The Standing Committee of the National Assembly gives opinions on 2 draft laws.

On the morning of January 15th, the Standing Committee of the National Assembly discussed major issues with differing opinions in the draft Law on Disaster Prevention, Mitigation and Reduction and the draft Law on Science and Technology (amended).

Two differing viewpoints on the name of the law.

At the beginning of the morning session, the Standing Committee of the National Assembly discussed the draft Law on Disaster Prevention, Mitigation and Relief.

The Standing Committee of the National Assembly's Committee on Science, Technology and Environment and the Drafting Committee unanimously agreed on the name of the law as the Law on Disaster Prevention and Control, as proposed in the Government's submission and by many National Assembly deputies.

This name is concise, comprehensive, and covers all issues in disaster prevention and control; it also reflects and summarizes the most general aspects of the nature, content, and purpose of enacting the Law. This view received the support of Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Uong Chu Luu and Head of the Delegation Affairs Committee Nguyen Thi Nuong.

However, there are also many dissenting opinions. The Chairman of the Committee on Culture, Education, Youth, and Children, Dao Trong Thi; the Chairman of the Committee on Law, Phan Trung Ly; the Chairman of the Committee on Social Affairs, Truong Thi Mai; and several others argue that the name should remain unchanged in the Law and Ordinance Drafting Program: the Law on Disaster Prevention, Avoidance, and Mitigation. Chairman Truong Thi Mai asserted that it is impossible to "fight" against nature, so the drafting committee needs to carefully consider the choice of the draft law's name.

Chairman Dao Trong Thi analyzed that natural disasters occur according to the laws of nature, and humans must adapt to nature, not "fight" against it. Furthermore, the delegate argued that the proposed name by the drafting committee could affect how people respond to natural disasters.

To further clarify this point, the drafting committee analyzed that the word "combat" here should be understood in a positive sense, that is, based on a natural understanding, to have effective "combats" rather than "avoids."

Discussing whether the draft law should include provisions on post-disaster reconstruction, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Uong Chu Luu argued that this content should not be included in the draft law. The Standing Committee of the Science, Technology and Environment Committee analyzed that "post-disaster reconstruction" also falls under the category of disaster relief, but has a broader meaning; reconstruction is a long-term activity and involves many other legal regulations such as those on planning, urban planning, investment, construction, and environmental protection.

Furthermore, in Vietnam, natural disasters occur frequently, and funding for disaster prevention and control is limited. Therefore, the draft Law only regulates activities to mitigate the consequences of natural disasters, while the scale and extent of mitigation will depend on the specific capacity and conditions of the central government and each locality.

Regarding the role of the people's armed forces in disaster prevention and mitigation, many opinions suggest that the law should not stipulate the leading role of the people's armed forces because their function and nhiệm vụ is to ensure national defense, security, and social order and safety.

Chairperson Truong Thi Mai expressed concern that such a regulation might be inappropriate, but if the regulation only stipulates that the armed forces participate in this activity, it would not fully reflect the important role of this force. Therefore, many opinions suggested that further research is needed to accurately and reasonably reflect the role of the people's armed forces in disaster prevention and mitigation activities in the draft law.

Chairman of the Finance and Budget Committee, Phung Quoc Hien, emphasized the role of local forces and suggested that their role in disaster prevention and mitigation should be clearly demonstrated and highlighted.

Chairwoman of the National Assembly's Committee on Social Affairs, Truong Thi Mai, suggested that two important forces that have been effectively participating in disaster prevention and mitigation activities should be added to the list: the Red Cross and the Vietnam Fatherland Front.

Discussing financial mechanisms for science and technology.

For the remainder of the morning session, delegates discussed the draft Law on Science and Technology (amended).

There are still differing opinions on whether universities constitute a type of science and technology organization. The 2000 Law on Science and Technology stipulates that science and technology organizations include: Research and development organizations (in the form of institutes, centers, etc.); Universities, academies, and colleges; and Science and technology service organizations.

The draft Law (amended) submitted by the Government has removed the provision that universities, academies, and colleges are scientific and technological organizations. Discussing this issue, Chairman Dao Trong Thi and Chairman Phung Quoc Hien agreed with the view that universities with research functions should be clearly defined as scientific and technological organizations. This is also the view of the agency reviewing the draft Law.

Accordingly, some higher education institutions are established and operate under the Higher Education Law, such as national universities, which, in addition to their primary function of training, also have a scientific research function. Universities with strong potential in Science and Technology conduct scientific research activities involving all faculties and lecturers.

Viewing research-oriented universities as scientific and technological organizations will mobilize the resources and facilities of universities for scientific research, while also aligning with the global trend of linking research with education, valuing research activities in universities, and building universities according to international standards.

Regarding investment and financial mechanisms for science and technology, the new draft has been revised to ensure that the State guarantees spending on science and technology at least 2% of the total annual state budget expenditure, gradually increasing according to the development needs of the science and technology sector. The budget for science and technology must be included as a separate expenditure item in the annual state budget estimates of ministries, sectors, and localities. The allocation of the state budget for science and technology for the following year will be based on practical needs and the effectiveness of the budget allocated in the previous year.

To address the current major bottleneck in science and technology activities, which is the financial mechanism, the new draft has revised and specifically stipulated the responsibilities of ministries and agencies in allocating and managing the state budget for science and technology (Article 55), clearly defining the purpose of using the state budget for science and technology (Article 56); applying a lump-sum expenditure mechanism for science and technology activities using the state budget (Article 57) and clearly defining the mechanism for granting, using, and managing funds for science and technology tasks using the state budget (Article 58).

Chairman of the Finance and Budget Committee, Phung Quoc Hien, still has concerns about this regulation. He believes that a "rigid" 2% target should not be uniformly applied to all localities. The draft law should only stipulate a "rigid" rate for a medium-term period (3 or 5 years), rather than specifying it annually as proposed in the draft law.

National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung assessed that the draft Law still contains many general provisions, in the nature of resolutions, therefore the drafting committee needs to study and include specific provisions in the law; many provisions in the draft Law still require guidance.

The Speaker of the National Assembly emphasized that when a law is enacted, it must contribute to promoting the development of science and technology; therefore, the drafting committee needs to consider and research how to incorporate this into the law.

This afternoon, the Standing Committee of the National Assembly will discuss major issues on which there are still differing opinions in the draft Law on Land (amended).

According to (VNA) - LT