Question

By now you should be examining the type of political system in operation in your selected country. Address the following: For Vitenam

• As part of your country's political history, be sure to note if your country has been dominated by a colonial power or another country in the last century.
• Include detailed information about the current political environment. Is your country governed by democratically elected officials, or is it under authoritarian or military rule?

Answer 1

Vietnam is a one-party Communist state and is one of the fastest-growing economies in South-East Asia. Till 998 AD, it was ruled by the Chinese, who evidently seemed to influence the culture, law and governance of Vietnam. The country had invasions in the past and had suffered colonial rules with the French rule beginning in 1858. In 1930, Ho Chi Minh found the Indochinese Communist Party (ICP), which in 1941, organized a guerilla force, in response to invasion by Japan during World War Two. In 1945, Ho Chi Minh proclaimed independence and established the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. Later on in 1946, the French tried to regain the control which led to the Anti-French Resistance War or Indochina War; which further led to the partition of the country into north and south with the rivalry between the two factions lasting for more than two decades. This rivalry led to what is known as the second Indochina War in 1954. In 1975, the Southern cities started to become communist which finally led to the formation of Socialist Republic of Vietnam with the nation reunified in 1976.

Currently, Vietnam is a one-party Communist state, with the government as the highest state authority and is one of the very few communist states in the current times. The current political system is established based on the inception of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam with the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) being the vanguard of the rights and welfare of the people of Vietnam. The ideology of this party is majorly based on the Marxist-leninist and Ho Chi Minh ideas. Since it is one-party state the power to change or amend the laws and regulations lies in the hands of the Politburo and Executive Secretariat of the CPV who in turn hold the key positions and responsibilities in the government. The central authority is the National Assembly and is the highest political body of the state which has two major functions vested with it; a) pass and amend the constitution, change or make laws and b) to organize and grant authority and responsibilities to the various stakeholders in the National Assembly and the government, c) appoint and remove the President, Vice President, Chair and Vice Chair of the National Assembly, Standing Committee of the National Assembly, Prime Minister, Chief Justice and judges of Supreme People’s Court and Chief Procurator, d) to pass economic, social and foreign policies.

The President acts as the head of the state who is elected by the National Assembly. The President in turn appoints the Prime Ministers and various other ministers. He also appoints the Chief Justice of the People’s Supreme Court. The People’s Council, elected for a five-year term is the local legislature of provinces and municipalities of Vietnam which is elected by the people in the respective provinces and municipalities. The number of councilors depends on the population of the area. The People’s council looks into the matters of the people locally and there in turn elect the People’s Committee as the executive body. There are socio-political and people’s associations in Vietnam which are basically groups of people who represent the shared common interests or issues.

Therefore, currently, Vietnam although following a one-party system, has two ways of electing their government, viz; direct system for the People’ Council and an Indirect system for the People’s Committee, Prime Minister, President and the whole of National Assembly. Currently, Nguyen Phu Trong and Nguyen Xuen Phuc are the President and Prime-minister of Vietnam respectively.