Fat Traffic Cops Banned – Vietnam

Pot-bellied, short, or abusive traffic policemen will be barred from working on the streets of Vietnam's capital, as Hanoi police try to clean up their unsavoury image.

Hanoi's traffic police chief told a local newspaper that short officers and those with "too big a belly" will be moved to desk jobs instead of guiding traffic and settling violations.

This Hanoi resident welcomes the new policy.

[Nguyen Dinh Dau, Hanoi Resident]:
"I think not allowing pot-bellied policemen to be out on the street is very appropriate, and is welcomed by everybody."

Inspectors of the city's traffic police are following the worst offenders closely and compiling lists of those to be reassigned.

Crackdowns on overweight policemen have taken place in Thailand, Pakistan, Britain, Indonesia and the Philippines in recent years.

Several of those countries ordered officers to get fit and lose weight before they could return to work.