Political News 1/10 10th Heads of Asian Coast Guards Agencies Meeting opens Nearly 55 delegates from 18 nations from Asian region and Hong Kong gathered in Yokohama, Japan on September 30 for the 10th Heads of Asian Coast Guards Agencies Meeting (HACGAM). In his opening speech, the Japan Coast Guard vice commandant of operations Yuji Sato highlighted cooperation among law enforcement agencies as active contributions to ensuring maritime security and safety in the region. He expressed his wish law enforcement agencies in the region will continue to speed up cooperation aiming to maintain safer and brighter maritime zones in accordance with international law. Addressing the conference, Major General Nguyen Quang Dam, commander of the Vietnam Coast Guard (VCG) affirmed Vietnam’s Coast Guard’s willingness to cooperate with international and regional law enforcement forces in anti-crime at sea, maritime safety and security enhancement, search and rescue work and human resource training. The conference runs through October 1, 2014. Chairman of J.P Morgan in Asia visits Vietnam Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh received Nicolas Aguzin, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer for Asia-Pacific business at J.P Morgan Chase and Co., a global banking firm, in Hanoi on September 30. The Deputy PM spoke highly of the firm’s monetary and financial support for Vietnam to recover its economy, especially its statement to the country’s long-term development. As Vietnam is implementing a master plan on economic restructuring with sustainable and long-term macro-economic development objectives, he expressed wish that J.P Morgan in Asia will continue support for and experience sharing with Vietnam in this field. For his part, Nicolas Aguzin said he hopes that that Vietnamese Government will create more favourable conditions for the bank to get involved in the country’s economic development in the future. He affirmed that his bank will back Vietnam in the fields of its demand to help improve its people’s living standards. Leaders congratulate China on National Day Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and President Truong Tan Sang on September 30 sent congratulations to General Secretary of the Communist Party of China’s Central Committee and President Xi Jinping on the occasion of China’s 65th National Day (October 1, 1949). The same day, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung also extended his congratulatory wishes to his Chinese counterpart Li Keqiang while National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung cabled greetings to Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress Zhang Dejiang. In the messages, the Vietnamese leaders congratulated the Chinese people on their achievements over the past 65 years, particularly during 35 years of the reform process. They affirmed that the Party, State and Government of Vietnam are willing to work with the Party, State and Government of China to incessantly consolidate and develop the two countries’ traditional friendship, improve the peoples’ mutual understanding and trust, and foster the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in a stable and healthy manner, thus contributing to the regional and international peace, stability and development. On this occasion, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh also conveyed congratulations to Chinese State Councillor Yang Jiechi and Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Hanoi ceremony marks Germany’s National Day The Vietnam-Germany Friendship Association held a ceremony in Hanoi on September 30 to celebrate Germany’s 24th National Day (October 3, 1990). Addressing the event, Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang, who is also Chairman of the association, congratulated the German friends in Vietnam on this occasion. He said since the Vietnam-Germany strategic partnership was established in 2011, bilateral ties have seen encouraging achievements in politics-diplomacy, economy-trade-investment, education-training, and development cooperation. Germany is Vietnam’s largest trade partner in the European Union with two-way trade reaching US$7.7 billion in 2013, he said, adding that the former directly invested over US$1.3 billion in 136 projects in Vietnam by August this year. The German Business Association has selected Vietnam as the host of the Asia-Pacific Conference of German Business (APK 14). The event, to be held in Ho Chi Minh City from November 21-22, will be a great opportunity for German companies to boost their trade-investment links with regional partners, including those in Vietnam. The minister added the Vietnam-Germany Friendship Association will continue to do its utmost to diversify people-to-people exchange activities in a bid to further develop bilateral ties. At the ceremony, German Ambassador to Vietnam Jutta Frasch voiced her hope that the association will organise more activities to deepen the flourishing relations between the two countries. Laos’ female NA deputies welcomed in Hanoi Vice Chairwoman of the National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan received a visiting delegation from the Female National Assembly Deputies Group of Laos led by its head Boungong Boupha in Hanoi on September 30. At the meeting, Vice Chairwoman Kim Ngan spoke highly of Laos’ successful organisation of the 35th General Assembly of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA-35). Highlighting the practical and effective development of the friendship, solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between the two nations, she stressed that Vietnam always gives top priority to consolidating and strengthening the special relationship with Laos. She added that Vietnam will continue to be one of the leading investors in Laos. The NA Vice Chairwoman also expressed her wish that the two countries’ female NA deputies groups will further promote their collaboration, increase the exchange of experience, especially in law-making and supervision activities. Boungong Boupha informed her host that the two sides have focused on sharing experience in promoting the legislative and supervision role on issues related to the building of the law on domestic violence prevention and a legal framework on gender equality. In the coming time, the two sides will continue exchanging experience in drafting the NA’s resolutions on social issues, she said. President Sang works with Central Economic Commission President Truong Tan Sang on September 30 worked with leaders from the Central Party Committee (CPC) Commission for Economic Affairs on restructuring the national economy along with renewing the growth model. He asked the committee to find effective solutions for the settlement of public debts and bad debts. Regarding the 2011-2014 economic restructuring and growth model reform, Commission Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue said Vietnam’s growth model has been concentrated more on increasing the quality of growth in recent years as a result of ensured macroeconomic stability and reduced economic downturn. Inflation is under control, dropping from over 18% in 2011 to 6.8%. Some initial results have been achieved in restructuring the economy and public investment to ensure macroeconomic stability and promote model growth renovation. In addition, due attention has been paid to iron out snags in production and business and State-owned enterprises (SoEs) equitization, Hue said. However, he also pointed out that the Vietnamese economy still reveals weaknesses and limitations such as implicit uncertainties in the long run, slow-paced growth model renovation, heavy dependence on capital and natural resources, lower labour productivity than other regional countries (2-15 times lower than ASEAN countries). At the meeting, economic experts contributed many opinions on the economic growth model in the current period which should be based on labour productivity and efficiency towards the rapid and sustainable development to improve market economic institutions and boost international integration. In his statement, President Sang underscored the need to assess economic growth model based on experiences from other nations and revamp the legal system to bring proper policies to life. The Commission should work out solutions for resolving public debts and bad debts, overcome SoEs’ shortcomings, use capital efficiently and facilitate business operations. Asides this, priorities should be given to human resources training, scientific and technological application in agricultural production, Sang added. Former Party Chief receives 65-year Party badge The General Department of Politics on September 30 hosted a solemn ceremony honouring former Party General Secretary Le Kha Phieu with the 65-year Party membership badge- a Party and State noble award for his positive contributions to national construction and defence. In his speech, Party leader Nguyen Phu Trong said, “Le Kha Phieu had experienced different working positions, tempered himself and became matured in the struggle for national liberation as well as the Doi Moi (Renovation) process, national construction and defence. In any position, he is unswervingly loyal to the Party, the homeland and the people while being consistent with Party goals and ideals, preserving revolutionary ethnics of a Party member who has always constantly learnt and trained himself to fulfill all assigned tasks.” For his part, the former Party Chief expressed his great honour to receive the 65-year Party membership badge, saying that the award is seen as his continued responsibility to make greater contributions to the long-term process of national construction and defence. Although he retired, Phieu pledged to do well his job as a loyal Party member and devote his life to the nation until he dies. Law on Government’s organisational structure to be updated The National Assembly Standing Committee continued its 31 st session in Hanoi on September 30 by looking at changes to the draft Law on the Organisation of the Government, the first update in 12 years. A number of premises in the document were found to be out of date, including the legal status, functions and tasks of the Government and the Prime Minister. The amendments will provide a means to implement the revised Constitution and ensure the smooth operations of the State and the Government. Almost all the suggested changes highlighted the need to define the organisational structure and operations of Vietnam’s highest executive body. National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung proposed the clarification of the role of the Government, its responsibilities to protect and enforce the Constitution, and its relationship with the President. Mutual judicial assistance under review The Law on Mutual Judicial Assistance has created a legal framework for the fields of civil law, criminal law, extradition, and the transfer of convicts over the last six years, a conference heard in Hanoi on September 30. The law, the first act on mutual legal assistance drafted by the National Assembly, came into effect in 2008. It is regarded as an important step in Vietnam’s international cooperation efforts on law and justice, participants in the conference to review the law’s implementation said. Ministries and sectors handled an increasing amount of complex judicial mandate cases.From January 2008 to the end of June 2014, the Ministry of Justice received 14,842 legal mandate orders from Vietnamese agencies to other countries, and 5,193 replies. Out of the replies, 540 came from countries with mutual judicial assistance agreements with Vietnam. Statistics show that replies from countries with legal agreements with Vietnam accounted for 39 percent, while replies from nations without bilateral agreements accounted for 34.5 percent. A total of 2,876 foreign judicial mandate orders were received, including 1,229 from countries with mutual judicial assistance agreements. Half of the received orders have been processed so far. According to Deputy Minister Nguyen Khanh Ngoc, the low level of responses to mandate orders can be attributed to the poor linkages between litigation regulations, including civil legal procedures, and stipulations in the Law on mutual Judicial Assistance. Additionally, the law on civil legal procedures does not mention specific regulations for cases with international elements or cases requiring legal mandates, Ngoc said. In the short term, a hotline will be set up at the central level between Vietnam and countries that signed mutual judicial assistance agreements with Vietnam. This will enable courts to directly notify the Government of Vietnam or Vietnamese overseas representative offices, helping to shorten procedures and boost coordination between relevant ministries, sectors and agencies. Participants suggested the development of separate laws to regulate different aspects in mutual legal assistance in the long run. The Law on Mutual Judicial Assistance should be revised and supplemented to ensure it addresses Vietnam’s international commitments. It must meet the realistic demands of crime prevention and control, settle civil cases that arise as a result of the country’s international integration and legal reform, and clarify the areas covered by the Law on Mutual Judicial Assistance and other laws on legal procedures. Source: VNA/VOV