The Vietnam Border Guard Law is of strategic significance to national construction and defence, Commander of the Vietnam Border Guard, Lieut. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien, told the press on June 9.

While drafting the law, the Ministry of National Defence has collected opinions of agencies, organisations and individuals, as well as assessments of the Ministry of Justice, he said.

The bill was presented to the Government’s regular meeting in January, and received approval of Government members. At the ongoing ninth sitting of the 14th National Assembly, it is scheduled to be tabled for discussion in groups on June 16 and in a plenary session on June 19.

The Commander said Vietnam has over 5,000 km of land border and 3,260 km of coastline running through 44 cities and provinces.

He noted that while peace, friendship, cooperation and development have been the common trend pursued by countries worldwide, the regional and global situation has always faced complex and unforeseeable developments.

According to Chien, over the past 61 years, the Vietnamese border guard force has effectively implemented measures to manage and protect territorial sovereignty and national border, and safeguard border security and order.

However, such contents have yet to be prescribed in the national border law, the Border Guard Ordinance and relevant legal documents, he went on. Therefore, there is not sufficient legal foundation for competent agencies, forces and the border guard force to implement the tasks of building, managing and protecting national border and border areas.

In addition, the ordinance only handles issues regarding the border guard force, leaving out other subjects concerned in the building, management and protection of the national border and border areas. Some regulations relating to the limitation of human rights and citizens’ right have not matched the 2013 Constitution.

Besides, many duties and authority of the border guard force are prescribed in various laws and sub-law documents, causing difficulties and inconsistency.

Therefore, it is urgent to promulgate the Vietnam Border Guard Law that stipulates the responsibility, rights, obligations and tasks of agencies and forces in the border guard work, Chien said.