VNA Central committee holds second plenum The second plenum of the Ninth Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), that took place in Hanoi on June 9 and 10, agreed to Party General Secretary Nong Duc Manh's proposal not to hold the post as the National Assembly (NA) Chairman. Party General Secretary Nong Duc Manh delivered speeches at the opening and closing ceremonies. The session made a presentation of personnel to the Ninth session of the tenth NA for consideration to elect to the NA Chairmanship in accordance with the country's Constitution and laws. The session also discussed reports on the country's socio-economic situation in the first six months of 2001 and the tasks for the next six months, a project on Son La hydro-power plant and other issues. The CPV Central Committee were unanimous in orientations and major measures to be taken to speed up sustainable socio-economic development. They required Party Committees at all levels to concentrate efforts on effectively guiding the implementation of the Resolution of the Ninth National Party Congress, thus creating emulation movements in all levels and agencies, and among people of all walks of life to successfully fulfil the targets of this year's national socio-economic development and create momentum for the development in the following years. (VNA) **** Party leader urges immediate translation of Party Resolution into reality General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nong Duc Manh has urged for strong action so as to successfully implement the Ninth National Party Congress Resolution in 2001, the first year of the five-year plan. The Party leader was delivering a closing speech at a two-day session of the Party Central Committee in Hanoi on June 10, the second since the Ninth National Party Congress held in April. He said the most important task of the entire Party was to immediately translate the Ninth Party Congress Resolution into the daily life and successfully implement the Resolution right in the first year of the five-year plan up to 2005 and the 10-year Strategy for Socio-Economic Development up to 2010. It was predicted that challenges and difficulties would be even bigger in the months to come. Therefore, the tasks for the remaining period of the year were heavier for the entire Party and the entire people, who had no other way than to make greater efforts to obtain the socio-economic targets for 2001, Mr Manh emphasised. He went on by saying that the Party Central Committee had discussed and reached an overwhelming consensus on, and made recommendation, to major guidelines mapped out by the government's Party Board for successfully implementing socio-economic targets for 2001. "Those guidelines mostly attached importance to self-reliance efforts, tapping strength of all economic sectors with focus to be laid on further reforming and raising the efficiency of State enterprises and co-operatives. "Efforts should be made to push up economic restructuring, develop products of high competitiveness and promote marketing campaigns. "External economy should be efficiently expanded, including efforts to encourage, support and create all best possible conditions to boost export operations and draw in foreign investment, spur demand in both investment and consumption. "Efforts should also be geared to settlement of social affairs while increasing economic growth." "Support in agricultural production and marketing farm produce, exemption of agricultural land use tax for poor farmers, reduction of tax rates levied on rice and coffee-growing land, and investment in poverty alleviation projects would not only aim to remedy in part difficulties posed to farmers and solve social issues but also to spur demand in the interest of economic growth. "Under these guidelines, measures taken to meet socio-economic targets in 2001 would also mean concretising the Ninth Party Congress Resolution and serving the process of implementing the document, thus meeting the demand of the current development stage both at home and in the world." The Party General Secretary also mentioned the Son La hydro-electric project, describing it a national-scale work of prime importance. He stressed that the Son La hydro-electric project has, therefore, been thoroughly studied by responsible agencies for almost 20 years. The Politburo has approved the project and stressed on an absolute safety of the project and it has asked for a well-organised resettlement of the locals and sound policy towards people of minority groups, which should be considered as important as the project itself, the Party leader said. Mr Manh called for a regular effort to build up the Party, describing it a key factor in the Party's leadership and guideline task. Party cells at all levels should regularly compare notes of their organisation works with the demand for the Party building and rectification tasks, the Party chief said. He asked them to find out what has been left undone so as to work out efficient measures. In this regard, the Party leader pointed out that officials and public employees had to register their property according to the guidelines and regulations of the government. Candidates for any promotion, regardless to posts in Party, State or mass organisations, all had to list their property in their personal dossiers as a condition for consideration of promotion, the Party General Secretary stressed. (VNA) **** PM wraps up Japan visit Vietnam's government delegation led by Prime Minister Phan Van Khai left Tokyo on June 8, concluding their five-day working visit to Japan. While in Japan, Prime Minister Khai held talks with his Japanese counterpart Junichiro Koizumi, met with politicians, government officials, representatives of economic-financial groups, and the Japanese friendship organisation on the sideline of the seventh 'Future of Asia' conference. During his talks with the Japanese prime minister, Mr Khai extended congratulations to Koizumi on his election as President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). He highly valued Japan's important position and role in keeping peace and stability in the region and the world, and affirmed Vietnam's policy to constantly strengthen and develop a long-term partnership with Japan. PM Koizumi expressed his high appreciation for the Vietnamese people's achievements in the on-going renovation process. He affirmed that Japan will continue to assist Vietnam's renewal process through its ODA as well as co-operation in information technology and other fields. Speaking to LDP General Secretary and President of the Japan-Vietnam Parliamentarians' Friendship League T Yamasaki, Mr Khai said that Japan's multi-faceted assistance to Vietnam has played an important role in Vietnam's renewal process. In return, Mr Yamasaki said that Japan has attached importance to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and attended to boosting its relationship with Vietnam, a country with a great potential for development. While meeting with Japanese Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa on June 7, Mr Khai expressed his thanks to and high appreciation of the Japanese Finance Ministry's role in helping Vietnam with ODA and special aid in Japanese yen and implement the Miyadawa programme. He said that such grants have effectively contributed to building socio-economic infrastructure in Vietnam. Mr Shiokawa pledged that Japan will continue assisting Vietnam. He said he hoped that Vietnam would send more students to study in Japan. thus contributing to training human resources and further tightening the relationship between the two countries, especially between the young generations. On June 6, Prime Minister Phan Van Khai received H Yasuda, Chairman of the Japanese Bank for International co-operation (JBIC). Khai expressed thanks to JBIC for its assistance to Vietnam in building infrastructure facilities and requested that it continue to help Vietnam in other areas, such as energy development, education, healthcare, rural development, and information. The JBIC Chairman expressed his pleasure to see Vietnam effectively use Japan's ODA and his organisation's pride in contributing to Vietnam's development process. He also said that Japan plans to invest in infrastructure construction, structural reform, and poverty reduction programmes. While receiving K Sato, chairman of the Japanese International Co-operation Agency (JICA) on the same day, Mr Khai thanked the chairman for his agency's all-round support to Vietnam, particularly the flood-stricken areas. Regarding Japan's experiences in educational development in the post-war period, PM Khai asked JICA to continue helping Vietnam overcome consequences left by the war, particularly in implementing the universalisation of junior high school education in the next ten years. Prime Minister Phan Van Khai noted that with JICA's assistance, Vietnam has built more schools and hospitals. He said he hoped that JICA would also help Vietnam in personnel training. The JICA Chairman said JICA considers Vietnam as one of the important countries in the region and that his organisation will continue attaching importance to co-operative relations with Vietnam. He praised the efforts made by the Vietnamese government in educational development and the Vietnamese people's fine qualifications. He said that JICA has made a plan to send experts to study education in Vietnam. Also on this occasion, Mr Khai received the wife and daughter of Japan's late Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi, former Prime Minister Murayama, the Chairman of the Special Committee for Economic Co-operation of LDP, and the President of the Federation of Japanese Economic Organisations (Keidanren). He held working sessions with Representative Watanabe, the former Japanese Ambassdors to Vietnam Matano and Takashi Nakamura, and representatives of the Japan-Vietnam Friendship Organisations. In the framework of the working visit, Prime Minister Phan Van Khai met with President of the Presidium of the Japanese Communist Party (JCP) Central Committee Tetsuzo Fuwa on June 5. He expressed his pleasure at the close relations between the two parties and spoke of Vietnam's great achievements in implementing its renewal policy. The JCP President expressed his admiration for President Ho Chi Minh and said that the Japanese Communist Party always pays attention to the activities of the Communist Party of Vietnam and is interested in Vietnam's path to socialism. He said he highly valued Vietnam's role in the region. In the afternoon of June 4, Prime Minister Khai and his entourage visited the Vietnamese Embassy in Japan. (VNA) **** Buddhist Most Venerable posthumously honoured Independence Order The State has posthumously conferred on Most Venerable Kim Cuong Tu the Independence Order, second class, for his efforts to mobilise Buddhists in building both country and the Vietnam Buddhist Shangha. Kim Cuong Tu was a deputy to the National Assembly for three consecutive legislatures from the Eighth to the 10th, member of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, member of the Sangha Council, Vice President of the Executive Council of the Vietnam Buddist Shangha, Dean of the Vietnam High School of Buddhism, and Director of the Institute for Propagation of Buddhism. He was also member of the Hanoi People's Council, Vice President of the Hanoi Fatherland Front Chapter, member of the northern Hai Phong port city's Fatherland Front Central Committee, Vice President of the Standing Board of the Executive Council of the Hanoi Shangha, and Master-monk of Tran Quoc pagoda in Hanoi. Present at the order-presenting ceremony were former advisor of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Do Muoi, Head of the Government Commission for Religious Affairs Le Quang Vinh; and Head of the Vietnam Buddhist Shangha, Most Venerable Thich Tam Tinh; and many other senior Government officials and Buddhist Most Venerables. (VNA) **** Meeting marks Russian Federation's national day A meeting was held in Ho Chi Minh City on June 8 by the Union of Friendship Organisations and the Vietnam-Russia Friendship Association of the city to mark the 11th National Day of the Russian Federation (June 12). Present at the meeting were the municipal People's Committee Vice Chairman Le Minh Nhut and Russian Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City Yuri Graschenkov. Addressing the meeting, the Vietnam-Russia Friendship Association President Hoang Huu Nghia noted that the traditional friendship between Vietnam and Russia has always been maintained and developed over the past half -century, saying that it will be raised to a new height in all fields- political, economic, scientific - technological, cultural, and military. The same day, Russian Consul General Yuri Graschenkov and his wife tendered a banquet in honour of their country's National Day. (VNA) **** Localities prepare for floods and storms Localities in northern region of the country are fully prepared for the coming storm and flood season, with all dykes and flood control facilities being reinforced. Statistics released by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said 19 provinces and cities from Ha Tinh northward have used at least 2,112,117 cubic metres of soils and rocks to reinforce dykes and flood control facilities as of May 31, fulfilling the target set for the year. Thirteen provinces and cities completing their dykes reinforcement programme on time are Vinh Phuc, Bac Ninh, Ninh Binh, Bac Giang, Nam Dinh, Phu Tho, Ha Nam, Hai Duong, Quang Ninh, Haiphong, Hanoi, Ha Tinh and Ha Tay. Thanh Hoa province is also about to complete its reinforcement job. Thai Nguyen, Thai Binh, Hung Yen, Nghe An and Hoa Binh have nearly completed their tasks with over 90% of assigned work done, with the unfinished parts coming from unforeseen and additional assignments. _________________________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. Box 66 00841 Helsinki Phone +358-40-7177941 Fax +358-9-7591081 http://www.kominf.pp.fi General class struggle news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe mails to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Geopolitical news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] __________________________________________________
