Though his voice is often heard in National Assembly (NA) debates, the Chairman of the Legal Committee   rarely talks to the press. However, VietNamNet managed to snag Nguyen Van Thuan for one of its ‘Know Your Deputy’ reports.

Deputy Nguyen Van Thuan, 58, represents Quang Nam, a central province, in the National Assembly, though he was born in Bac Ninh, near Hanoi and has long been a resident of the capital. A doctor of law, Thuan was first elected to the Assembly in 2002 and now is both a member of the NA Standing Committee and the Chairman of its Legal Committee.

VietNamNet: You are often invited to speak first during NA Standing Committee sessions. Why’s that? Do you find it difficult?

Nguyen Van Thuan: I like to think the committee wants know the opinion of the chairman of the NA’s Legal Committee about bills to ensure the constitutionality, legality and the unity of the legal system.

It is not especially difficult to speak first but what matters is whether my opinions or statements are correct.

VietNamNet: Your committee is charged with ensuring the coherence of the legal system. To fulfil that mission, does the committee review every bill? If not, how can the committee ensure the unity of the legal system?

Thuan: This is the most important mission of the NA’s Legal Committee. It is a challenge to complete that mission under current conditions. We have tried our best but actually we cannot fully satisfy the requirements.

The Legal Committee ought to verify every bill and draft ordinance but it is very difficult to convene a meeting because most of its members are only part-time deputies and they work in different locations. The committee has only six permanent members.

An even bigger problem is that most of bills are sent to our committee very late, though the regulations say otherwise.  We deputies have to do our own research work and arrange for experts to testify.  You can see that it’s difficult for the committee to fulfill its mission.

We have raised these problems annually in our work reports, but nothing changes.

VietNamNet: You’ve always been a person of the legislature, not an official. With that background, would you say you are more of a ‘straight shooter’ than those who come from the Government side? In your role as chairman of the NA’s Legal Committee, have you ever compromised?

Thuan: The NA is a deliberative body. We make decisions according to majority rule, whereas in executive agencies, the boss’s decision is final. As you suggest, before I was elected to the NA, I was one of its expert advisors for several decades, so I’ve been influenced by the outspoken and collegial atmosphere of the legislature.

I don’t know that I’m more outspoken than other members of the NA Standing Committee.  Each deputy has his or her own style.  However, I know who I am and what is my responsibility. I support the things that I believe in.

The NA is a public forum; that means it is necessary to speak both democratically and outspokenly but also to maintain a high level of civility, integrity, mutual respect and cooperation.

VietNamNet: Has the NA’s Legal Committee ever rejected a bill?

Thuan: In the last term, the committee asked the NA Standing Committee not to submit two bills – the draft Law on Real Estate and the draft Law on Registered Transactions.  After discussion, the Standing Committee decided to not put these bills to the NA for approval.

Certainly, the drafting agency was unhappy but we thought our position was in the public interest.

VietNamNet: Your committee is assigned to verify many thorny and important bills, such as the Law of the Sea, Law on the National Capital, and the pilot scheme to abolish district-level People’s Councils and the election of commune chairmen.  Do you feel heavy pressure?

Thuan: All bills are important, but in different ways. The ones just mentioned are very important and our committee worked with the drafters from the very beginning.  Verification is a critical process but it doesn’t mean you just accept or oppose something. We must find out the solutions that best fit our way of life and society.

You asked about ‘pressure.’ I suppose that would be a situation when someone wants us to agree to something that’s not reasonable.

VietNamNet: Do you worry that the voters will blame your committee for weakness when called on to review important bills and proposals, for example the expansion of Hanoi’s territory?

Objectively, the NA’s Legal Committee’s opinions are shown in its reports, which are discussed publicly and democratically in meetings and based on a scientific and practical foundation.

However, our committees and other committees of the NA only review draft bills and make recommendations.  The NA as a whole makes the decision. So if constituents criticize us, we have to accept that.

VietNamNet: For a bill to become law, it has to pass through many “doors”. If the NA makes decisions based on the majority, why do people complain that the quality of laws is not high?

Thuan: The quality of a bill depends on many factors, including the way each ‘actor’ in the legal construction process does its work, from drafting and verifying through making comments and decision.

As I have said, we often receive draft bills at the last moment, and that affects the quality of verification. But it is the drafting stage that decides the quality of a bill. There are some problems at this stage. For example, each bill has a drafing group and an editing group but the participation of group members is uneven.

Our transformation from a planned economy into a market-based economy has posed many new issues. Our contingents of policy makers are still weak. We lack many experts on basic issues that a bill requires.

VietNamNet: How do you like being judged by your constituents?

Thuan: My opinion doesn’t matter. I always think that perhaps you can hide from the eyes of some individuals, but not from the eyes of the people as a whole.

Khanh Linh 

VietNamNet: You are often invited to speak firstly in the NA Standing Committee’s sessions, why? Is it difficult?

Nguyen Van Thuan: I think the committee would like to know the opinion of the chairman of the NA’s Legal Committee about bills to ensure the constitutionality, legality and the unity of the legal system.

It is not easy or difficult for speaking first but how the opinions are, I mean whether the contents is correct or not.

VietNamNet:The responsibility of your committee is ensuring the unity of the legal system. To fulfil that mission, does the committee verify all bills, otherwise how can the committee ensure the unity?

Thuan:This is the mot important mission of the NA’s Legal Committee. It is not simple to complete that mission in the current conditions. We have tried our best but actually we cannot fully satisfy the requirements.

In principle, the NA’s Legal Committee has to verify all bills and draft ordinances but it is very difficult to convene a meeting because most of the members are concurrent deputies and they work in different locations. The committee has only six permanent members.

On the other hand, which is very important, most of bills are sent to our committee very late, falling to meet regulations. We have to do research works ourselves. In such conditions, the committee difficultly fulfils its mission.

We have talked about these matters several times, but they are not solved.

VietNamNet:As the chairman of the NA’s Legal Committee, have you ever compromised?

Thuan:The NA is a body of meetings and discussion, where make decisions based on the majority. Executive bodies work with the heads. For me, growing up from an expert who has helped the NA for several decades, I’ve influenced by the outspoken and discussing atmosphere at the NA.

I cannot say that I’m more outspoken than other members of the NA Standing Committee. Deputies have their own way of approach. I know who I’m, how is my responsibility. I support the things that I think they are true and vice versa.

The NA is a public forum so it is necessary to speak democratically and outspokenly but pay attention to cultural aspect in discussion.

VietNamNet:Has the NA’s Legal Committee rejected any bill?

Thuan:In the last term, the committee asked the NA Standing Committee to not submit two bills – the Law on estate registration and Law on registered transaction. The NA Standing Committee discussed several times and decided to not submit to the NA these bills.

Certainly, the draft agency was not satisfied but we thought our proposal was for the common interests.

VietNamNet:You are assigned to verify many thorny and important bills, such as the Law of the Sea, Law on Capital City, and the pilot scheme to abolish People’s Councils and vote for commune chairmen. Are you feel heavy pressure?

Thuan:All bills are important, but at different levels. The above bills are all very important and our committee worked with the draft committees at the beginning. Verification is criticizing but it doesn’t mean you simple critcise to reject the bills but you have to find out the most sensible solutions that are accepted by the life and society. The pressure comes from how to deal with irregular matters.

Are you afraid that constituents will blame your committee to not be firm enough when verifying important bills and schemes, for example the expansion of Hanoi?

Objectively, the NA’s Legal Committee’s opinions are shown in its reports, which are discussed publicly and democratically in meetings and based on scientific and practical foundations.

However, our committees and other committees of the NA are only responsible for verification and consult the NA. The NA as a whole makes the decision. So if any constituents criticize us, we have to sustain.

VietNamNet:To have a bill approved, it has to pass many “doors”. If the NA makes decision based on the majority, why the quality of laws is complained to not high?

Thuan:The quality of a bill depends on many factors, including the responsibility of each agency involving in the legal construction process, starting from drafting, verifying, making comments and decision.

As I have said, the sending of bills to NA’s committees is often late and it affects the quality of verification. But the drafting stage is decisive to the quality of a bill while there are some problems in this stage. For example, each bill has a draft group and editing group but the participation of group members is not equal.

On the other hand, the transformation from a planning economy into a market-based economy has posed many new things while our contingents of policy makers are still weak. We lack many experts on basic issues that a bill requires.

VietNamNet: How do you like being realised by constituents?

Thuan:It doesn’t depend on my wish. I always think that you can hide someone’s eyes, not the people’s eyes.

Khanh Linh

Despite her smattering English, Mother Dieu is always self-confident when communicating with foreigners. She likes to tell them good things and encourages them to believe in their bright future.

VnnNews - For those lucky enough to cross paths with Mother Dieu, they might get insight into their future, but be warned her powers are reserved for foreigners only.

The tiled bridge at Thanh Toan, near Hue, is a well-known tourist destination. The old bridge is not the only attraction, however. Tourists are equally eager to meet an old woman who specialises in fortune telling and is a font of knowledge when it comes to local history.

Take a rest, open your hands, and hear your fortune

7am. The early morning welcomes a series of tour cars driving foreign visitors towards Thanh Toan tiled bridge (Thuy Thanh Commune, Huong Thuy District, Thua Thien – Hue Province). A line of tourists has exited a group of Huong Giang Travel Company cars. After some picture taking, a tour guide asks “Would you like your fortune told?” A blonde-haired girl eagerly jumps at the chance.

The tour guide gently pulls the girl towards an old woman, Mother Dieu, who is well-known as the “Love fortune-teller” of Thanh Toan Bridge. The blond haired girl opens her hand, while her other lies across her heart. After turning her hand over carefully, Mother Dieu looks her in the eye and then responds at lightning speed. I don’t know what she has told the girl but all of the passengers laugh loudly and the girl’s face turns red.

Interest piqued, the group of tourists congregates around the old woman, each of them eager to hear their future. “She has a hidden talent. Every group of tourists that comes here wants their fortunes told,” an old man tells me.

I try to get closer to Mother Dieu to hear her opinions on my future love-life, but she shakes her head, raising her hand and telling me in English “No no! I only tell the fortunes of foreigners!” With my limited English, it’s difficult for me to judge how good her English really is, but I assume her gifts for fortune-telling only extend to foreigners.

Those who have been in love as foretold by Mother Dieu are very satisfied. They sit side by side telling each other about what they have heard. I am extremely curious but have no way to approach the prophet, so instead I decide to interrogate the blond girl.

Maria seems very shy and her face turns redder than ever. At last, she tells me joyfully: “She said that next year, I will have a boyfriend. This year, I like someone but because of bad luck, I haven’t met anyone right for me. She added that my boyfriend will be very handsome and manly although he will be four years younger than me.”

“Do you believe her?” I ask. The blond-haired girl laughs and nods “Of course! At the moment, although 18, I don’t have a boyfriend while all my friends have partners already. But how did she know that I don’t have a boyfriend?”

All those who have their fortune told by Mother Dieu seem in high spirits. They cheerfully narrate all of the strange things they have heard. They are willing to pay Mother Dieu for her advice and I see US$2 being dropped into her hat. Mother Dieu looks at the pleasant faces of tourists, gives a toothless smile and says “thank you very much”.

Free tour guide

Tran Thi Thanh Hang, a freelance tour guide, who often leads tourists to Thanh Toan Bridge, tells me: “Mother Dieu is something of a tourist attraction at Thanh Toan Bridge.” She also says that large numbers of tourists inquire about her when they book local tours or take xe om (motorbike taxis) out from Hue. They are curious about an old woman who can allegedly forecast the future and speak such good English.

Quite a few people express their surprise at Mother Dieu’s English, which seems far better than most of the tour guides that bring visitors to the bridge. As a child she was brought up in Thanh Toan, during American War, she worked in the laundry department at some American offices. Everyday, she had to communicate with and assist the American officers who she worked for. At first she was often reprimanded for her rustic manners, but luckily, an American officer hired her as a housekeeper. “It was here that I learnt English. For example, if he wanted me to wash his clothes, he wrote me a note that clearly translated the order from Vietnamese into English. I learnt vocabulary as well as spelling. I learned English little by little, day by day. Gradually, I learned how to use it,” Mother Dieu says.

When Hue was liberated, she married a local man and had a daughter. However, because life was so hard, Mother Dieu had to leave her hometown, bringing her child south to earn a living. With a smattering of English, Mother Dieu applied to work in a foreign restaurant, which helped to improve her English communication skills.

Since the day Mother Dieu started working on Thanh Toan Bridge, despite her fortune-telling, no one thinks of her as being particularly superstitious. “I just want tourists to feel satisfied with their lives, living towards the true, the good and the beautiful in Buddhism,” Mother Dieu says. She is also eager to explain: “Many people burst into tears after hearing their fortune. They find life more interesting and worth living. At least, they can pursue hopes and maintain happiness.”

I am actually curious about her English. Knowing that, she laughs and continues: “I don’t know if my English is grammatically correct, but foreigners seem to understand the main ideas. That’s enough!”

Day by day, with English communication skills and deep knowledge about her hometown Thanh Toan, Mother Dieu, at the age of 75, plays a role as a “free-guide”, keenly introducing tourists to their destination.

Source: Vietnam News

VietNamNet: Do you feel intimidated at National Assembly (NA) sessions because you are so young?

Huynh Thi Hoai Thu: I was nervous at the beginning but as of the second session, I had caught up with the NA’s activities. There are many young deputies in this NA (12^th NA) and they are very confident.

I hesitated to speak at the NA because I was inexperienced, but the NA held some training courses to provide necessary skills to deputies.

VNNet: Do you remember your first question at the NA?

Hoai Thu: Yes, early in 2008 I questioned Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang.  It was also Minister Hoang’s first appearance to answer questions about trade promotion and the organization of his ministry after it was formed by the merger of the former Ministry of Trade and Ministry of Industry.

VNNet: Were you nervous?

Hoai Thu: Of course,  even though I prepared my questions very carefully. But it became easier for me to speak the next times and since then whenever I have a chance, I speak up in group discussions or plenary meetings.

VNNet: What advantages does a young legislator have?

Hoai Thu: That is so difficult to answer! My work focuses on youth affairs, of course, and I have opportunities to travel a lot and meet with many people, especially the young. I understand their thinking and aspirations and can report these to Government agencies and to the NA.

Another advantage is I’m not so tired when I attend long NA sessions!

VNNet: Do you “admire” any legislators and see them as your “model”?

Hoai Thu: Yes, I’m “fan” of many deputies, especially female deputies such as Nguyen Thi Bach Mai (Tay Ninh province) or young deputy Nguyen Thi My Huong (Da Nang). They speak very convincingly. I think each deputy has his/her own advantages and I’m learning from other deputies.  In this NA term, I have been “trained” and have grown up a lot.

VNNet: Have you ever felt helpless because you couldn’t understand an issue?

Hoai Thu: When I don’t understand a matter, I ask for help from various channels until I understand it. When the NA has discussed specialized laws, for example the Law on Telecommunications and the Law on Wireless Frequencies, I only talked about the things that I thoroughly understood. Mainly then I listened to others to clearly and correctly understand the proposed laws to approve them later.

VNNet: You are the deputy secretary of Dong Thap province’s Youth Union as well as one of eight deputies who represent that province.  Are Delta youth interested in politics or NA sessions?

Hoai Thu: Many young people are indeed interested in politics and they keep track of the NA’s activities, especially issues closely related to their interests like jobs, career, studies, etc. However, not all of them care about this.

VNNet: What do they say about your activities as a legislator?

Hoai Thu: They like listening to my speeches and questions. After each session, they supply me information or ask me to speak for them at the NA, so I’ve got information taken from life.

VNNet: How much time do you spend on NA activities?

Hoai Thu: Around one third of my time. I have to try my best to arrange my Youth Union duties to have time for NA sessions!

VNNet: Is there also time for your family, your friends and for yourself?

Hoai Thu: I have to arrange my time rationally to have time for both my job and my family. When I have free time, I like reading, hiking, cooking and especially playing with my children.

VNNet: Does your husband help you?

Hoai Thu: Yes, he is very capable and shares everything with me. I gave birth to my second baby during this NA term. She attended NA meetings while she was in my womb.

VNNet: So you have had to leave your baby at home alone though she is only several months old?

Hoai Thu: She is now ten months old. When I attended the 5^th NA session, she was only seven months old and she stayed at home with my husband. I missed her very much but I couldn’t miss the NA session.

Khanh Linh 

VnnNews – Deputy Nguyen Dang Kinh, vice chairman of the Hanoi Veterans Association, regrets that many deputies who are not so busy but still find excuses to miss National Assembly meetings. Another profile in

VietNamNet’s ‘Know Your Deputy’ series.

Businessmen not exploit NA deputy status to seek profit< />

Insider view of National Assembly

A deputy with abundant experience as a minister

‘The people’s meat is the officials’ poison’

VietNamNet: You are doubly a legislator, serving as a member of the Hanoi People’s Council and as a representative for Hanoi in the National Assembly (NA). Additionally, you are vice chairman of the Hanoi Veterans Association. How do you manage all your jobs?

Nguyen Dang Kinh: I’ve been working at the Hanoi Veteran Association since 1995. Thanks to the association’s nomination, I was elected to the NA, so I cannot neglect my duties at the association.

Since 1999 I have also served on the People’s Council.  I consider all three jobs to be major jobs so it is really difficult to fulfill all of them.

However, I have attended nearly all NA meetings. I aim to be at every one, except for indispensable cases. I was only absent from one meeting at the recent 6^th NA session.

All deputies are busy, but attending NA meetings is their responsibility to their constituents.

Many people who were not so busy still absent themselves from NA meetings. Looking at those empty chairs at NA meetings, I feel ashamed sometimes.

VietNamNet: It seems that you have not spoken often in the legislature, especially after Hanoi’s expansion. . . .

Kinh: Hanoi’s current NA delegation is much bigger than many other delegations, so even if we all ask for priority, there are insufficient opportuities for everyone to speak. I still speak up at group-level discussions.

Before speaking, I feel I must do some serious research. My standard is not very high but I’m willing to learn from and listen to others who contribute valuable opinions to draft laws based on their own deep knowledge.  I can make comment on some political-social issues but not very profoundly.

When Hanoi’s expansion was discussed, I expressed my concerns but I still approved that policy.

VietNamNet: Is it a contradiction that although you didn’t completely agree with that policy, you voted to approve it?

Kinh: Actually, I expressed my worries not to protest that policy but in hope that the policy would be implemented better.

At that time, some newspapers reported that I was concerned, but I’m a party member. The Politburo had already made a decision about that issue, and also the 6^th Central Party Committee conference.

VietNamNet: What are your objectives as a legislator?

Kinh: Frankly, for the rest of this term I have to try better to meet the people’s aspirations. Perhaps I will not stand for re-election in 2012.

I think the NA needs to have more full-time deputies. I don’t agree that part-time deputies are better able to understand the situation because they also hold down administrative jobs. Through the media, it is not difficult for deputies to get information.  What’s important is how they deal with issues after they get information.

We have many laws. As a legislator, I worry about the quality of our laws. I’m unable to talk about this profoundly.

VietNamNet: Have you exchanged opinions with other deputies who are veterans?

Kinh: The current NA has five deputies elected in their capacity as veterans. We have close relations with each other.  We see each other and discuss issues of common concern before each NA session, especially the issues related to veterans. 

Duc Cat

VietNamNet: Few deputies supported the draft Law on the Elderly when it was first submitted to the National Assembly. However, it was approved smoothly at the following session. How did you accomplish that?

Deputy Nguyen Tan Trinh: This is a law on social policy. There is a difficulty related to this type of law: we have to find the money to fund it!

Though many people disagreed with the draft law, I still quietly worked on it, with a good team of editors. I went to many provinces to present the draft law to the elderly and collected their opinions. I did the same at the NA.

I didn’t have so much time to lobby but I knew where to “influence.” Visiting officials, I showed them the draft law and asked for their comments. I did the same at the Assembly’s Committee for Social Issues. 

Fifteen days before the vote, Minister of Finance Vu Van Ninh announced that his experts had done their calculations and there was enough money to fund the policy for the elderly. The biggest difficulty was solved, and the draft was approved by a large majority.

VietNamNet: How much money did it cost to draft this law?

Trinh: Altogether about 750 million dong ($45,000).

VietNamNet: You first sat in the National Assembly when you were Minister of Fisheries. What have you done for your constituents?

Trinh: A lot. Every one of my accomplishments is related to production, hunger eradication and poverty alleviation.

When I met with constituents in Thuan Hai district, I learned that a commune had planned to build an irrigation work costing 180 million dong but they were denied the budget for it for several years. I didn’t dare to promise to the local people on the spot because it would be very bad if I couldn’t realize my promise.

However, immediately when I came back to Hanoi, I talked with Minister of Irrigation Nguyen Canh Dinh and that work was completed two months later.

VietNamNet: Do you mean that that when you were concurrently a minister and a deputy, your proposals to other ministries were agreed to very quickly?  Did you have more influence than deputies who didn’t hold any position in the cabinet? 

Trinh: I had a certain advantage there.  Just as in a family — the father’s decision will be implemented faster than the decisions made by his son or daughter.

In the past, whenever I saw any problem in meetings with my constituents, I could directly tell central officials in a friendly way.  They will never listen to you if you demand that they act just because you are a minister.

VietNamNet: Now, in the 12^th NA, you are no longer a Minister. Are your petitions still acted on quickly?

Trinh: I can still do it. Initially, the draft Law on the Elderly was on the agenda of the 11^th NA but finally it was dropped. So, when I was returned to the legislature as a member of the 12^th NA, the first task that I set myself as a representative for the Association of the Elderly was getting this proposed law back on the agenda. We managed that in only two years, though many draft laws gather dust for a dozen years.

In the past, all cabinet members were NA deputies. In recent NA terms, the number of deputies who are ministers has been reduced.

VietNamNet: When you were a minister, did you have to be careful about what you said at the NA?

Trinh: During my 16 years as a minister, I was only questioned by the NA once, in 1992. I was asked why shrimp died en masse in the Mekong Delta.

When the incident happened, we met with party secretaries of the Delta provinces to learn about the case. So when deputies questioned me about it, I reported that shrimp died because farmers didn’t obey technical standards and the shrimp ponds were too crowded. The Ministry of Fisheries couldn’t solve this problem alone and it needed the cooperation of local governments.

VietNamNet: What did you promise your constituents in your electoral campaign?

Trinh: Some deputies promised firmly during their electoral campaigns that they would build schools and roads but they forgot that they need money to build these works. They promised to accomplish tasks beyond their competence.

I promised to achieve passage of a Law on the Elderly to ensure the interests for the elderly, to report constituents’ denouncations of corruption and misspending and to care about public welfare.

It is more difficult to denounce corruption than make laws.

VietNamNet: But you haven’t spoken a lot at the NA about corruption, have you?

Trinh: I certainly have! However, I take care only to raise cases where I have clear evidence.

Frankly, I don’t make a lot of noise about it combating corruption. When the heads of an organization commit corruption, it is hard to fight. The most important thing is good investigation.

VietNamNet: Knowing that it is very difficult, why did you pledge to your constituents to fight corruption and to denounce corruption?

Trinh: Legislators don’t carry out investigations. I only forward documents to investigators, after I have done some work myself.

Trinh: You were retired for several years. Why did you decide to stand again for the NA?

I ran for the 12^th NA specifically in my capacity as the new Chairman of the Association of the Elderly, and that’s the focus of my work in the legislature. Previously, I participated in the NA as a member of the Central Party Committee and a minister.

VietNamNet: In your ten years working as both a minister and a legislator, which job got priority?

Trinh: When the Assembly was in session, I had to do my ministry tasks at night. When I spoke at the NA, I had to choose issues that benefit the people.

Le Nhung  

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VietNamNet: For some time now, the national budget has been made public for National Assembly (NA) review, and in 2007 a Committee on Finance and Budget was established. You’re its vice chairman. How has the NA supervised budget spending?

Deputy Trinh Huy Quach: We’ve achieved some results in the budget area. Our reports have been highly appreciated by many deputies, because their economics is sound, opinions are clearly expressed and the data is good. They are good sources of information for deputies.

For instance, at the 6^th session of the current National Assembly, the budget deficit predictions of the Government and the NA’s Committee for Finance and Budget were different. A survey showed that 75 percent of deputies agreed with our estimate. The NA Standing Committee instructed us to seek a harmonized plan.

VietNamNet: The field of finance and budget requires accurate data but your committee has only 35 members. How do you manage?

Quach: The number of people is important but the organization of our activities and the skills of participants are more important.

The NA’s operation relies on information provided by the Government that’s verified by sources such as the State Audit Agency.  We aim to make sure that the information supplied to the NA must be sufficient, timely and well verified.

VietNamNet: Does your committee collect information itself?

Quach: The NA also has its own channels of information, such as the media, our constituents and independent experts. That’s especially helpful in case that the Government is slow to provide information.  In many cases, we have received necessary documents from the Government just one day before supervisory meetings.

In such cases, without the NA’s own sources of information, deputies wouldn’t have time to read all documents, let alone do other things.

It’s important that, in addition to increasing the number of full-time deputies, the legislature’s committees need to expand the network of freelance consultants we can call upon. We need a regular way to invite expert testimony and collect the voters’ opinions.

VietNamNet: Is your committee able to look deeply into the budgets of ministries and sectors, such as the health and education sectors?

Quach: We have tried to join with other NA committees to do this.  Monitoring budgets must be systematic. We still have to find out how to make cooperation among committees most effective.

VietNamNet: You have said that it is necessary to have a financial policy for deputies. Could you explain what you mean?

Quach: For example, if a committee is allocated a budget for its operations, part of it should be allocated to deputies for their individual expenses. For example, deputies could hire experts and secretaries to use for each investigation, spending up to $2000 or 20 million dong a year for this.

This mechanism wouldn’t require any more funds, but would make more effective and flexible use of resources.

VietNamNet: You are very busy with the job at your committee.  How do you manage your meetings with constituents in Bac Kan province?

Quach: Constituents are paying more attention to the NA’s activities. We have tried to make timely reports of their aspirations and opinions to the Government and related agencies in suitable forms, including the NA’s forums.

But I think that we need to change the way we meet with constituents, enabling deputies to directly meet with them. The group “electoral colleges” and other formal meetings aren’t very effective.

VietNamNet: Are you afraid that your Bac Kan constituents may say that they don’t see you speaking up much for them?

Quach: Each deputy should be aware of his responsibility to intervene with Government agencies on his constituents’ behalf, and and tell the constituents about the results.

I always try to mention my constituents’ aspirations in my speeches.

However, I think that besides my duties at the Committee for Finance and Budget, I need to spend more time to meet with my constituents to live up to their trust in me.

Le Nhung

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Deputy urges tighter oversight of use of state assets

VietNamNet: You have known many battlefields: Quang Tri, the Tet 1968 campaign, Southern Laos and the Central Highlands, the war-ending Ho Chi Minh campaign and the fighting on our southwestern and northern borders.  Was the switch from soldiering to legislating difficult?

Deputy Le Quang Binh: I’ve lived nearly my whole life as a soldier. I joined the NA because I was nominated by the army, assigned by the Party, and elected by the people. If I had the power to choose, I would not have chosen to become a legislator.

The life of a soldier is hard but duties and authority are very clear; everything is subject to rules. Becoming a legislator, I can get a lot of information and travel to many countries, but it is difficult to work effectively at the National Assembly.

I want to do my best but sometimes it is difficult to do as I hope. The NA is the highest power body, our law says so, but it is very difficult to put the law into practice.

VietNamNet: Why’s that?

Binh: Our law says that the NA is the supreme agency, with many missions and rights: making and amending the Constitution and laws, making decisions about the country’s vital issues, supervising at the highest level the state apparatus. However, all of these jobs are unclear.

For example, both the Constitution and the law refer only generally to the defence and security field.  For specific matters, sometimes the Party issues resolutions, sometimes the Government issues regulations and in either case, the NA’s Committee for Defence and Security wasn’t consulted.

We are tasked to do the supervisory work but how can we do that if the law just makes general stipulations and we don’t have specific regulations about this job?

VietNamNet: You were once a Major General and the Commander of the III Army Corps (Central Highlands).  How does that job compare to being a Chairman of an Assembly Committee?

Binh: In both cases, you work for the same goal: the interests of the nation, based on the Constitution and the laws.

In the army, the subordinates have to follow orders but at the NA, no one supervises anybody. Its effectiveness and the managerial result, therefore, are different.

In the army, in a campaign, the time for liberating a city is fixed. During that period, you know how many soldiers, vehicles, weapons you can use. If you win, you are rewarded with a medal; if you lose, you lose your position.

The job at the NA sounds pretty soft but it turns out to be very difficult. I’ve been a legislator for nearly three terms and even if I’m a legislator for several terms more, I will not be praised no matter how well I do my job. There’s little encouragement, and not much criticism either. I’m my own sternest critic.

In principal, we can have a vote of confidence, but since the regulation on votes of confidence was issued, we have not had any such votes.

VietNamNet:  At a recent NA session, you “requested” the Government to send a report about bauxite mining projects in the Central Highlands to deputies. Do you frequently have to ask the government to supply information?

Binh: It is an ordinary thing to make such a request of the Government. The Government proposes the legislative agenda but to carry it out, the NA has to regularly push the Government and make requests. We often lack information because documents are often sent to us just a few days before NA meetings.  Deputies therefore don’t have sufficient time to investigate and verify information.

We often joke among ourselves that working as a deputy is like running a restaurant. Sometimes we wait and wait for business, other times – when the documents are in hand – we work night and day.

Some people say that with the current law-making procedures, the interests of ministries and sectors are “embedded” in the laws. With such a short time to assess proposed legislation, how can the NA’s committees filter out these special interests?

The Government decides it wants a certain law, then it sends the idea to a specific ministry. The ministry officials work on it, and send it to a deputy minister for review, and then ultimately it gets to down to a few concerned officials. The drafting committees are large, but in fact there are just a few people who do the work. When a law is made that way, there are plenty of opportunities to take care of one’s interests and it’s easy to evade responsibility.

The Government assigns the Ministry of Justice to guard the door, check the work. The National

Assembly also has a committee to verify and harmonize interests. In the final analysis, however,  we are quite acquiescent. The typical thing is that the ministries that preside over the compilation of a law fight to gain power while sticking others with the duties and responsibility.

The time from submitting to ratifying a law is so short that the quality of our laws is not high. 

VietNamNet: Back to your own work as a deputy. Is it true that deputies have many channels to get information but the voters only know about their deputies’ work through their speeches at the Assembly?

Binh: In my experience, the people keep a close eye on the work of their province or city NA delegations. Thanh Hoa province voters have praised deputy Le Van Cuong for his outspoken speeches. They also have criticised deputies who don’t speak up and even doze during sessions.

Constituents mainly know about their deputies via the media and while the Assembly is in session. They don’t know what the deputies do every day, except when deputies meet with constituents or participate in the Assembly debates.

However, t some deputies work hard, but do their talking elsewhere. Deputies also observe each other. Many senior officials don’t want to make speeches because they’ve already been in many meetings [on a draft law] and have nothing new to say.

In the 10^th NA, I spoke out sharply about corruption and slacking off. I haven’t done that so much recently.  The fact is – and I’m not blaming anyone here – we can talk all we want, but who’s listening?

NA deputies give information to the media. Sometimes the reporters get it right, and sometimes they don’t. In the latter case, it’s the deputy, not the reporter, who gets blamed. What a mess!

NA deputies have to speak out, but if we are sharp in our remarks, our officials take offense.

Then there are some people who don’t want NA deputies to speak out. There are cases where deputies who spoke out at the NA who were summoned by their provinces’ officials and admonished to speak more carefully.

So to speak out or not is the common concern of deputies. Former NA Chairman Nguyen Van An often said that ‘the people’s meat is the officials’ poison.’

Of course, at the Assembly, deputies must speak out, but everyone says that (whether they speak out or not) it’s ‘for the people.’ Either making a fuss or letting sleeping dogs lie – that’s ‘for the people.’ 

What should be public, what kept secret?  That’s not clear at the NA either. In the army, preparation for a battle is secret, but when the battle begins, everything is public. At the NA, I don’t know when the time to keep secrets ends.

VietNamNet: How about decision-making at the NA? What do NA deputies need to make good decisions?

Binh: First, the quality of NA deputies must be improved. The voice of deputies has to carry weight in their own provinces. If they don’t dare to “touch” directors of local departments, how can they be NA deputies?

The second is that the NA needs sufficient time to evaluate and verify bills. Draft laws need to be sent to deputies earlier.

When the competence of deputies is not high and they have little time for preparation, they will look to others to make decisions.

VietNamNet: What is it that bothers you the most?

Binh:  Thinking about how the Assembly can really wield power, do high quality work, not just go through the motions. In my three terms as a deputy, I’ve seen some progress in that direction.

The interpellation (Q&A) was quite unsatisfactory during the 10^th Assembly. The Prime Minister never participated, just handed down his opinions like from on high, not as though he was reporting to the people who elected him. It’s different now. Even so, it’s still quite difficult for the legislature to exercise its role as the supreme institution of government.

VietNamNet:  What should we do so the NA is really the body of highest power?

Binh: Once again, the quality of our deputies must be improved.

Even more important, the Party should renovate the way of leadership. Leaders must know how to listen to the opinions of individual deputies and the NA before it makes decisions.

Asking for and listening to the NA’s opinions, before the Party finally makes decisions, doesn’t in any way reduce the role of the Party.

Let’s take, for example, the matter of Hanoi’s expansion. It would have been better if the Party had instructed the Government to submit the plan on Hanoi’s expansion to the NA with plenty of time for democratic discussion. The Party should have listened to a spectrum of opinions and finally issued its Resolution on the expansion, after which the Assembly could have approved the plan based on the policy agreed with the Party.

It ought to be the same with personnel matters. The National Assembly elects the President, the PM and the members of its Standing Committee. It approves cabinet members.

The Party should set standards, norms and even propose specific persons for the NA to discuss, but not as a fait accompli. The Central Party Committee and the Politburo ought to listen to the NA’s opinions and then make its decision. After that, the NA can elect key personnel based on the Party’s resolution.

If the above procedures are implemented, the NA will continue to develop and improve its operations effectively.

Phuong Loan

VietNamNet: Your home is in Ha Dong district, far from your office in Ba Dinh district (downtown Hanoi). How do you get to the office every day? 

Deputy Nguyen Van Luat: My family has lived in Ha Dong since 1991. I ride a motorbike to my office.  When it is rainy or too cold, I call a taxi. I can ask for a Government car but I want to take initiative at work.

Deputies of the 11th NA shared state cars but it was very inconvenient. This term, to economize, full-time NA deputies like me are allocated four million dong a month as traveling expenses.

VietNamNet: You were head of the Judicial Science Institute of the People’s Supreme Court when you were elected. Which job do you like better?

Luat: The Judicial Science Institute assists the council of judges and leaders of the People’s Supreme Court to build legal interpretations, research precedents, etc. That agreed with me because I love researching.

The People’s Supreme Court appointed me to stand for the 12^th NA. I was elected and become a full-time deputy. My job at the Justice Committee also deals with activities of the court. My experience is brought into full play as a deputy so I’m very interested in my current job.

VietNamNet: Your previous work had to do with drafting laws so you surely must have worked with NA deputies. What was your impression?

Luat: When I worked at the Judicial Science Institute, I attended many NA meetings. I saw that many deputies prepared very carefully and spoke very confidently, speaking for the people. I sometimes tried to put myself in their position but I never thought that I would be a deputy. It is a big surprise, but that experience helps me to be more confident when I do the job of a deputy.

VietNamNet: The National Assembly supervises the People’s Supreme Court, where you used to work.  Now you supervise your previous agency. How do you feel about that?

Luat: It is very interesting. When you are commented on and criticized by others, you sometimes feel offended, especially when the Assembly doesn’t understand your difficulties and lacks sympathy. Now, whenever I speak, I always try to contribute my opinions objectively while showing my sympathy to the agencies whose work I discuss.

VietNamNet: Do you ever “mistake your role” and speak for your previous agency?

Based on my experience, I always try to explain to other deputies how the court operates and the difficulties it faces. It is important to have objective opinions.

VietNamNet: Is it difficult for you to oversee the work of your former bosses?

Luat: The relationships must be clear to avoid anyone’s misunderstanding that I’m not objective. Personally, my relations with former colleagues are very good. I still help colleagues with my experience in document drafting.

VietNamNet: An important duty of the Justice Committee is reviewing judgments of cases. Do you see many cases in which the court is wrong?

Luat: Last year the Justice Committee received more than 5000 complaints about judgments. The committee researched complaints and asked for reports from related agencies.

The committee set up supervisory groups to reconsider judged cases. A number of cases were judged incorrectly. Many complaints were solved after discussion with the agencies involved. The only cases we cannot require be reconsidered are those decided by the People’s Supreme Court.  

That could change, by the way. We are working with the People’s Supreme Court and the People’s Supreme Procuracy to make amendments to the Procedural Law, the Civil Law, and the Law on Administrative Procedures.

VietNamNet: Were you nervous when you spoke to the NA for the first time?

Luat: Yes, because I was not used to a big forum like the NA, where so many Party and State leaders and journalists are present. But I gradually made good of it by preparing an outline of my ideas. It is most important to be brief and to the point.

VietNamNet: After three years as a deputy, are you more confident? Many deputies have become “celebrities” who are known by the public.

I’m confident now. Many deputies who have worked in the NA for many years and understand constituents’ concerns and speak for them have won the heart of constituents. For example, my delegation includes Danh Ut, a dynamic Khmer deputy who is widely known by the people. I have to learn from such deputies to model the lifestyle of a representative of the people, who speaks for the people.

VietNamNet: Do you aim to become a star in the Assembly?

Luat: I think all deputies want to be outstanding representatives of the people. That is also my goal. I wouldn’t want to be just an average deputy.

Khanh Linh

Traditional mortician Nguyen Quyen.

In Hue City, dead people are often kept at home for seven to ten days before they are buried. It’s Quyen’s job to keep them dry and smelling sweet.

Elderly people in Hue praise Quyen as the ‘best of the best’ who do this job in the old imperial  capital.

A unique trade

The people of Hue consider that ‘alive, we rely on our muscles; dead, we rely on our bones.’ It is their custom to wait a week or more before burying their loved ones, to allow visitors to pay their respects to the dead.

A VietNamNet reporter met Quyen at his home on his third try. “Such a pity!  I wasn’t able to see you for several days,” Quyen explained, “because so many people have died recently. I and my team have been very busy”!

He said that his work, khâm liệm (literally, ‘laying someone in a coffin), is a complicated and lengthy procedure to ensure peace for the dead.

The corpse must be placed in a room lighted by oil lamps, and covered by a sedge mat. Quyen and other craftsmen like him will carefully perform each task: combing the hair, washing the face and the body, perfectly clean; then coating the inside of the coffin with a mixture of gasoline and cha phà, a resin taken from a forest tree.  Next, he will paste red paper into the coffin and scatter a layer of aloe wood ash onto its bottom.

Then the mortician’s team will transfer the body into the coffin. One will support the head, another the legs of the dead while four others hold two pieces of white cloth to lower the body into the coffin. If the family of the dead wants to put gold, silver or other keepsakes into the coffin, they must be wrapped in paper.  

Quyen has done this job for 25 years. His family have been morticians for four generations.

Quyen followed his father and uncles to funerals from the time he was 13. He quickly learnt his trade and was able do it alone when he was 23.

The first corpse Quyen cleaned and laid into a coffin was his grandfather’s, because before the old man died, he told Quyen: “When I am dead, you must lay me down in the coffin!”  

A well-paid but thankless job

Each precinct of Hue city has one or two establishments that perform mortuary services in the traditional way.  Quyen’s now In addition, there are several groups of people who do this job.

Quyen’s been a mortician for nearly 25 years. He recently opened his own funeral service company, Hien Duc. This company provides kham liem, exhumation and other services related to the dead. Hien now has a big house and three vehicles used in the business.

Quyen recalled his most memorable case: “Ten years ago, a man who suffered from critical cirrhosis was killed by a car accident. The victim’s family invited many people to put him into coffin but they all refused because it was too horrible. They insisted that I come; after several entreaties, I accepted. I had to pick up handfuls of meat and pieces of bones to put into the coffin.”

According to Quyen, kham liem services are rarely performed for accident victims, paralytic people and especially those who have died of AIDS, whose bodies typically are very smelly and ulcerated.

In many cases, Quynh has had to rejoin the heads, arms and legs of the dead to ease the pain of the deceased person’s family. In one case, he used a coconut to replace the missing head of a dead man, with the agreement of the family.

The price for preparing the body for burial is at least 500,000 dong. It is higher for special cases, such as those who have died of accidents or diseases.

“We don’t take much money from poor families,” explained a Hien Duc worker, Le Van Khai. “This is honest work. We treat all dead bodies the same!”

“But even so, people often avoid us” added Quyen.  “Before we home, we have to wash carefully.”

He said that many people are repelled by his craft, but though he experiences prejudice, he won’t abandon it. He needs the income, and he’s performing an essential service, Quyen says. 

Nguyen Binh