VIETNAM - a fee table for adoption according to the Hague Convention ?

Law on Adoption brought into line with international practices

Ha Noi — According to the latest version of the draft law on adoption, only children under 16 years can be offered for adoption.

The National Assembly Standing Committee, the provision would be congruent with the country's legal system and international laws.

During their discussion of the adoption law yesterday in the capital city, NA deputies also touched upon the termination of the relationship between the adoptive parents and adopted children.

"Emancipation is only acceptable when a child reaches the age of maturity," stated the draft law.

Deputy Nguyen Minh Hong, from Nghe An Province, did not agree with the provision that children should only be adopted by foreign couples when there are no Vietnamese parents who want to adopt them.

"We should be most concerned with the child's welfare and whether the child is being cared for or not," said Hong.

Pham Thuong Luong, from Yen Bai Province, proposed that the law should have a provision prohibiting immediate relatives like grandparents or siblings adopt their family member.

"Such an act is popular with ethnic minorities," said Luong.

Nguyen Thi Kim Thuy, from Da Nang, agreed with Article 12 of the draft law which specifies a fee table for adoption.

"This is a very sensitive issue that's why everything should be transparent, particularly the fee so we can avoid the problem of child trafficking," said Thuy.

Minister of Justice Ha Hung Cuong said the fee was congruent with the 1993 La Haye Convention on adoption.

Some deputies questioned the Standing Committee's view that the State must take responsibility for public postal services through one of its enterprises when the parliament debated the draft Postal Services Law yesterday.

The deputies argued that as Viet Nam had joined the World Trade Organisation, more than one enterprise should be given the job of providing public postal services to create healthy competition.

But the committee responded that given the prevailing reality in Viet Nam, it was reasonable for the State to designate an enterprise to supply postal services and benefit from specific policies intended to help it.

The size and development of the postal network was limited and it was still necessary for the State to compensate it for its losses, the committee said.

Information and Communications Minister Le Doan Hop explained that delivery of a letter cost VND3,500 but the price of a stamp was just VND1,000.

There was not a non-State-owned company with the personnel and facilities to provide a nation-wide service, he said. It would be difficult for the State to manage the activities of such a company and the quality of the services, together with the people's interests, would suffer.

Communal system

Deputy Nguyen Viet Lenh, central Binh Dinh Province, and deputy Nguyen Thanh Tam, southern Tay Ninh Province, said more research into the development of the communal postal-service system should be done to ensure its efficiency.

The law governing the management of postal services should be strengthened and violators punished, added deputy Tam.

Deputy Nguyen Lan Dung, Central Highland Dak Lak Province, said rural dwellers go short of newspapers but if the communal system was built scientifically, the people's right to information would be assured. — VNS