Foreigners again scrawl graffiti on walls along downtown Ho Chi Minh City street?

Residents said groups of young people, including both Vietnamese and foreigners, are often seen coming to the area at night to spray-paint walls.

As observed by a Tuoi Tre (Youth) online newspaper reporter on Thursday, the walls of Hoang Long Restaurant in Saigon Ward had been covered in graffiti, lettering and symbols in a variety of colors.

The drawings appeared to have been made spontaneously, without any clear composition or decorative purpose, defacing the walls.

The situation is not confined to a single location.

Several vacant properties along Le Loi Street have become targets for vandals seeking to express themselves through uncontrolled graffiti.

Nguyen Thi Duc, 83, a resident of Saigon Ward, said a wall in the area had recently been repainted, only to be defaced again soon afterward.

“The wall was just repainted to make it look better, but then people came and scribbled all over it again,” Duc said.

“There is no security guard here, so it is impossible to catch them.

“Some people have seen foreigners doing it but are afraid to speak up.

Bui Duc Loi, 39, who lives nearby, said local residents regularly organize campaigns to repaint and clean walls that have been defaced.

“Because vandals usually do it at night, it is very difficult to protect the area,” he said.

“Residents frequently organise campaigns to remove illegal advertisements and clean up graffiti, but after the work is finished, the situation does not change much.

“The walls are restored and then painted over again.”

He said graffiti not only damages the streetscape but also affects the city’s image.

“This is wrong and makes the city look bad. I hope those who do this will be more aware of their actions,” Loi said.

“If they consider graffiti an art form, they should find an appropriate place to practice it rather than freely expressing themselves everywhere.”

The repeated appearance of graffiti at different locations has frustrated local residents.

Beyond damaging the appearance of buildings, such spontaneous spray-painted images undermine the clean and civilized character of the street.

This is particularly concerning in areas frequented by tourists and surrounded by businesses, where walls covered in graffiti can shape visitors’ perceptions of the city’s urban environment.

One resident in Saigon Ward said removing graffiti was not a simple task.

Walls typically have to be repainted or treated with chemicals and specialized equipment to remove the paint.

Although the cost of each cleanup may not be particularly high, the cycle of ‘cleaning it up only for it to be painted again’ consumes considerable time and effort.

The latest graffiti comes less than a year after a project to renovate and beautify Le Loi Street was completed on December 23, 2025.

Le Loi Street is home to several of the city’s iconic landmarks, including the Saigon Opera House and Ben Thanh Market, as well as major shopping centers.

Graffiti is not limited to Le Loi Street and nearby roads.

Similar incidents have been reported in other parts of Ho Chi Minh City.

Recently, a bus shelter was also defaced shortly after being put into service.

Earlier in May 2024, a video shot by a ride-hailing driver showed a group of three foreigners spraying paint and scrawling graffiti on walls and coiling doors along the downtown street.