National symbols
The national flag was adopted in the north on November 30, 1955 and transferred to the entire state after the Vietnam War. In the middle of the red cloth stands a golden five-pointed star. Red stands for the revolution and the shed blood, the golden star is a symbol for the unity of peasants, workers, intellectuals, young people and soldiers. – The coat of arms was adopted in the north on June 21, 1956 and also transferred to the entire state. Within two golden rice sheaves on a circular red background, it shows a faceted, golden, five-pointed star, underneath a golden gear. A red ribbon with the official name of the state at the foot of the image wraps around rice sheaves and a cogwheel.
National holiday: September 2nd commemorates the proclamation of the republic in 1945.
Parties
According to equzhou, as part of a one-party system, the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV, Dang Cong San Viet Nam; emerged from the CP Indochina, founded in 1930, 1951–76 under the name of the Workers’ Party of Vietnam) has the political leadership monopoly; it dominates and controls the Vietnamese Patriotic Front (founded in 1955) and its affiliated mass organizations, v. a. the Communist Youth Association of Ho Chi Minh, the Vietnamese Women’s Union and the General Union of Vietnamese Confederation (founded in 1976; 7.9 million members).
Unions
The official General Trade Union Confederation of Vietnam has 18 individual trade unions. Independent unions are not allowed.
Military
The total strength of the compulsory military service (24 months of service, 36 months for the Air Force and Navy) is around 482,000 men, and that of the paramilitary forces is around 40,000 members in the border guard corps. The army (around 412,000 soldiers) is divided into nine military regions; 58 infantry divisions (each of the size of a reinforced brigade), 10 tank brigades, 15 independent infantry brigades, 10 artillery brigades and other combat support units are available in large formations under the command of 14 corps commands. The Navy has 13,000, the Marines around 27,000, and the Air Force and Air Defense Forces have around 15,000 men each.
Law
State organization and security law corresponds to the model of socialist states, whereas business law has been modeled on western capitalist states since 1986. The Supreme People’s Court is at the head of the judicial organization, while lower instances and judicial branches form local people’s courts, military and other courts. There is also a system of control bodies that monitor compliance with the law in the state and the armed forces.
Administration
Vietnam is divided into 58 provinces governed by elected people’s councils and five cities with provincial status (Can Tho , Da Nang , Haiphong , Hanoi , Ho Chi Minh City). For statistical purposes, the provinces are grouped into eight regions.
Education
In 1996 compulsory schooling was introduced for nine years (6-15 years of age). The school system is divided into a five-year primary level and a four- or three-year lower and upper secondary level. No school fees are charged in the primary level. In rural areas in particular, however, parents can sometimes not afford the cost of learning materials and school uniforms. In addition, the help of the children is often needed in the parental company. Many therefore drop out of school prematurely. In addition to general education, there are vocationally oriented technical schools and vocational and technical schools.
The higher education system includes over 400 universities and other colleges, including Hanoi National University (founded in 1956) and the University of Ho Chi Minh City (founded in 1962 and 1977). Very demanding entrance exams have to be taken at universities. Many Vietnamese aspire to study abroad at university.
Media
All media are under the control of the Ministry of Culture and Information, the Internet is regulated by the state.
Press: There are around 600 newspapers and magazines. The most important daily newspapers are the KP party organ »Nhan Dan« (German Das Volk), the newspaper of the armed forces »Quan Doi Nhan Dan« (German People’s Army) and »Tuoi Tre« (German youth). The city committees of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City also publish their own newspapers. The “Vietnam News” appears in English.
News agencies are Viet-Nam News Agency (VNA, founded in 1945, state-owned) and Vinapress (founded in 1988, not state-owned).
Broadcasting: Radio and television are state owned. The radio station “Voice of Vietnam” broadcasts six domestic radio programs, operates a foreign service in twelve languages (including since 2006 in German) as well as the TV news channel VOVTV; “Vietnam TV” broadcasts on 12 channels (five regional) and operates the international channel VTV4 with programs in Vietnamese, English, French, Chinese and Russian. There are regional radio and television broadcasters in all provinces.
