Political News Headlines 16/4 Deputy PM encourages Vietnam-US environment cooperation The environment protection agencies of Vietnam and the US should strengthen cooperation in the areas of mutual concern, including biological technology development, pollution control, and environmental protection in the river basin. Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc made the proposal while receiving Gina McCarthy, administrator for the US Environmental Protection Agency in Hanoi on April 15. Both sides need to increase joint research to seek ways of overcoming the harmful effects of Agent Orange/dioxin on people’s health and the environment in Vietnam, he said.   Phuc also encouraged the two countries to boost cooperation in climate change adaptation and exchange expertise in environment management. He acknowledged the positive development of Vietnam-US relations, especially after the two countries upgraded their relations to a level of comprehensive partnership in 2013. He also thanked the US government for having funded dioxin remediation, forest development and greenhouse gas emission mitigation projects in Vietnam. Gina McCarthy applauded Vietnam’s environmental protection efforts towards sustainable development. She pledged to work hard to boost bilateral cooperation in environmental protection. Vietnam strengthens ties with Morocco: Party leader Vietnam wants to boost cooperation with African nations, including Morocco, said Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong at a reception for Mohamed Nabil Benabdallah, General Secretary of Morocco’s Party of Progress and Socialism (PPS) in Hanoi on April 15. Trong lauded recent positive developments in Vietnam-Morocco relations and expressed hope both countries will introduce appropriate incentives to encourage the two business circles to expand cooperation in various areas, especially in economics, investment and trade. He congratulated sound achievements Morocco has made in maintaining political stability, boosting economic development and ensuring social security, thus lessening the impact of regional political upheavals on its national development. He said he believes with people’s strong support and efforts by political parties in Morocco, including PPS, the Moroccan government will reap greater success in national construction and defence. For his part, Benabdallah briefed his host on major developments in Morocco and North Africa, as well as operations of the PPS. He hailed Vietnam’s increasing role globally and proposed closer friendship and stronger cooperation between the PPS and the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) and the two countries. He invited the CPV to attend the 9th national congress of the PPS to be held in June 2014. Earlier the same day, the PPS delegation held talks with a CPV delegation led by Hoang Binh Quan, a Party Central Committee member and head of the Party Commission for Foreign Relations. Both sides agreed to increase exchange visits and cooperate closely at regional and international forums. German Parliament Vice President visits Vietnam The German Parliament always values its relations with Vietnam and helps the country develop ties with the European Union, the country’s Vice President Edelgard Bulmahn said, while being received by Vietnamese Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh in Hanoi on April 15. Minh, who also acts as Deputy Prime Minister, said he is delighted at the fine development of the Vietnam-Germany strategic partnership across all fields. Valuing Germany as Vietnam’s leading trade partner in the EU, Minh asked the German Parliament to continue encouraging its businesses to invest more in Vietnam. He praised Germany for choosing Ho Chi Minh City to host the 14th Asia-Pacific Conference of German Business in November, saying that it is an important economic event that will help boost trade and investment ties between Germany and Asian-Pacific countries in general and Vietnam in particular. The two sides also agreed to closely coordinate in organising activities to celebrate the 40th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties in 2015, as well as implementing key projects between the two countries, including the metro line No. 2 in Ho Chi Minh City and the Vietnam-Germany University. The same day, the German guest attended an international conference on the peace keeping mission, jointly held by Germany’s Friedrich Ebert Institute and Sweden’s Stockholm International Peace Research Institute in Hanoi. Vietnam attends high-level global development meeting Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung is leading a Vietnamese delegation at the first high-level meeting of the Global Alliance for Effective Development Cooperation that opened in Mexico on April 15. The meeting is being attended by more than 1,500 delegates from 130 countries, as well as leaders of multi-lateral organisations including UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Director General of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development Jose Angle Gurria. During the two-day event, participants focus on five main topics, including a review of the progress made since the lower-level meeting in Busan, the Republic of Korea, in 2011. They also discuss the cooperation among countries with medium incomes and the role that the private sector can play in development. The meeting is of significance to the host country of Mexico, as it forms part of its strategy for national development in the 2013-2018 period.- Sunwah expects long-term investment in Vietnam Hong Kong’s Sunwah Group wants to receive additional incentives from the Vietnamese government to do long-term business in the country. Sunwah Group President Jonathan Choi made the proposal at an April 15 reception in Hanoi hosted by Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc. Choi told Phuc that his group will expand investment in its potential areas, especially real estate in Vietnam. Choi, who is also President of Sunwah Foundation, assured his host that the group will continue to grant scholarships to university students to pursue their studies in the country. He said over the years Sunwah has participated in many charitable activities to support disadvantaged people and finance education, healthcare, and fine arts projects, as well as granting scholarships to students. Sunwah Foundation recently completed building Ulis-Sunwah Chinese Language Centre at Foreign Languages University. For his part, Deputy PM Phuc praised Sunwah’s effective investment in real estate, fine arts, culture, education and training in Vietnam. He expressed hope the Hong Kong group will make a greater contribution to Vietnam’s education development. Vietnam attends Asian defence exhibition in Malaysia Vietnam is joining more than 50 countries worldwide at the 14th Defence Services Asia Exhibition and Conference (DSA) in Malaysia from April 14-17. On display are a selection of the world’s leading defence technologies and equipment, including air defence systems to protect coastal areas and land territory, first aid services and products, training systems, and common security solutions. Turkey, the US, China and the Republic of Korea are showcasing hundreds of products and services, ranging from aircraft, warships, armoured vehicles, missiles, tanks, ammunition, and military equipment. There is a special designated zone for ASEAN countries to introduce their defence success and advances. While attending the exhibition, the Vietnamese delegation also took part in a Putrajaya forum on strengthening security and stability in the region. Participants stressed the importance of international cooperation, and the sharing of information and experience among law enforcement forces. Major general Pham Quang Cu, Deputy Head of the General Department of Logistics and Techniques, shared Vietnam’s experience in ensuring security and fighting against trans-national crime, human trafficking, terrorism and illegal immigration. The DSA is expected to attract around 27,000 visitors, including defence ministers, military commanders, policemen and delegates from around the world. NA deputies discuss their responsibilities Deputies of the National Assembly Standing Committee agreed at their 27th working session yesterday that the position of NA delegations should be made clear so that members could actively fulfill their roles in making laws and receiving inquiries from local voters. According to a new regulation in the draft amended Law on National Assembly Organisation, the public can attend public working sessions of the NA. However, some deputies said that people should only observe these sessions to ensure order and quality. Regarding the structure of the Council of Ethnic Affairs, some deputies suggested that all or most members of the council must be full-time deputies. "We need to look at the structure of the council again to ensure it is the voice of all ethnic minorities, and we also need to increase the number of ethnic minority deputies in People's Councils," said Ksor Phuoc, chairman of the NA Council of Ethnic Affairs. He also suggested that the council be allowed to examine all ethnic affairs policies and relevant projects. Deputies also discussed the regulation on the number of full-time deputies. Some deputies said the number of deputies should be increased to 45 or 50 per cent of NA deputies. Yet the draft committee asked for the number to be kept at 35 per cent to ensure the quality of these deputies' activities. Regarding the title of the Chairman of the National Assembly Office, some deputies said it should be replaced by the title "General Secretary of the National Assembly Office" and the Vice-chairman's title be replaced with "Member of the NA Secretariat". As the NA Standing Committee's 27th session began its second day, comments focused on revisions to the draft public security law. Members were interested in regulations governing public security officers, particularly at lower levels, and the hierarchy of their agencies. They discussed which positions should be prioritised for active duty if combat situations should arrive, adding that order and promotion procedures should follow the constitution. Participants also debated the legal status of commune-level public security forces and vowed to create favourable legal conditions for them to fulfill their tasks. Addressing the meeting, NA Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung said the bill should ensure the unity of legal documents, meet the demands of national security and defence and maintain the country's social safety. He also noted that all relevant agencies must review communal public security guidelines and said the law should explain that ceiling ranks would be enforced for each position. The Standing Committee will give its comments on the revised law to officers of the people's army today. — Amendements to Law on Enterprises discussed The amended Law on Enterprises planned to submit to the upcoming session of the National Assembly will have some important changes including business registration, according to the Authority of Foreign Information Service. At the seminar on the amended Law on Enterprises held by the Central Institute of Economic Management (CIEM) in Hanoi on April 10, Nguyen Dinh Cung, Head of the CIEM said one of the most important changes in the amended Law on Enterprises this time is "fundamental change in business registration.” In the time to come, enterprises will really be allowed to do what the law does not prohibit. Cung said the new Law is certainly to create favourable conditions to boost the establishment of new enterprises but he did not expect a “boom” for this purpose. According to Phan Duc Hieu, Deputy Head of the Business Environment and Competitiveness Board of the CIEM , the goal of this amendment is to “enhance the attraction and further mobilisation of all sources of capital and resources for production and business.” Specifically, the law will create favourable conditions for the establishment of enterprises, especially for foreign investors; reduce the costs for the governing organisation of enterprises and restructuring of enterprises; guarantee better the rights and legal interests of investors, shareholders and members of enterprises and reduce the costs when enterprises and investors withdraw from the market. Basically, the law maintains the structure of the current Law on Enterprises, but there are a lot of changes in its content. The amended law has 9 chapters, 222 articles. Lawyer Cao Ba Khoat, one of the leading experts in business environment in Vietnam, said these amendments aim to remove a range of obstacles that enterprises have met in their business activities.- Party Secretariat calls for stronger leadership to prevent drug crime The Secretariat of the Party Central Committee has required Party organisations at all levels and local authorities and organisations across the country to intensify their leadership of efforts to prevent drug crimes in line with the Politburo’s Instructive No. 21/CT/TW. Under a recently issued statement, the Secretariat said it is necessary to consider drug prevention as a key and urgent task that need to be implemented with the involvement of the whole political system and people. The document also highlighted the need for Party organisations at all levels to give clear and stringent directions to achieve the aims set forth in the National Drug Control Strategy in Vietnam to 2020, with a vision to 2030. Meanwhile, the National Assembly, people’s councils at all levels and socio-political organisations have been urged to enhance their supervision of this work. Campaigns to raise awareness of the harmful effects of drugs, especially synthetic drugs and addictive substances, also need to be further enhanced, the statement said. It added that these should predominantly target high-risk groups, including youngsters, students and people in remote areas. In addition, the quality of detoxification centres should be improved, while expanding community-based rehabilitation models and consulting services to support addict s and rolling out methadone therapy to drug users. Efforts to prevent drug smuggling into Vietnam, especially in border localities, international airports and sea ports should be intensified, as should the detection and closure of drug-producing facilities and the eradication of poppy cultivation in the country. The statement concluded that will continue to improve its legal system on drug prevention and mobilise forces to fight illicit drug abuse and trafficking. Vietnam will also focus on promoting cooperation with countries that share border lines, those with experience in responding to drug production and supply and international and non-governmental organisations, as it looks to combat drug-related crimes.- Source: VNA/VNS/VOV/VNN