Political News 17/7 Gov’t Inspectorate to conduct six major inspections in Q3 The Government Inspectorate will carry out six major inspections in the third quarter of this year, heard a conference on the sector’s tasks for the second half of the year in Hanoi on July 16. The inspections will focus on the handling of complaints and denunciations and efforts to fight corruption in central Thanh Hoa province, land and forest allocation in southern Binh Phuoc province as well as the management and use of capital and assets at the Vietnam Railway Corporation. The operation of the Deposit Insurance of Vietnam will be examined to see whether it complies with the law in ensuring the safety for the credit system and people’s interests while the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Culture will be inspected to ensure it fulfill its responsibility in implementing a national target programme on culture. Also in the third quarter, the Government Inspectorate will check the implementation of the laws on social insurance and health insurance at enterprises. In addition, the agency plans to conduct a large-scale thematic inspection on the management of public investment and settlement of outstanding debts sourced by the State budget and government bonds. The agency is also coordinating with relevant agencies in drafting a joint circular on commending individuals with outstanding achievements in uncovering corrupt acts. Regarding the recent ninth breakdown of a water pipe from Song Da River to Hanoi, which seriously affected the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in the capital, Deputy Chief Inspector Tran Duc Luong emphasised the need for a comprehensive inspection of this project. According to the agency’s report, in the first half of the year, the sector carried out nearly 4,000 administrative inspections and over 85,000 specialised examinations, detecting violations involving almost 10 trillion VND (476 million USD) and 1,100 ha of land. It proposed punishments on 533 collectives and 1,133 individuals while 18 cases and 24 people were transferred to investigation agencies for criminal treatment. In the period, the number of complaints and accusations fell 15.8 percent, with 55 percent of them relating to land. Inspectors also brought to light five corruption cases with 13 people involved and more than 1.3 billion VND (47,600 USD). President Sang presents decisions to appoint new diplomats   On July 16, President Truong Tan Sang awarded decisions accrediting 22 Vietnamese ambassadors and 7 consul generals to foreign countries. The newly accredited ambassadors are qualified and capable officials with a wealth of diplomatic experience, including those holding key positions in Party and State external relations departments. President Sang asked them to bring into full play their capacities and experience to mobilize external resources and enlist the support from the international community for national construction and defence. “It is imperative to find out breakthrough solutions for trade promotion by expanding export markets for Vietnamese goods, intensifying foreign direct investment (FDI), learning economic restructuring and growth model experiences from other countries. In addition, foreign agencies should pay more attention to the protection of citizens and promotion of important resources from Vietnamese nationals overseas aiming to build a strong Vietnamese community towards the homeland” President Sang said. He said he hopes that the ambassadors and consul generals will fulfill successfully their tasks entrusted to by the Party and the State, thus contributing to national construction and defence. NA Standing Committee wraps up 29th session The National Assembly (NA)’s eighth session scheduled for October 20 – November 29 will consider and adopt 30 bills and two draft resolutions, said Chairman of the NA Office Nguyen Hanh Phuc at the closing of the NA Standing Committee’s 29th session in Hanoi on July 16. If the contents of the draft laws are well-prepared, it will take the NA little time to pass them, NA Vice Chairman Uong Chu Luu assured. To achieve the best results, drafting units from ministries and agencies must work to their fullest responsibility, he urged. Reviewing the outcomes of the NA’s seventh session, a majority of the committee’s members hailed it as a success in the context of complicated developments in the region and the world, with China illegally placing its oil rig Haiyang Shiyou – 981 in Vietnam’s continental shelf and exclusive economic zone. During the 28-day sitting, legislators passed 11 laws and two resolutions, and offered ideas on 16 bills and another resolution. However, several bills up for consideration were poorly-drafted while others lacked time for discussion. Chairman of the NA Committee for Economic Affairs Nguyen Van Giau told deputies that voters are satisfied with the NA’s stance on the East Sea issue. Voters believe that the settlement of the East Sea dispute by peaceful means is a right move, Giau said, adding that they are also content with the NA’s decision to allocate VND16 trillion (US$761 million) in support of law enforcement forces and fishermen. However, others still have queries about the production and consumption of farm produce, health insurance, university education, employment, and fines on wearing fake helmets, he said. Committee members also voiced their proposals to enhance the responsibility of full-time deputies. Concluding the session, Chairman Hung asked units concern to fix existing shortcomings and improve the quality of the eighth NA plenary session. He also requested the NA Standing Committee to help bring the Constitution into practice during the process of lawmaking. Vietnam attends Nepali communist party’s ninth congress A Vietnamese delegation, led by deputy head of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee’s Commission for External Affairs Tran Dac Loi, has attended the ninth national congress of the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML). Loi delivered a speech at the opening session and conveyed the CPV Central Committee’s congratulations message to the congress. During a reception for the Vietnamese delegation, CPN-UML President Jhala Nath Khanal spoke highly of the CPV’s prestige and leadership experience and expressed hope to further promote the friendship and cooperation between the two parties as well as the two peoples of Vietnam and Nepal. The Vietnamese delegation also held several meetings with other international delegations attending the congress to discuss ways to boost bilateral ties and inform them of the current situation in Vietnam and the region, especially the current East Sea tension. The ninth national congress of the CPN-UML – the second largest party at the Nepali Congress, took place from July 3-16 in Nepal’s capital of Kathmandu. Nearly 2,200 delegates representing 260,000 CPN-UML members discussed and approved a number of important documents of the party. They elected Khadga Prasad Oli, who leads the party at the Nepali Congress, as the new president, together with five vice presidents, one general secretary, two deputy general secretaries and five secretaries, as well as a new Central Standing Committee consisting of 159 members. UK regards Vietnam as Southeast Asian priority partner The UK considers Vietnam an important priority partner in Southeast Asia, outgoing UK Ambassador Antony Stokes told Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong before leaving for his home country. At a July 16 meeting with Party leader Trong, Antony Stokes affirmed his nation's willingness to support extensive cooperation between Vietnam and the European Union (EU). He noted with satisfaction with the growing relationship between the two nation in various fields particularly in economy, trade, education and defence-security, since the two countries signed the Strategic Partnership in September 2010 and General Secretary Trong’s first official visit to the UK last year. Regarding the East Sea issue, Stokes said the UK has closely followed the developments in the region, affirming his country’s consistent viewpoint that  parties concerned are responsible for ensuring maritime security, safety and freedom  in the East Sea as well as resolving emerging issues by peaceful means in line with  international law. Party leader Trong, for his part, suggested Vietnam and the UK should increase delegation exchange at all levels and step up cooperation and mutual support at regional and international organisations and forums like the UN, ASEAN and the EU. Condolences to Russia over subway accident On July 16 President Truong Tan Sang cabled a message of condolences to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin over a serious metro accident in Moscow. The same day, Hanoi People’s Committee Chairman Nguyen The Thao also offered his sympathy to Moscow Mayor Sobianhin Sergey Semionovich. The derailment on the Moscow metro occurred on July 15, leaving at least 21 people dead and 130 others injured. PM urges speeding up of new rural area building Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has issued an instruction requiring the heads of Party committees and administrations at all levels to personally direct the implementation of the national target programme on new-style rural area building. Directive 18/CT-TTg stresses that the programme is the decisive factor for the sustainable development of agriculture and rural areas. All ministries and sectors must focus on enhancing the quality of agriculture planning basing on the advantages and key products of each region, ensuring regional connectivity and forming a sustainable production system of agricultural goods. The building of new-style rural areas should be implemented in parallel with the restructuring of the agricultural sector and the application of scientific and technological advances to agricultural production, said the directive. More preferential policies should be offered to encourage investment in the agricultural sector, especially in remote areas and islands. Public-private partnership models will be expanded, while farmers, cooperatives and businesses should be given better access to capital. The Prime Minister also assigned ministries and localities to build and realise programmes to support the development of key products in poor areas, while vocational training for rural labourers must be improved in quality to meet the requirement of businesses and localities. Localities are also instructed to allocate an adequate amount of budget for the programme and are banned from requiring local people make compulsory contributions to the programme. The national target programme on new-style rural area building, which was launched in 2010, has set 19 national criteria for new rural areas, which cover building infrastructure, improving production capacity, building public works, protecting landscape and environment, and promote local traditions and cultural identities. So far, 185 communes nationwide have achieved all 19 criteria for new rural areas and nearly 600 others have met between 15-18 criteria. On average, each commune has fulfilled 8.47 criteria compared to 4.7 in 2011.- Japanese firms interested in Vietnam’s PPP projects The issues related to the public - private partnership (PPP) investment form in Vietnam were the focus of a meeting held by the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation in Hanoi on July 16. According to Deputy Minister Dao Quang Thu, there is a great potential for trade cooperation and investment between the two countries as Japan is now one of Vietnam’s leading trade and investment partners. The ministry is striving to complete the building of a PPP Decree, expected to be issued in the next month, with a hope of further promoting the country’s economic growth through luring investment from private domestic and foreign areas, he revealed. JBIC Governor Hiroshi Watanabe stressed that Japanese enterprises put their faith in Vietnam’s future economic development prospect and are seeking opportunities to implement their investment projects in the country, including those in the PPP form. Watanabe asserted that JBIC had experiences in financing PPP projects in many countries and the bank is willing to share them with Vietnam to help the country hasten the policymaking and the implementation of the projects of this kind. He also suggested the Vietnamese government create the best possible conditions for Japanese firms, particularly simplifying administrative procedures and regulations to facilitate their investment in the country. Once issued, the decree, comprising of 12 chapters with 82 articles, is expected to help attract more capital from private investors into Vietnam, especially those abroad. Source: VNA/VOV/VNN