South East Asian Trips

The political system of Vietnam is one of a communist regime- highly centralised and dominated by the only political party in the country, the CPV or the Communist Party of Vietnam. The country is divided into 58 provinces and 3 municipalities, with administration in the hands of an executive headed by a prime minister (currently Phan Van Khai). The legislative functions are undertaken by a unicameral parliament known as the National Assembly, from amongst whom the president is elected. Suffrage in the country is universal, with the voting age being 18 years. Vietnam shook itself free of France in 1954, but the devastating war with the USA, which ended only in 1973, took its toll- and many of the problems which the country today faces are a result, not just of the war, but of the damaging and insular policies of the communist regime. Aging communist leaders, averse to change, are unwilling to let go of power or to allow the country to `go west', so to say. It's sad, but large-scale development seems unlikely until the Vietnamese government changes its stance on major issues like privatisation and foreign investments.