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Legislators press buttons to vote on the Vietnam Border Defence Law on November 11. Photo: VNA

The resolution on socio-economic development plans for 2021 was approved with 89.21 percent of votes in favour while the Border Defence Law received 92.74 percent of votes in favour.

As many as 456 of the 462 legislators present at the plenary meeting voted in favour of the law, which consists of six chapters with 36 articles that regulate the border defence policies, principles, tasks, activities, force, and responsibilities of agencies, organisations, and individuals.

The draft law was discussed via videoconference by NA deputies on October 21.

A report explaining amendments to this bill also showed that most of the legislators agreed on the draft.

The Vietnam Border Defence Law is scheduled to start taking effect on January 1, 2022. Meanwhile, the ordinance on border guards No. 02/1997/PL-UBTVQH9, issued by the 9th-tenure NA Standing Committee in 1997, will expire on the date this law comes into force.

The 14th National Assembly adopts a resolution on socio-economic development plans for 2021 and the Border Defence Law on November 11 during the ongoing 10th sitting in Hanoi. Photo: VNA

Vietnam has over 5,000 km of land border and 3,260 km of coastline running through 44 cities and provinces.

Therefore, the Border Guard Law is of strategic significance to national construction and defence, Commander of the Vietnam Border Guard, Lieut. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien, told the press on June 9.

While drafting the law, the Ministry of National Defence has collected opinions of agencies, organisations and individuals, as well as assessments of the Ministry of Justice, he said.

He noted that while peace, friendship, cooperation and development have been the common trend pursued by countries worldwide, the regional and global situation has always faced complex and unforeseeable developments.

According to Chien, over the past 61 years, the Vietnamese border guard force has effectively implemented measures to manage and protect territorial sovereignty and national border, and safeguard border security and order.

However, such contents have yet to be prescribed in the national border law, the Border Guard Ordinance and relevant legal documents, he went on. Therefore, there is not sufficient legal foundation for competent agencies, forces and the border guard force to implement the tasks of building, managing and protecting national border and border areas.

In addition, the ordinance only handles issues regarding the border guard force, leaving out other subjects concerned in the building, management and protection of the national border and border areas. Some regulations relating to the limitation of human rights and citizens’ right have not matched the 2013 Constitution.

Besides, many duties and authority of the border guard force are prescribed in various laws and sub-law documents, causing difficulties and inconsistency.

Therefore, it is urgent to promulgate the Vietnam Border Guard Law that stipulates the responsibility, rights, obligations and tasks of agencies and forces in the border guard work, Chien said./.

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