One day after Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung issued the decision to establish the Capital Law compiling board, the 19-member board met for the first time on July 24.

Justice Minister Ha Hung Cuong said that the Capital Law will be the legal foundation for Hanoi to carry out planning, attract investment and develop its economy.

With experts from 17 ministries, central and Hanoi agencies and led by Minister of Justice Ha Hung Cuong, the compilation board of the Capital Law will have to complete the draft law within five months to submit to the Prime Minister for consideration before submission to the National Assembly in May 2010.

Justice Minister Ha Hung Cuong said that the Capital Law will be the legal foundation for Hanoi to carry out planning, attract investment and develop its economy, which the Capital Ordinance couldn’t realise in its eight years of implementation.

The Justice Minister affirmed that the role of the compilation board’s Hanoi members is the most important because they understand the thinking, aspirations of Hanoians and the development directions of the capital city.

Hanoi’s Chairman Nguyen The Thao, vice chief of the compilation board, said that the compilation board will have to face two difficulties: there is no precedent for their job and the time is very short. “However, the Capital Law will be the most practical achievement to celebrate the 1000^th Thang Long – Hanoi anniversary,” Thao said.

Speaking at the first meeting of the compilation board, the Hanoi Mayor said that since the city was expanded in August 2008, the capital has new requirements that the Capital Ordinance, issued in December 2000, can’t satisfy.

Moreover, the Capital Ordinance has specific mechanisms for the capital city that are unfit to other laws so these mechanisms are unpractical. The compilation of the Capital Law, thus, is very urgent, Thao said.

The compilation will begin in early August 2009. The compilation board will be assisted by an editorial board, which gathers experts from various fields.

To make the draft law, the compilation board will carry out the following tasks: make a survey of the implementation of the Capital Ordinance, organise seminars, learn experience from other countries.

The compilation board plans to complete a detailed sketch of the law in September and submit the draft to the government in late 2009 or in January 2010. The law will be submitted to the National Assembly in May 2010.

According to a research work by the Ministry of Justice, most countries that have a similar state model to Vietnam don’t have a capital law. Countries with a federal model like Canada and India have capital laws. Some other countries only have capital regulations.

VietNamNet/VNE/Dan Tri