Political News July 16 Citizens’ identification bill under review The draft law on citizens’ identification was put on the table as the National Assembly Standing Committee convened its 29th session in Hanoi on July 14. Provisions in the draft law include the establishment of a national archive on population and the issuance of 12-digit personal identity cards, as part of a scheme to simplify administrative procedures and documents related to population management for the 2013-2020 period. Legislators also shared views on whether to issue identity cards to the new-borns, both natives and foreigners, or whether to save information about medical or social insurance in the process. NA Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung asked units concerned to collect feedback on the draft law. He said the meeting is meant to consider several key bills, making it easier to put the 2013 Constitution into practice. Also in the morning, lawmakers exchanged ideas about the draft law on residence. NA Standing Committee discusses three draft laws The National Assembly Standing Committee spent the second working day of its 29th session on July 15 discussing the draft Law on the Management and Use of State Capital Invested in Production and Business, the draft revised Law on Real Estate Business, and the draft amendments and supplements to a number of articles of the Law on Civil Aviation. At the session, many deputies agreed that the draft Law on the Management and Use of State Capital Invested in Production and Business should keep the same name. Some other deputies proposed that it should be renamed the draft Law on Investment and Management of State Capital in Enterprises in order to make sure the law is in line with the NA's Resolution No. 23 and clearly points out that the State is not directly involved in business and production. Some members suggested that the drafting committee should continue to verify the draft law to avoid overlaps with other current laws such as the Law on Public Investment and the revised Law on Enterprises. They also commented on a number of contents related to supervision, applicable objects of the law, and the role of the National Assembly, the Government and localities in the field. Regarding the draft revised Law on Real Estate Business, a majority of deputies agreed with the verification report on the draft law presented by the National Assembly Committee for Economics. Some suggested that the concept of ‘real estate’ should be more clearly defined in order to ensure consistency with the Land Law. Several deputies asked for more detailed and strict conditions for participation in real estate markets to screen and select qualified enterprises as well as prevent over-diversified investment and oversupply, which could cause instability and a waste of social resources. NASC members also commented on several issues upon which different viewpoints prevail on the draft amendments and supplements to a number of articles of the Law on Civil Aviation, and gave explanations on Item 4, Article 7 of the Law on Advertising. PM inquires into fuel prices Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung yesterday asked leaders of finance, industry and trade to explain how they fix retail prices for petrol. He made the requirement at a meeting with leading officials of the Ministries of Finance, and Industry and Trade in Ha Noi. The PM also asked the two ministries to explain developments and prices of global fuel, price management measures and the use of the petroleum price stabilisation fund - as well as profits for businesses. According to the two ministries, in the past six months, the world's fuel price has fluctuated. To cope, the ministries co-ordinated efforts to adjust the domestic price in line with the market mechanism, using financial tools to keep the price from spiralling too high. Since early this year, the two ministries have permitted petrol businesses to adjust retail prices 10 times based on world prices, while also using the oil and gas prices stabilization fund. With the mobilisation of the fund, oil and gas prices only increased slightly by VND338 (1.5 US cents) per litre instead of VND638 (3 US cents) per litre in late June, and VND418 per litre (1.9 US cents) instead of VND918 (4.3 US cents) per litre in early July. At the meeting, PM Dung agreed that price management was implemented in line with the Government's decree and use of the fund was public and transparent. He urged the ministries to closely watch the global price while taking measures in case of a sudden price hike in the world market. He asked for the strict implementation of price management principles to curb inflation, maintain macro-economic stability, and prevent cross-border fuel smuggling. Dung also asked the two ministries to clarify global oil and gas price developments through the mass media as well as management plans for oil and gas distribution. They were also told to publicise their profits for the sake of transparency. Court sector asked to step up reform President Truong Tan Sang has urged the court sector to speed up its reform to ensure all citizens can access justice in an easiest and most convenient way. Meeting with leading officials of the sector in Hanoi on July 15, the President asked them to work harder to build the Law on People’s Court towards judicial reforms in accordance with the spirit of the Constitution. The sector should further enhance the capacity and quality of its personnel, thus avoiding violations of ethic regulations, he said. He also acknowledged their efforts over the past years, ensuring the interest of both the State and citizens. A report at the meeting said that in the first half of this year, the court system nationwide solved 158,124 out of the 243,180 cases they have received. The Supreme People’s Court and provincial courts also worked on 2,686 cases among the 7,783 submitted complaints. However, the report also pointed to some shortcomings in the sector’s performance, including a low ratio of solved cases as well as the slow appointment process for judges at the Supreme People’s Court. Ha Nam province told to better receive feedback National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung has spoken highly of the renovated operation of the People’s Council of the northern province of Ha Nam and asked it to work more to better receive and handle feedback from the public. At a session of the council (17th tenure) on July 15, Chairman Hung highlighted Ha Nam’s socio-economic development in the first half of 2014 and ordered the council’s members to clarify shortcomings and devise appropriate measures to fulfil the yearly goals. He also urged them to step up publicising and executing the amended Constitution approved in 2013 in order to ensure the document is fully observed in all spheres. Reports at the function said that Ha Nam’s gross domestic product in the six-month period grew by 11 percent from a year earlier, while the rate of household poverty was brought down to 5.68 percent. The province is accelerating the building of new-style rural areas, aiming for six communes meeting all the 19 criteria and the rest satisfying at least 10. It is working to iron out difficulties for the business circle and provide the best possible conditions for their operation. The 9 th session of the Ha Nam People’s Council will spend two days to review the locality’s performance over the past months and set tasks for socio-economic development for the second half of this year. Veteran diplomat shares memories about Geneva conference Former Deputy Foreign Minister Colonel Ha Van Lau, now 97 years old, was a member of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV)’s negotiation team at the Geneva Conference in 1954. He shared his memories about the Geneva talks on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Geneva agreement, which put an end to the war and restored peace in Indochina and Vietnam. Together with the then Deputy Defence Minister Ta Quang Buu, Colonel Lau served as a military expert for the team. He recalled that the team travelled to Geneva by train via Beijing and Moscow, and arrived in Geneva on May 4, 1954. By that time, the DRV was yet to receive any official invitation to attend the talks. The invitation only came on May 8, 1954, just one day before the session on Vietnam began. “Deputy Defence Minister Ta Quang Buu and I, as military experts of the delegation, studied the military aspects of the talks, which concerned the ceasefire, the movement of troops and France’s withdrawal of troops from the three Indochinese countries,” Lau said, adding that he was very worried because the work was new for him while there was very little information. “We heard about the Dien Bien Phu Victory through western countries’ media before receiving reports from home,” he said. “No words can express our joy. Head of the delegation Pham Van Dong hugged everyone, and we spent a sleepless night to discuss plans for the meeting the next morning.” The victory enhanced the DRV’s position at the talks, he said. Reminiscing about the most tense moments during the negotiations 60 years ago, he said Buu and he met many times with the French side to discuss the demarcation for the relocation of military troops of both sides. Vietnam at first suggested Parallel 13, as the three provinces of Quang Nam, Quang Ngai and Binh Dinh were then the liberated zone, but the French side insisted on Parallel 18. Through much debate, the conference at last settled on Parallel 17, which was along Ben Hai River to the north of Quang Tri province. “One difficulty for us at the negotiation was that we did not have the independence like in the later Paris talks,” the veteran diplomat said, adding that the DRV delegation had to rely on information provided by the Soviet Union and China. However, with the victory on the domestic battle fields and the firm principle of “independence, national unification and territorial integrity,” the delegation was able to achieve the goal of an agreement that put an end to war and restored peace in Indochina on the basis of respect for independence, sovereignty, national unification and territorial integrity of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. According to the former Deputy Foreign Minister, the Geneva agreement marked a great victory of the anti-French resistance war, with participating countries, including France, committed respect for Vietnam’s independence, sovereignty, national unification and territorial integrity. Red Cross Society praised President Sang on July 15 hailed the Viet Nam Red Cross Society (VRCS) for helping underprivileged sections of the society with over VND1.5 trillion (US$731,000) helping nearly 12,800 people improve their living standards in the first half of the year. The President, who is the Honorary Chairman of the VRCS, also acknowledged the contributions of philanthropists at home and abroad. Addressing a working session in Ha Noi to review the society's six-month performance and set tasks for the remaining months of the year, he expressed hope that the VRCS will continue its good work and reach its goals. Nguyen Hai Duong, President of the VRCS Central Committee, informed the working session that 1.7 million poor households and Agent Orange (AO) victims have received relief worth VND635 billion ($30.2 million) in the first half of the year. He also said that more than 3,000 cows valued at around VND33 billion ($157,000) were given to farmers in poor and mountainous districts as a means to augment their incomes. In 11 northern border provinces, 24,000 cows were bought with funds raised from subscribers to Viettel telecom services and given to farming households in need. Duong said that the VRCS will continue its work with farmers, AO victims and other disadvantaged sections of the society. It will also continue humanitarian activities like blood donation camps and provision of free medical treatment, he added. President urges judiciary to step up reform President Truong Tan Sang yesterday urged the court sector to speed up its reforms to ensure all citizens can access justice in the easiest and most convenient way. Meeting with leading officials of the sector, the President asked them to work harder to make reforms to the Law on the People's Court in accordance with the spirit of the Constitution. The sector should further enhance the capacity and quality of its personnel to avoid violating ethical regulations, he said. A report to the meeting said that in the first half of this year, the court system nationwide solved 158,124 out of the 243,180 cases that had been received. The Supreme People's Court and provincial courts also worked on 2,686 cases among the 7,783 submitted complaints. However, the report pointed to some shortcomings in the sector's performance, including a low ratio of solved cases as well as the slow appointment process for judges at the Supreme People's Court. Source: VNA/VOV/VNN/ND