Thua Thien-Hue urged to utilise strategic location; President pays working visit to Quang Tri; VN, Laos defence ministries ink 2013 plan; Vietnam attaches importance to ties with Serbia

Vietnamese people who live abroad for two years upward will be wiped out from the family record book, according to the draft Residence Law that was submitted to the National Assembly Standing Committee on February 26.

The Constitutional Council should be renamed into the Constitutional Court and it must have the right to make decision, not only give general recommendations, members of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front suggested.

On February 19, the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front held a conference to collect opinions on the draft amended Constitution. Many delegated focused analysis of Article 4 of the Constitution.

"A ruling party should accept competition or accept the self-discipline to become more mature, cleaner and stronger," said former Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Office Tran Quoc Thuan.

VietNamNet Bridge - On January 30, the Government Committee for Religious Affairs organized a workshop to consult the priests and monks of some religious organizations for the draft amendments to the 1992 Constitution in Ho Chi Minh City.

 Opinions gathered for Constitution amendments; Vietnam-Netherlands friendship and cooperation association established; President offers sympathy to Brazil over fire tragedy

VietNamNet Bridge - Former Chair of the HCM City People's Council Pham Phuong Thao proposed to consider setting up an independent Constitutional Council to handle unconstitutional issues.

According to Mr. Nguyen Van Phuc, Vice Chair of the National Assembly’s Economic Committee, the amended Constitution will further promote the ownership of the people on the principles of all state power belongs to the people.

VietNamNet Bridge – Representatives of overseas Vietnamese evaluated Viet Nam's draft revised Constitution, a draft revision of the 1992 document, at a conference held by the Viet Nam Fatherland Front in Ha Noi yesterday, Jan 17.

Overseas Vietnamese entrepreneurs and intellectuals who returned home to attend the conference of the Vietnam Fatherland Front last week expected that the Constitution more strongly protect their freedom of business and research in Vietnam.

VietNamNet Bridge - The land-related content always heats up the National Assembly meetings. In the discussion of the amendments to the Constitution at the year-end session of 2012, there were many opinions about land ownership.

VietNamNet Bridge - "Compared to the old version, the draft Constitution for the comments of people has a new point: it does not specify the state economic sector as the mainstream," said National Assembly Vice Chairman - Uong Chu Luu.

National Assembly deputy Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy of Da Nang city proposed the draft amendments to the Constitution, which after being passed by the National Assembly must go through a referendum before it takes effect.

VietNamNet Bridge - Many National Assembly deputies said that amending the Constitution this time is a precious opportunity to more strongly assert the country’s sovereignty.

One of the weaknesses of the current Land Law of Vietnam is that the state has the right to revoke land for private projects, not only projects related to the national interest as the 1992 Constitution requires, said an UNDP expert.

According to the Resolution that was approved by the National Assembly (NA) on November 23, the process of collecting people's opinions on the amended Constitution will start from January 2013 and will last for three months.