(According to Vietnam Education Newspaper-2013)
In 2013, the Vietnamese State drafted amendments to the 1992 Constitution. But these amendments were mostly literary, less constitutional.
Talking to reporters from Vietnam Education Newspaper, Professor Nguyen Minh Thuyet – Former Vice Chairman of the National Assembly’s Committee for Culture, Education, Youth, Adolescents and Children (also a senior expert on languages Study) commented: “The preface of the 1992 amendment to Hiens Phap, although 448 words long, nearly filling an A4 page, does not say what the basic ideas of the Constitution are, nor does it identify the subject. establish who the Constitution is. These are very different things from our country’s first Constitution (1946 Constitution) and the Constitutions of many countries.”
The 1946 Constitution’s preamble only had 65 words affirming the achievements of 80 years of struggle for independence, then stating that the National Assembly “was assigned by the people to draft the first Constitution of the People’s Republic of Vietnam.” republicanism” based on four principles: “unity of all people, regardless of race, gender, class, religion; ensure democratic freedoms; implement strong and wise government of the people”.
The preambles of the Constitutions of some countries such as the United States, Russia, France, and Japan are also very concise and complete like the 1946 constitution of Vietnam.
For example, the entire preamble of the United States Constitution (1787) translated into Vietnamese includes only 66 words but expresses both the basic ideas of the Constitution and the subject that established the Constitution, which is: ” We, the people of the United States, for the purpose of forming a more perfect union, establishing justice, maintaining domestic security, providing for the common defense, promoting the common prosperity, maintaining liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
According to Professor Thuyet, not only is the preface, almost all the articles in the chapter “Economy, society, culture, education, science, technology and environment” are statements about awareness, has no legality, such as: “-The Socialist Republic of Vietnam builds an independent and autonomous economy on the basis of promoting internal strength, proactively and actively integrating internationally; promote industrialization and modernization of the country; Economic development is closely and harmoniously combined with cultural development, social progress and justice, and environmental protection” (Article 53);
“Culture is the spiritual foundation of society and the driving force for the country’s development. The State and society take care to build and develop an advanced Vietnamese culture, rich in national identity, humanity, democracy, and progress; preserve, inherit and promote the cultural values of the Vietnamese peoples, absorbing the quintessence of human culture” (Clause 1, Article 64).
“In our country’s 1946 Constitution and the Constitutions of many countries, economic, cultural, educational and scientific – technological institutions are often expressed in the form of human rights and citizen rights, specifically stipulates that citizens have the right to freedom of business, scientific creativity, culture and art, and enjoyment of education, and the State is responsible for ensuring these rights. The draft revised Constitution should also be resolved in this direction to be consistent with common awareness of the Constitution,” Professor Thuyet emphasized.
In addition, Professor Nguyen Minh Thuyet also believes that the chapter “Defending the Fatherland” needs to be reinterpreted. Specifically, the whole chapter has 5 articles, 4 of which are just cognitive statements, for example: “The State consolidates and strengthens national defense and people’s security; The people’s armed forces play a core role; promote the country’s combined strength to firmly protect the Fatherland, contributing to protecting peace in the region and the world” (Paragraph 2, Article 69).
There are regulations that are both literary and too meticulous, not in accordance with the very high general requirements of the Constitution, for example: “The State promotes the spirit of patriotism and revolutionary heroism of the people.” , defense and security education for all people; implement military service regime and military rear policy; build the defense industry, ensure equipment for the armed forces, combine defense with economy, economy with defense, ensure the material and spiritual life of officers, soldiers, and workers, defense personnel; build a strong people’s armed forces, constantly enhance the ability to protect the country” (Article 73).
Professor Thuyet said that this sentence is not the Constitution, but a long and confusing essay written by an illiterate student.
There are places that repeat each other exactly: “The revolutionary Vietnam People’s Army is built as a regular, elite, and gradually modernized…”;
“The revolutionary Vietnamese People’s Police were built as regular, elite, and gradually modernized…”.
These paragraphs are not constitutional, they are just like writing exercises for high school students.
Dr. Vu Duc Khien, former Chairman of the National Assembly’s Law Committee, also commented on Report of The proposal to amend the 1992 Constitution “is forced, not convincing, and does not clearly demonstrate the principle of assignment, coordination and control among state agencies in the exercise of legislative, executive and judicial powers as has been established, that was affirmed at the 11th National Congress of the Party”.
Talking about the 1946 Constitution, Dr. Vu Duc Khien said that “In nearly 70 years since the birth of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (now the Socialist Republic of Vietnam), our State has had 4 Constitution, in which the work and content of the first Constitution – the 1946 Constitution – left behind lessons and historical marks. “///