. But those are the rules and there are plenty of zealous bureaucrats to enforce them.

But it is not just the government that is suspicious of western writers - many of the people are too. Let me give you an example.

Protest or not?

A few days ago I heard that something was happening outside the People's Committee building in Hanoi. I went down to take a look and sure enough around 30 men and women were holding a sit-in on the pavement outside the building.

Foreign businesses are developing in Vietnam

A senior official - I think the deputy chairmen of the Hanoi People's Committee - was on the scene. I tried to talk to him. As I expected, he walked off ignoring my questions.

I imagine that in a similar situation, most officials in most capitals of the world would have done exactly the same thing. But what did take me by surprise was the attitude of the demonstrators.

When I asked them what they were protesting about one of the men said: "Protesting? Us? What do you mean?"

"Well I mean what are you doing sitting on the pavement by the People's Committee building with police all around. What are you asking for?"

"Asking for?" came the reply, "Nothing. We're tourists."

I have never before come across protesters who do not want to say what they are protesting about. I had always understood that getting a complaint or demand aired was the whole point of holding a demonstration.

I thought there must be a linguistic misunderstanding. I tried again. "What do you want?"

Mystery

As my confusion grew, the protesters started enjoying themselves more and more. Others in the group caught on.

"Yes, it's a lovely spot this," one man said, smiling.

A woman next to him nodded. "Good place for a quiet lunch - I often come here."

"That's right" another said. "Excellent place for a smoke, you know. Have you got any cigarettes?"

"Now hold on." I insisted. "You are on the pavement. You are sitting down. There are police all around.

"You are protesting. Aren't you?"

"No," they laughed. "What on earth do you mean?"

At which point one of those policemen came up and politely made it clear I should make myself scarce.

It was self-censorship like I had never seen it before. The police were sufficiently far away that the protesters could have told me what they were doing without being heard - they decided not to take the risk. They reckoned holding a protest on the streets of Hanoi was one thing - talking to a foreign journalist quite another.

Now there is, of course, a bureaucratic procedure for such cases - and I decided to follow it. I wrote a formal letter to a department of the Foreign Ministry asking why so many people had been sitting outside the people's committee building. Three days later I got a reply.

The people had been villagers who wanted to talk to senior city officials about a land dispute. The deputy leader of the People's Committee received them, the statement said, after which the villagers went back home.

And that was that. The fact that the villagers felt unable to talk to me is a sign of just how tight things have been in Vietnam. It is no longer illegal to talk to foreigners but it used to be and many people remain cautious.

But the incident also demonstrated something else. However lame a protest it was, the fact is that 30 people did manage to raise their land dispute with senior city officials. They were not beaten or violently dispersed. They came, they sat, they stated their case and they left.

Not long ago that would have been inconceivable. So even if the press in Vietnam is still very tightly controlled, there is no doubt that some things are changing.