VNA The on-going National Assembly (NA) session yesterday continued with minister, head of the Government's Organisation and Personnel Department, minister of Public Security and head of the People's Supreme Court. Minister, head of the Government's Board for Organisation and Personnel, Do Quang Trung, was questioned on examination for a higher scale for teachers, examination for State employees; the strengthening of local administrations and mechanism; policy for local authorities and the reduction of State's employees. Minister of Public Security Le Minh Huong answered NA deputies' questions on drug-related crimes, solutions for the fight against these crimes; negative behaviours among several policemen, particularly traffic policemen; the responsibility of the police force in economic cases; forced confession, corporal punishment while investigating crimes and that adolescent drug addicts and HIV/AIDS carriers are to be sent to rehabilitation centres. Head of the People's Supreme Court Trinh Hong Duong was questioned on some complex cases and wrong-doings of local courts. **** Farm produce primary concern: PM Prime Minister Phan Van Khai affirmed that sales of farm produce has been the primary concern of people, agencies, and sectors over the recent past. At the NA session on June 18, he stressed that, under the timely instruction of the government, which discussed the issue at almost all working sessions since the end of 2000, the consumption of farm produce has shown optimistic signs. However, basic measures are much needed to bring about sustainable benefits to farmers - a main part of Vietnam's population, who are facing numerous difficulties in life. The PM put stress on two basic measures: first, carrying out fast, simultaneous, and practical restructuring of agriculture in addition to effective support in the supply of strains, capital, and techniques for farmers; and second, encouraging those businesses which are directly involved in agricultural production and dissolving of those which work as intermediaries and cause losses to farmers. Agricultural production, he said, has to be organised on the basis of concrete contracts which cover production as well as sales and are directly signed with farmers. On the import and assembly of motorbikes, the PM said that the government advocates building Vietnam's motorbike industry in the next few years with a gradual increasing rate of localisation. Although Vietnam had an engineering industry during the years of war, the industry has not been developed in recent years, and, as a result, the country has to import many engineering products. He admitted that the government had made a mistake in removing quotas from the import of motorbike parts, leading to massive imports in the recent past, and causing difficulties to the local industry. The PM pointed out that banking reform was one of the key issues in the government's macro-direction, and that it is now necessary to create favourable conditions for the population and businesses to get loans for production. He, therefore, asked the banking sector to improve the quality of their operation and diversify the forms of lending so that all feasible projects could be granted loans. PM Khai also asked relevant agencies to exercise stricter control of labour export. He said that recently labour exporters had operated freely without strict control by relevant agencies, thus causing damage to both the State and workers while losing credibility from potential labour markets. The PM urged labour exporters to ensure that would-be guest workers are trained in the occupations and languages of the countries they will go to. He said they should also pay attention to the export of specialists and highly-skilled workers. On the direction of economic operations in the remaining months of this year, PM Khai stressed that it is necessary to take effective measures to boost production and services while paying special attention to expanding markets for export and making long-term investment in occupying markets. He also drew the sectors and localities' attention to making in-depth investment in highland areas. (VNA) **** Vietnam welcomes establishment of SCO Vietnam welcomes the establishment of the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation (SCO), said Vietnamese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Phan Thuy Thanh. She was answering a Chinese Xin Hua News Agency correspondent's question about Vietnam's reaction to the establishment of the SCO in Shanghai on June 15 by China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kirgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. She said Vietnam hoped that the SCO would make a positive contribution to peace, stability, co-operation, and development in the region and the world. (VNA) **** Highlanders benefit from EU-assisted malaria control project Giving health care to people in Dak Ro Va commune, Kon Tum. The number of malaria patients in Central Highlands Kon Tum province has halved to 8,230 after three years of implementing a malaria control project assisted by the European Commission. The mortality rate reduced from 7.6 per 100,000 people in 1998 to 1.58 per 100,000 last year. Kon Tum is one of the 11 provinces that benefited from the EC project, which provided them with facilities, helped them to raise capacity in planning management, ran activities within the project, and spread information on malaria control to people. Located in the northern Central Highlands, Kon Tum is prone to malaria. Its nine communes bordering Laos and Cambodia and 30 remote communes have a population of 314,000 with 54% of them of ethnic minority groups and almost all living off the trade of forest products. (VNA) **** International community helps mitigate natural calamities The Embassy of Netherlands, the United Nations Development Programme and the World Bank will help mitigate natural calamities in the Central Vietnam. This was committed in an agreement reached on June 19 in Hoi An central town. Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Huu Phat, the People's Committee chairman of Quang Nam province, together with representatives of above-said organisations signed the agreement. This is part of a programme of the Vietnamese government, which aims at looking for assistances from international community, international financing institutions, donors and non-governmental organisations in the disaster mitigation for the central part, including Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue, Da Nang, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai and Binh Dinh provinces. _________________________________________________ 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] __________________________________________________
