National Assembly deputies on Saturday discussed the draft of the Law on the Real Estate Business and the Law on HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control.

Nguyen Duc Kien, chairman of the National Assembly's Economic and Budget Committee, presented a report to the assembly on the public response to the draft law. The report clarified specific aspects of the real estate business which have an impact on the economy and society.

The report affirmed that specific regulations on forms of real estate business, including offering homes and buildings for sale and for rent, real estate agencies, setting prices, property management services, and transparency of transaction information, would help enhance the real estate business and promote State administrative competence in the field.

Discussing the draft law, many deputies agreed with the scope of the draft and its definition of the term real estate as "real property including land use rights; houses; construction works; and other assets attached to the land."

Construction works can include homes, villas and residential buildings as well as real property used in business activities, such as office buildings, hotels, guest houses, supermarkets, shopping centres, markets, schools, hospitals, and industrial facilities.

Even infrastructure works such as roads, bridges, stations, and water works are swept within the scope of the law.

Some cultural works not in commercial business would be separately regulated by the Government.

Terms and conditions under which individuals and organisations could engage in real estate business are defined in the draft law as "organisations and individuals who have legal capital and business registration in accordance with Enterprise Law."

Nguyen Lan Dung, deputy from Dac Nong Province, said that the law should encourage foreign investors with large capital resources to take part in the business and provide for a minimum amount of legal capital for organisations and individuals who register to operate a real estate business.

Without such requirements, Dung argued, many concerns would conduct feasibility studies without sufficient capital to follow through with projects. In many cases, a lack of capital would impact on planning and the effectiveness of land use.

Deputy Nguyen Hoang Anh from Hai Phong said that the law should only provide for an authorised State real estate appraisal office. The value of real estate intransaction would be decided by buyers and sellers and not based on a price fixed by an authorised office, he argued.

Deputy Nguyen Lan Dung also raised a concern about a spontaneous real estate market which would negatively affect architectural and urban scenic values. He suggested that the drafting committee map out a programme on planning and standards of real estate development.

Many deputies asked the drafting committee to regulate the priorities by which the public would be allowed to buy houses by deferred payments or qualify for rental housing.

Law on HIV/AIDS

Debate on Saturday also turned to the Law on HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control with many deputies raising concern about discrimination against people living with HIV/AIDS.

Deputy Do Nguyen Phuong from the southern province of Binh Phuoc said that we should consider HIV/AIDS a disease that needed treatment and not discriminate against the patients.

Society should create conditions for HIV-positive individuals, especially women and children, to work and have normal lives, Phuong said.

At present, Vietnam has 20,000 HIV-positive children who have been abandoned, he added.

Deputies Huynh Thanh Lap from HCM City and Tran Thi Mai Phuong from Long An Province said that separate schools should not be built for children with HIV/AIDS because it would foster discrimination and hinder their integration into the community.

Referring to Clause 38 of the law on accessing anti-HIV medicine, deputy Huynh Thanh Lap said that it should offer exemption of treatment and diagnosis to HIV-positive persons who actively take part in HIV/AIDS prevention and are specially difficult.

According to deputy Truong Thu Hang of Dong Nai Province, to help HIV/AIDS patients access cheaper anti-retroviral drugs, the law's Article 2, Clause 6, should be supplemented to provide State support for production of and-HIV medications, meeting Vietnam's conditions as well as the requirements of international standards.

Hang also said she disagreed with Clause 39 in the draft law which states that "those who participate in medical insurance and are infected by HIV/AIDS will have all fees for medical examinations and treatment paid by the insurance." Hang argued that this would cause discrimination between people who do and do not have medical insurance.

Many deputies said that the draft law still has many unclear points which would hinder the effective prevention and control of HIV/AIDS.

(Source: Viet Nam News)