13th NA ends first session
The 13th National Assembly concluded its first session in Hanoi on August 6 with a spirit of democracy and a high sense of responsibility.
Apart from making decisions on the organizational structure, voting and ratifying the titles of NA, State and Government leaders, the 13th NA’s first session adopted the 2009 State budget balance sheet, the report on socioeconomic development and State budget for the first half of 2011, as well as designing tasks and key measures for the second half of the year. The session also passed the plan to adjust and amend the 1992 Constitution, the report on the East Sea situation, and other important issues.
>> Prospects for change in the new NA tenure
>> NA urged to reform to serve people better
>> Towards a democratic, perceptive, strong National Assembly
>> Democracy and responsibility
*** Hanoi launches master plan
The Hanoi master development plan was launched on July 29, looking towards sustainability, environmental sensitivity and in maintaining national cultural values.
The plan covers the period up to 2030 and will play a vital role in the country’s socio-economic development, said Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung at the launching ceremony.
Under the plan, the capital's administrative border will extend to about 3,344 sq. km by 2030. Its centre will remain in Hanoi’s Ba Dinh district, where public and military offices, the Party headquarters, the National Assembly and the Government seat are located.
Five satellite cities will surround the city centre, namely Hoa Lac, Son Tay, Xuan Mai, Phu Xuyen and Soc Son, with a combined population of 700,000 in 2020, and 1.4 million by 2030.
Total investment in the development plan is estimated at VND 5 trillion (US$70 billion) for the 2011-15 period and VND2.6 trillion (US$120 billion) in the 2016-20 period.
>> Hanoi Master Plan introduced to public
*** Cu Huy Ha Vu sentenced to seven years imprisonment
The Supreme People’s Court maintained its original decision on the prison sentence from the first trial of Cu Huy Ha Vu for “producing propaganda against the State of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam” at an appeals court in Hanoi on August 2.
The appeals court of the Supreme People’s Court sentenced Cu Huy Ha Vu to seven years imprisonment (calculated from his arrest on November 5, 2010) and a three year probation period in his residential area after he serves his sentence.
According to the verdict from the trial at the Hanoi People’s Court on April 4, 2011, Cu Huy Ha Vu, born in 1957, was accused of “conducting propaganda against the State of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam” pursuant to Article 88, Item 1, point c of the Penal Code.
>> Cu Huy Ha Vu attends court of appeals
>> Cu Huy Ha Vu gets seven-year jail sentence
>> Cu Huy Ha Vu to stand trial for anti-State propaganda
*** Gold prices exceed VND40 million/tael
Gold prices on the domestic market hovered around VND40.01-40.07 million per tael over the past week.
SJC gold was listed at VND40-40.08 million per tael while SBJ gold was traded at VND39.98-40.04 million per tael at Sacombank.
In the world market, gold hit a record high of US$1,620 per ounce. According to experts, the gold price is likely to escalate to US$1,650 per ounce.
>> Gold prices continue to rocket at weekend
>> Gold should be considered a commodity
*** First female Prime Minister in Thailand
Yingluck Shinawatra, 44, the sister of ousted PM Thaksin Shinawatra, was elected Thailand's 28th Prime Minister by a majority vote in the House of Representatives on the morning of August 5.
A total of 296 MPs voted in support of Ms Yingluck, the country’s first female prime minister, while three Democrat MPs voted against her, along with 197 abstentions, including Ms Yingluck, the new speaker and one of his deputies, as well as most members of the main opposition parties, the Democrat and Bhumjaithai parties, and lone wolf Chuvit Kamolvisit.