Vietnam should learn from other countries’ experience and clarify its specific demand and circumstance to select the most appropriate model for a national human rights body, an expert has said. At a symposium in Hanoi on September 25, Vice Director at the Hanoi Law University Chu Manh Hung continued to say that the model of a national human rights agency varies by political and socio-economic systems and there is no such thing as a common model for all nations. Vietnam needs to ensure representation in its national human rights agency, said Vice Dean of the university’s Faculty of Public International Law Nguyen Thi Hong Yen, adding that will help guarantee…
Tourists say visa waiver too short
The Government’s new visa exemption policy for travellers from five European countries could boost tourism better if it was for longer than 15 days, tour operators and visitors have said. The Government has applied the waiver for visitors from Britain, Italy, Germany, Spain and France for one year period starting from July 1 this year. After the decision became effective, international tourists increased by 12.1 per cent in July and an additional 12 per cent in August, according to statistics from the Viet Nam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT). The decision was seen as a way of improving tourism after 13 consecutive months of decline. In June, visitors from France…
Subways become a joy for pedestrians
The capital city’s 23 pedestrian tunnels or subways, once often filled with rubbish, described as unclean, unsanitary and even sleazy, have been upgraded and fully utilised. Deputy director of the upgrade project, Nguyen Duc Giang, said the average commuter flow through each tunnel was 500 to 5,000 people a day. The most used tunnel, near My Dinh parking place in Tu Liem district, is used by up to 5,000 pedestrians a day. Nguyen Thu Huong, a student at the Finance College, said the tunnels were now clean and popular. She said that before they were built a few years ago, people had to cross roads packed with vehicles. Early this…
Vietnam, Spain ink legal assistance treaty in criminal matters
A treaty on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters between Vietnam and Spain was signed in the latter’s capital city of Madrid on September 18. The deal, inked by Prosecutor General of the Supreme People’s Procuracy Nguyen Hoa Binh and Spanish Minister of Justice Rafael Catala Polo, is intended to better mutual legal assistance activities relating to criminal issues between the two countries’ relevant agencies. The Spanish minister said the treaty is an important legal framework and basis for the two sides to cooperate more effectively in preventing and fighting crimes, especially trans-national organised ones. It also concretises both sides’ international commitments to combating crimes as well as their responsibility…
National employment programme reviewed
About 800 job fairs have been organised nationwide since 2011, through which approximately 8 million job seekers were provided with consultation and job vacancies and 3 million of them actually found employment as a result. The information was revealed at a conference to review the National Target Programme on Employment and Vocational Training in the 2012-2015 period held in the central province of Binh Thuan on September 18 with the participation of representatives from job placement centres and labour departments of 32 provinces in the southern region. As of 2015, the programme has accomplished the goal of raising the ratio of workers recruited via job placement centres to 37.89 percent,…
Judicial reform committee looks towards better activities
The Central Steering Committee for Judicial Reform convened its 22nd session in Hanoi on September 18 to scrutinise projects on combating negative phenomena in judicial activities. At the working session, representatives of the Supreme People’s Court (SPC) and the Supreme People’s Procuracy (SPP) presented reports on the projects, which feature the situation and solutions to the negative phenomena in their own field. In its project, the court pointed to a range of shortcomings remained in the sector such as the low quality of judgment and violations of regulations committed by court officials. To overcome such limitations, the project mapped out a package of solutions, including building and finalising legal documents…
HCM City moves polluting factories
Ho Chi Minh City authorities are speeding up the relocation of polluting factories from the downtown area and stepping up efforts to protect canals – many of which have been cleaned — to improve the living environment. Tat Thanh Cang, Deputy Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee, also recently called on the Department of Natural Resources and Environment to work with the police and local authorities in Districts 8, 9, Thu Duc, Tan Phu, and Binh Thanh to closely monitor factories for pollution. The city is determined to move the remaining six seriously polluting companies from the downtown area, a task it has been trying to accomplish for several years.…
Vietnam, Japan issue joint vision on relations, ink six deals
Vietnam and Japan on September 15 issued a statement on a join vision for their relations on the occasion of Vietnamese Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong’s official visit to Japan from September 15-18. Vietnam affirmed that Japan continues to be its leading and long-term partner while Japan said it treasures Vietnam’s position in its foreign policy in Asia-Pacific. The two countries asserted their determination to promote their all-round relationship across the board in the interests of their people to contribute to peace, stability, cooperation and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region and the world. Earlier, Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe witnessed the signing…
Vietnam, UK deepen educational bonds
Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh reiterated education is Vietnam’s top national policy while attending the Vietnam-UK Education Forum held in London, the UK, on September 11. The forum looking to establish bilateral sustainable education partnership brought together representatives from leading 100 universities and academic organisations from both sides. Deputy PM Ninh also told participants that the training of human resources of high calibre has been defined as one of the strategic breakthroughs being pursued by Vietnam to achieve sustainable development and integration, expecting the forum would foster partnerships in this regard. He informed that under the law on higher education issued in 2012, local universities are working to strengthen…