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Communist Party Moves to Reinforce



Subject: Communist Party Moves to Reinforce Rule in Vietnam

Communist Party Moves to Reinforce Rule in Vietnam

August 30, 1999 
Web posted at: 3:32 AM EDT (0732 GMT) 


HANOI, Vietnam (Reuters) -- Vietnam's top leader has said the ruling
Communist Party must reinforce its grip on the country and reiterated
that no forms of political power sharing will ever be tolerated,
official media reported on Monday. 

Le Kha Phieu, in the full text of two speeches carried by most major
newspapers, had made the remarks at the closing of a week-long key
plenum of the around 170-member party central committee on August 16. 

Phieu's remarks, and a party resolution adopted at the same time, were
only released to state media by the official Vietnam News Agency (VNA)
on Sunday. No reason was given for the delay, but a VNA advisory
requested all newspapers to publish the material on Monday. 

Phieu highlighted seven urgent tasks which included "strengthening the
sustainable leading role of the party in all...fields of social life,"
the maintenance of political stability and the need for taking firm
steps towards socialism. 

"Vietnamese people have only one desire, the path to national
independence and socialism," Phieu said. 

"People deeply understand that only under the leadership of the Vietnam
Communist Party could that goal be reached." 

Phieu, in a delivery peppered with historical references painting the
party as indispensable, said the political system was unbending. 

"Our people won't allow any political power sharing with any other
forces. Any ideas to promote "absolute democracy," to put human rights
above sovereignty, or support multi-party or political pluralism...are
lies and cheating," he said. 

The Communist Party, which has 2.3 million members out of a population
of around 79 million, monopolises power at all levels of society in
Vietnam. 

Little dissent is tolerated, although the party says it actively
supports a form of centralised democracy to ensure and protect the
"mastery of the people." 

Analysts say the party is facing some of its biggest challenges since
the early 1990s when communist regimes in the former Soviet Union and
other Eastern Bloc countries collapsed. 

Vietnam maintains one of the world's last communist regimes. The others
are China, North Korea, Cuba and Laos.