VNA
Vietnam hopes to expand ties with Belgium: president President Tran Duc Luong said he hoped that the Vietnam-Belgium friendship and co-operation will be broadened in all economic, investment, scientific-technical, cultural and other fields in the interest of both nations as well as for regional and global peace, stability and development. Mr Luong made the remarks while receiving the visiting Belgian Defence Minister A Flahaut in Hanoi on January 24. Mr Flahaut informed the president of the results of his talks with his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Van Tra to strengthen scientific co-operation between the two defence ministries in the coming years. President Luong briefed the guest on Vietnam's socio-economic development as well as its foreign policy of independence, self-reliance and openness in its efforts to integrate into the regional and global economies. He also expressed his joy at the new steps of development in the bilateral Vietnam-Belgium relations and in the multilateral ASEAN-EU co-operation framework. (VNA) **** Friendly relations with Belgium highly regarded: NA chairman The Vietnamese National Assembly and people highly regard their friendly relations with Belgium, NA Chairman Nguyen Van An said while receiving the visiting President of the Belgian Senate Armand de Decker in Hanoi on the morning of January 24. Nguyen Van An warmly welcomed Armand de Decker's visit. He noted with satisfaction the development of the comprehensive co-operation between Vietnam and Belgium, saying that the visit was a vivid manifestation of the Belgian people's warm sentiments towards the Vietnamese people. Chairman An thanked the Belgian Parliament, government and people effective co-operation with and assistance to Vietnam in recent years. He also expressed his belief that the co-operative relations between the two parliaments and two countries would be further developed in the coming period in the interests of the two peoples, and for stability, co-operation and development. Chairman An asked Armand de Decker to convey his invitation to the President of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives to visit Vietnam. The Belgian Senate president expressed his pleasure at visiting Vietnam and witnessing its socio-economic achievements in the implementation of the renovation policy over the past 15 years. He highlighted Vietnam's efforts for international integration. He applauded the fine development of Belgium-Vietnam friendly and co-operative ties and affirmed that Belgium attaches great importance to its relations with Vietnam and would continue to support and assist Vietnam in the process of national construction and socio-economic development. He invited NA Chairman Nguyen Van An to pay an official friendship visit to Belgium. (VNA) **** PM asks to build a professional, upright auditing staff Prime Minister Phan Van Khai asked the auditing sector to pay more attention to personnel training and to improve knowledge and responsibility of each cadre in order to build up a contingent of professional and upright auditing staff. Prime Minister Phan Van Khai was attending a conference held in Hanoi on January 24 by the State Auditing of Vietnam to start implementation of its tasks this year. Addressing the conference, Prime Minister Khai praised the great efforts of the sector's staff and officials in the recent time, further stressing the special importance of the auditing mechanism and the mechanisms of the public property protection in the socio-economic development process in general and in the struggle to fight against corruption in particular. However, the prime minister held that the State Auditing, after more than seven years of operation, still had limitations. He urged the sector to overcome its outstanding problems so that the State Auditing is really a strong tool in the public finance inspection work, particularly in the fields which are prone to corruption and wastefulness such as in revenue and expenditure of the State budget, investment in basic construction and balance of payments of businesses' finance. Prime Minister Khai also said he hoped that this year will see clear positive movements in both quality and professional virtue of the State Auditing. **** Justice sector discusses plan for 2002 The justice sector held at a conference in Hanoi on January 24 to review the implementation of its tasks in 2001 and discuss measures to deploy those for 2002. Which stated that the justice sector continued reforming its activities and management at different levels and units in 2001, thus making it more active, practical and effective. The law building, project assessment and legal document drafting work, considered as the most important task of the Ministry of Justice and the whole sector, were satisfactorily carried out. Law popularisation and education have been expanded to remote and mountainous areas in various forms. About 90% of the total communes, precincts and towns have set up legal libraries and 40 out of 61 cities and provinces have met the target of establishing legal libraries in all communes, precincts and towns. Free legal support for poor people and priority policy beneficiaries was widely carried out in localities as part of the national strategy on hunger eradication and poverty reduction. Currently 60 out of 61 cities and provinces, except Tuyen Quang province, have set up legal support centres, providing free legal services to 78,578 cases and assisting the birth registration of thousands of children. The management of people's courts at different levels has been strengthened, opening four training courses for 236 judges. Strict measures have been taken to deal with negative acts among court staff. A report of the Ministry of Justice also pointed out the shortcomings in its activities and measures to overcome these in the coming time. An emulation movement among the sector's staff was launched on this occasion to encourage the successful implementation of this year's tasks. National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Van An attended the conference. **** NGOs praised for fruitful assistance Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Manh Cam, on January 24 praised effective assistance from non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to Vietnam, regarding it as an expression of the friendship of other nations towards Vietnam. The deputy prime minister was addressing a conference to review ten years of NGO activities in Vietnam, held in Hanoi on January 24, by Vietnam's Committee for Non-governmental Organisations. Mr Cam told the conference that in the near future, efforts should be continued to receive more NGO assistance, as well as to complete legal documents in favour of NGO's activities in Vietnam. He also asked relevant ministries and agencies to effectively use and manage assistance from foreign non-governmental organisations. As of last year, 480 foreign non-governmental organisations operated in Vietnam through 370 projects with a total funding of US $500 million for ten years. "These projects have contributed to Vietnam's socio-economic development and poverty reduction, especially in remote and isolated areas, as well as others classified as natural disaster-prone and poverty-stricken," the conference noted. It added "Many war victims, disabled people, ethnic minority people, poor families and children have also benefited from NGO's help.". (VNA) **** Tet gifts to poor people Local administrations are making preparations to present gifts to families benefiting from priority policy and poor households during the Lunar New Year festival (Tet). Khanh Hoa province has presented Tet gifts, each worth VND 415,000, to the country's heroes, Vietnamese Heroic Mothers and key war veterans and VND 225,000 worth of Tet gifts to each family of war martyrs and invalids, family with good services rendered to the country's revolution and retired cadre. The province also granted VND 100,000 to each senior citizen who took part in the country's revolutions and now has no monthly allowance. Each poor member of the Blind Association has been provided with a Tet gift package worth VND 105,000. The province has also donated VND 100 million to soldiers posted in the Spratly Islands and an additional VND 40 million to those working there during the Tet holiday. The administrative sector of the Spratly island district has also been given VND 15 million. About 140 businesses in the province are called on to collect donations to buy Tet gifts for people in 32 mountainous communes in difficulties. Quang Nam province's People's Committee has spent VND 5 billion to present Tet gifts to families enjoying priority policy and wounded and sick soldiers. The Toan My Company granted 300 packages of Tet gifts, each worth VND 70,000 to poor people in Dien Duong, Dien Nam and Dien Ngoc communes of Quang Nam province. The People's Committee of Quang Ngai province has spent VND 3 billion to present gifts to families of priority policy (VND 200,000 for each family) and to support each district and town with VND 30 million to buy Tet gifts for their poor residents. The province has also reserved part of its spending to buy necessities for poor people in mountainous areas. Phuoc Long district of Binh Phuoc province is striving to complete the construction of over 2,200 houses of compassion for poor households so that they can enjoy the Tet holiday in their new homes. **** FM spokesperson: Nothing to worry about return of Vietnamese ethnic minority people from Cambodia There is no reason to worry about the safe return of Vietnamese ethnic minority people, who fled illegally into Cambodia's northeastern provinces, said Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Phan Thuy Thanh on January 24. "More than anyone else, the Vietnamese government pays great attention to the safety of its citizens," Phan Thuy Thanh stressed. The spokeswoman made the statement while responding to a question by a Radio Voice of Vietnam correspondent about Vietnam's reaction to the remarks by a US official, who asked not to be identified, concerning the safe return of Vietnamese ethnic minority people from Cambodia. "With what has already been agreed upon at the second tripartite meeting between Vietnam, Cambodia and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Phnom Penh on January 21, there is no reason to worry about the safe return of Vietnamese ethnic minority people, who illegally fled to Cambodia," she said. Ms Thanh added that while Vietnam, Cambodia and UNHCR are trying to facilitate the return of these ethnic minority people from Cambodia, these remarks are only aimed at causing anxiety to the returnees. "This gives rise to the question of whether the US is sincerely concerned about the safety of Vietnamese citizens or if it is attempting to hinder the repatriation of the Vietnamese ethnic minority people who illegally fled the country, and to destabilise the situation," Ms Thanh added. **** Repatriation of Vietnamese volunteers' remains discussed in Vientiane Joint searches for, and repatriation of the remains of fallen Vietnamese army volunteers who sacrificed their lives during the war in Laos have been discussed in the seventh session of the Vietnam-Laos Joint-governmental Ad-hoc Working Committee. The Vietnamese delegation to the working session, which took place in Vientiane from January 19-23, was headed by Lieutenant General Le Van Han, deputy director of the General Politics Department of the Vietnam People's Army, and deputy head of the Vietnam governmental Ad-hoc Working Committee. The Lao delegation was led by Colonel Chansamon Channhasat, director of the General Politics Department of the Laos People's Army, and deputy head of the Laos governmental Ad-hoc Working Committee. Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith, Politburo member of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, witnessed the signing of the minutes of the session, and received the Vietnamese delegation. The Lao leader spoke highly of the results of the working session, which, he said, would contribute to further development of the comprehensive co-operation and special solidarity between the two Parties, governments, peoples and armies of Laos and Vietnam. The Vietnamese delegation was also received by Lieutenant General Duoangchay Pichit, Politburo member of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, and defence minister of Laos. While in Laos, the Vietnamese delegation attended the inauguration of the 'Laos-Vietnam Solidarity in Combat' Monument in Oudomsay province. 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