VietNamNet Bridge – A majority of national assembly deputies agreed with amendments to the exiting Law on Intellectual Property that would make it consistent with international rules.

Deputies emphasised the necessity of ensuring the interests of Vietnamese companies and people and the strengthening of State management role over intellectual property protection.

The amendments, which were discussed at a National Assembly (NA) meeting yesterday, also emphasised that a compulsory condition for trading in intellectual property protection should be limited to those companies with the legal status to do so.

Nguyen Danh, a deputy from Gia Lai, said units without independent legal status operating under the auspices of foreign organisations, such as representative offices and branches, should not be allowed to provide intellectual property services.

"Industrial property (a type of intellectual property) representative services do not lie in Viet Nam’s commitment to an open door policy," Danh told the session. "Therefore, Viet Nam has the right to protect the benefits for local enterprises and its own market."

Statistics have shown that currently more than 40 per cent the country’s industrial property rights are owned by foreigners.

Danh said local organisations would lose market share, not to mention the domestic competition, if foreign legal companies are able to provide these services through their branches and representative offices.

A majority of opinions raised during the session reached a consensus to only permit representatives with independent legal status the permission to provide industrial property rights services.

Ho Chi Minh City delegate Nguyen Dang Trung said only organisations with independent legal status under the jurisdiction of Viet Nam’s law could guarantee the interest of Vietnamese and foreign intellectual property owners because intellectual property was a special type of science-technology service.

A huge invisible property rights drain would result if a mistake is made.

"Therefore it is impossible to allow branches and representative offices of foreign legal companies which do not have independent legal status according to Vietnamese law provide industrial property representative services," Trung said.

Many deputies at yesterday’s session also opposed the extension of copyright protection for cinematography, photographic, and dramatic works, as well as applied artworks and anonymous works, from the current 50 years to 75 years.

Ha Noi deputy Vu Hong Anh said the 2005 Law on Intellectual Property, which came into effect on July 1, 2006, was already consistent with international rules and was suitable with the country’s socio-economic development. It also allows Viet Nam to follow the WTO principles of national treatment.

He said about 70 per cent of the country’s population were living in rural areas, so their conditions to enjoy these cultural aspects remained limited. Due to distance, the number of people able to continue benefiting from these cultural entertainment’s would be limited if the length of time for copyright protection were to be increased.

Other issues such as the extension of time for evaluating intellectual property protection applications and the necessity to protect software rights also came under discussion.

Draft law on elderly

Ha Noi lawmakers also contributed opinions to the Draft Law on the Elderly yesterday. The NA is expected to approve the law at the coming session this year.

Issues ranged from whether or not elderly foreign nationals working and living in Viet Nam should be included within the scope of the new law on the elderly; the average age of the elderly; should the Central Elderly Association be considered a political organisation rather than a social one as it is currently considered; and social welfare policies for the elderly.

Most deputies agreed not to include non-Vietnamese people within the scope of the law.

"The law should only apply to non-Vietnamese elderly if he or she wants to carry Vietnamese nationality," deputy Chu Son Ha said.

The draft law states that senior citizens are people aged no less than 60 years old and can no longer work.

"So should they be considered elderly if they are still able to work between 60 and 70 years of age," deputy Dang Huyen Thai asked during a query session.

She pointed out that if a woman must retire at the age of 55 but it would take another five years for her to be considered elderly under the current law, it was unreasonable. The retirement age for men is currently 60.

Deputy Dang Thi Loan said existing policies had not yet taken into account age groups for deciding social welfare policies for the elderly. She asked the compiling committee to define a common age for the elderly, for both men and women.

Regarding the proposal to change the Viet Nam Elderly Association into a political organisation, most deputies said it would be better to leave the organisation in its current status as a social organisation.

Deputy Khanh said if the association were to change into a political organisation it would cause an overlap in management. The current status is also believed to be suitable with the health conditions for the elderly.

Deputy Minh Ha, meanwhile, said the draft should outline specific compensation policies for different categories of elderly. Only people with high income could access high quality services. Besides this, many elderly were still living with and caring for their orphaned children and/or their sons and daughters. These people had yet to access any preferential policy, he added.

Deputy Ha said the number of single female elderly outnumbered that of men, so the NA should think of and support them.

The key objective of the draft law is to address the urgent needs of the elderly in healthcare and enhance their role in the society.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News

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