Domestic news highlights last week

1. Prime Minister attends the Mekong River Commission Summit

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia Samdech Techo Hun Sen.

At the invitation of Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen, on April 4, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and the Vietnamese delegation left for Siem Reap, Cambodia to attend the third Mekong River Commission Summit from April 4-5.

After more than 20 years of establishment, the Mekong River Commission has achieved many positive results, contributing to promoting basin cooperation such as building regulations on water use, environmental management, fisheries, waterway transport linkages, and expanding cooperation with partners in and outside the region.

Vietnam's participation in the third Mekong River Commission Summit affirms Vietnam's interest and commitment to cooperation within the framework of the Mekong River Commission in the spirit of the 1995 Mekong Agreement, contributing to strengthening the role of the Commission as well as solidarity and cooperation among member countries for common interests.

2. Establish a Working Group on public service inspection

Minister of Home Affairs Le Vinh Tan is the Head of the Prime Minister's Working Group on Public Service Inspection.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has just decided to establish a working group on public service inspection headed by Minister of Home Affairs Le Vinh Tan.

The 4 Deputy Heads of the Group include: Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Nguyen Duy Thang; Deputy Head of the Government Office Nguyen Xuan Thanh; Deputy Minister of Justice Phan Chi Hieu; Deputy Inspector General of the Government Nguyen Van Thanh.

Members include: Director of the Department of State Administrative Organization and Public Affairs, Government Office Hoang Thi Ngan; Director of the Department of Personnel Organization, Government Inspectorate Hoang Thai Duong; Deputy Director of the Department of Criminal and Administrative Law, Ministry of Justice Nguyen Thi Hanh; Chief Inspector, Ministry of Home Affairs Nguyen Huu Tuan; Director of the Department of Civil Servants and Public Employees, Ministry of Home Affairs Truong Hai Long - secretary of the Working Group.

The working group is responsible for advising and assisting the Prime Minister in inspecting the strict compliance with legal regulations by agencies, organizations and staff, civil servants and public employees in public service activities at ministries, branches and localities; recommending the Prime Minister to direct the handling of violations in public service activities at ministries, branches and localities.

3. The Government holds its regular meeting in March 2018

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc speaks at the meeting. Photo: Quang Hieu

On the morning of April 2, the Government held its regular March meeting chaired by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc. This was the last meeting of the first quarter, the first quarter of the 2018 socio-economic development plan, with many growth indicators surpassing the same period last year.

Speaking at the opening of the regular Government meeting in March, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc assessed that after 1/4 of 2018, the socio-economic situation in the first quarter continued to grow favorably in all areas. GDP in the first quarter of 2018 was the highest in the past 10 years, reaching 7.38%.

Also at the meeting, the Government discussed a number of draft laws: Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Construction Law; Housing Law; Urban Planning Law; Real Estate Business Law; Law amending and supplementing a number of laws related to planning; Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Public Investment Law; Law on People's Public Security (amended)./.

4. Strip the title of People's Police, temporarily detain Mr. Phan Van Vinh for 4 months

Mr. Phan Van Vinh - former Director General of the General Department of Police - has been stripped of his title of People's Police. Photo: File.

On the afternoon of April 6, the Ministry of Public Security officially announced that Mr. Phan Van Vinh - former Director General of the General Department of Police - was prosecuted.

According to information from the Ministry of Public Security, the Phu Tho Provincial Police Department's security investigation agency has issued a decision to prosecute and arrest Mr. Phan Van Vinh for 4 months for the crime of "Abusing position and power while performing official duties" as prescribed in Clause 3, Article 281 - Penal Code 1999.

These indictments and temporary detention orders are the basis for the decision to prosecute the criminal case of "using the Internet to commit acts of property appropriation, organizing gambling, gambling, illegal trading of invoices and money laundering occurring in Phu Tho and a number of provinces and cities", related to the former Director of the High-Tech Police Department Nguyen Thanh Hoa and the defendants Nguyen Van Duong (then Chairman of the Board of Directors of High-Tech Security Development Investment Company Limited - CNC) and Phan Sao Nam (former Chairman of the Board of Directors of VTC Online).

Also on April 6, President Tran Dai Quang signed a decision to strip Mr. Phan Van Vinh of his title of People's Public Security.

5. Outrage over teacher in Hai Phong forcing students to drink blackboard cleaning water

Students were punished by drinking blackboard-erasing water. Photo: Minh Khang/VTC

A teacher at An Dong Primary School in An Duong District, Hai Phong City forced a student to rinse his mouth with water squeezed from a blackboard eraser after the student made the mistake of talking in class.

Accordingly, at around 6:00 p.m. on April 3, Ms. Tran Thi Ngoc Bao received a complaint from Mr. Pham Khac Thao (parent of PA - a student in class 3A5, An Dong Primary School) about teacher Nguyen Thi Minh Huong giving students water squeezed from a blackboard eraser.

After receiving and verifying the above information was correct, the school asked Ms. Nguyen Thi Minh Huong - the teacher who had given the student an inappropriate punishment - to apologize to PA and her family, and to quickly take this student for a medical examination.

On April 5, the Board of Directors and Pedagogical Council of An Dong Primary School terminated the labor contract with female teacher Nguyen Thi Minh Huong./.