Seminar of the Constitutional Council on amending the Constitution

Continuing to collect and complete the draft amendments to the 1992 Constitution after the 5th Session, on August 17, in Hanoi, the Committee for Drafting Amendments to the 1992 Constitution held a scientific seminar on the Constitutional Council in the draft amendments to the 1992 Constitution, with the participation of many domestic legal science experts.

National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung, Chairman of the Committee for Drafting Amendments to the 1992 Constitution, chaired the discussion. Also attending were Vice President Nguyen Thi Doan, members of the Standing Committee for Drafting Amendments to the 1992 Constitution, and National Assembly deputies.

National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung, Chairman of the Committee for Drafting Amendments to the 1992 Constitution, chaired and delivered the opening speech. (Photo: Nhan Sang/VNA)

Speaking at the opening of the seminar, National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung stated that the constitutional institution is an extremely important content in researching and perfecting the draft amendments to the 1992 Constitution. This is the first time this institution has been raised in the process of building the Constitution in Vietnam.

During the process of collecting public opinions on the draft amendments to the 1992 Constitution, many different opinions were received among the people, scientists and even on the National Assembly forum on this topic. Many opinions proposed the need to establish a Constitutional Council mechanism to ensure the supremacy of the Constitution in the legal system and to ensure that all subjects in society respect and strictly comply with the provisions of the Constitution.

The Chairman of the Committee for Drafting Amendments to the 1992 Constitution hopes that, through the discussion, he will gather opinions from experts to contribute to perfecting the Constitutional Council institution on the basis of scientific arguments related to issues such as the necessity of establishing, operating mechanism, and activities of the Council.

National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung said that, in fact, in the process of forming, building the apparatus and developing the country, the constitutional mechanism has been formed in the Vietnamese State institution. Therefore, one of the requirements to amend the 1992 Constitution this time is to institutionalize the Party's policy, the will and aspirations of the people in building and perfecting the constitutional mechanism, thereby ensuring the principle of all power of the people, protecting human rights and civil rights as recorded in the Constitution.

The construction of this institution is also based on the absorption of scientific achievements and institutional building experiences of countries around the world, while inheriting achievements in building the Vietnamese State apparatus since its establishment, aiming at the important goal of perfecting the draft amendments to the 1992 Constitution to meet the country's development requirements in the new situation, with a long-term vision and in accordance with the people's wishes.

National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung affirmed that the conclusion of the discussion will be the scientific basis for the Constitutional Amendment Drafting Committee to submit to the National Assembly Standing Committee and the National Assembly for further comments.

During a working day, delegates discussed the necessity of establishing a specialized constitutional body, the Constitutional Council; the theoretical and practical basis of this issue as well as the organizational model, position, and nature of the Constitutional Council.

The seminar also recorded comments and discussed the duties, powers and effectiveness of decisions of the Constitutional Council.

The opinions also mentioned the relationship between the Constitutional Council as an independent constitutional institution with other State agencies, especially the National Assembly, National Assembly agencies, the Government, and the People's Court, to conform to the principle that State power is unified, with division of labor and coordination of control among State agencies in the exercise of legislative, executive, and judicial powers./.

According to VNA - LT