National Assembly flexes legislative muscles with bill rejections 

Published: 03/04/2011 05:00

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Lawmakers’ rejection of a bill that would give special rights and privileges to Hanoi in the final session of its 2007-2011 term was a rare move, demonstrating a more active role taken by the legislature, experts say.

Lawmakers’ rejection of a bill that would give special rights and privileges to Hanoi in the final session of its 2007-2011 term was a rare move, demonstrating a more active role taken by the legislature, experts say.

Commenting on the voting results for the Capital Bill, Deputy Nguyen Minh Thuyet of the northern mountainous province of Lang Son said that it was not the first time a bill had been rejected, but the special thing was that it happened at the final session of a legislative term.

“Basically, the dishes are still being prepared by the central government. But now it’s the decision of the National Assembly [Vietnam’s parliament] on whether to eat or not,” he told Thanh Nien Weekly.

On March 29, the final day of the 12th National Assembly’s last session, only 35.9 percent of deputies voted for while 44.83 percent voted against the bill that proposes exclusive regulations for Hanoi like zoning, controlling migration and financial policies. The remaining votes were all abstentions.

Thuyet, who is also vice chairman of the Assembly’s Committee for Culture, Education, Youth and Children, said that many legislators voted against the bill because it is infeasible, limits residents’ rights and contravenes Vietnamese Law.

Sharing his own view, he said the bill was not approved because it proposed stricter and unfeasible regulations against migration than the Residency Law, the Constitution and regulations for household registration.

“The proposal aims to address increasing population pressure. But stricter regulations against household registration would have no effect. Immigrants would still overcrowd Hanoi without any household registration,” he said.


CALLS FOR SEPARATE VINASHIN PROBE REJECTED

Vietnam’s highest lawmaking body has rejected a request from some delegates for a separate probe into problems at Vietnam Shipbuilding Industry Group, also known as Vinashin, according to a statement on the government’s website.

“The National Assembly’s Standing committee had a discussion on March 28 on the delegates’ request and concluded that the issue has been considered and handled by relevant units of the party and the government,” according to the assembly, which concluded its last session in Hanoi Tuesday (March 29). “The National Assembly will not form a committee for the investigation.”

The government said in August that Vinashin was facing the risk of bankruptcy after it began an investigation into the company’s financial difficulties the previous month. The country’s largest shipbuilder missed a December payment on US$600 million loan from foreign investors and asked lenders for a one-year extension, Chairman Nguyen Ngoc Su said last month. The company’s debt totals $4.1 billion.

“We still think it’s necessary to have such a committee to have a closer scrutiny of Vinashin to make clearer conclusions on the case,” delegate Nguyen Minh Thuyet said in a phone interview in Hanoi.

The 500 National Assembly delegates, who have served since 2007, were presented last week with a government report which acknowledged that the Prime Minister and other top officials showed “shortcomings” in managing the nation’s top shipbuilding company. The Party Politburo concluded the mistakes weren’t serious enough to necessitate disciplinary action, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung said in his address last week at the opening of the National Assembly session.

The legislative body urges the government to speed up equitization of state-owned companies and called for “transparency” on the finances and business activities of these firms, Nguyen Phu Trong, National Assembly Chairman and newly elected Party chief, said in a speech on Tuesday.

Source: Bloomberg

According to the bill, household registration will only be allowed for contracted employees in Hanoi, those having relatives with permanent residency and those who were formerly registered with a household in the capital city.

Others who want to apply for permanent household registration must own a house in Hanoi or have a long-term lease on a house and have had temporary residence registration for at least two years.

In Vietnam, household registration acknowledges the permanent residence of a person and is used in most administrative procedures like enrolling in public schools, birth certificate registration and applying for a job.

Part of development

Jonathan Pincus, dean of the Harvard Kennedy School’s Fulbright Economics Teaching Program in Ho Chi Minh City, said labor mobility was part of development and that people have always moved to find jobs and will continue to do so.

“Most studies have shown that migration reduces income inequality because migrants send money back to rural areas. The gap between rural and urban incomes is a major cause of inequality in Vietnam, and migration helps reduce this inequality,” he told Thanh Nien Weekly.

Regarding specific regulations proposed for Hanoi, like higher investment from the government budget, Thuyet said he agreed with these kinds of regulations, but it should apply to big cities in general.

“For example, any city contributing more than targeted revenue would receive higher investment,” he said.

Before its rejection at the last legislative session, the bill had drawn heated debate among deputies and residents since it was first introduced in February 2010. The government had proposed a vote for the bill at an assembly session in May 2010 but withdrew it before the session was held.

At an assembly session last November, the bill was again criticized by many deputies who were afraid that it would be unconstitutional and widen the rich-poor gap.

The Chairman of the parliamentary Ethnic Council Ksor Phuoc said the bill conflicts with 12 laws and would turn Hanoi into an autonomous region.

With the vote against the bill, Vietnamese legislators have taken a step further to strengthen the legislature, experts said.

Carl Thayer, a Vietnam expert at the University of New South Wales in Australia, said that the National Assembly has played a key role in creating a law-governed state since 1992, when Vietnam adopted a new state constitution and election law.

“Each successive legislature has taken a step forward in enhancing the power of elected deputies. The 12th legislature has demonstrated its independence by debating the bauxite mining question, criticizing the high-speed rail project, and calling for further details of Vinashin’s finances,” he told Thanh Nien Weekly in an email.

Thayer said that the powers of the National Assembly could be further enhanced in the May elections “if more independent candidates are allowed to stand and if they are successful.”

Elections of delegates to the 13th National Assembly takes place in May.

Reported by An Dien - Minh Hung

Provide by Vietnam Travel

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