The Tan Trao National People’s Congress, held on 16-17 August 1945 at Tan Trao Communal House in Tuyen Quang, was a momentous historical milestone. It marked a fresh stage in Vietnam’s revolutionary struggle, paving the way for the triumph of the August Revolution and the birth of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. Serving in effect as a provisional parliament - the precursor to today’s National Assembly - the National People’s Congress embodied the people’s profound trust in the Party and President Ho Chi Minh, as well as the unity and resolute will of the entire nation to win independence and build a new state. Across each historical era, inheriting the values of the National People’s Congress and under the leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam, the National Assembly has continually reformed its structure and operations, staying closely attuned to reality and fulfilling the demands of national development in the new age.

Amid global shifts favourable to Vietnam’s liberation cause, in October 1944, Leader Ho Chi Minh addressed a letter to compatriots announcing the plan to convene the National People’s Congress. The aim was to establish a representative body that would symbolise the unity and consensus of the entire population, harness the nation’s internal strength, and rally international support - seizing the opportune moment to achieve the goals of independence and freedom.

In mid-August 1945, as Fascist Japan surrendered to the Allies, and in line with the Party Central Committee’s directives, the National People’s Congress was convened with the participation of delegates representing all three regions - North, Central and South - alongside representatives of various sectors, social groups, ethnic communities, political parties, national salvation organisations, and a number of overseas Vietnamese. The Congress endorsed the policies of the Party and the Viet Minh Central Committee, resolved to launch a General Uprising, and led the masses to rise up and seize power from the Japanese. It established the Provisional Government of Vietnam, determined the national flag and anthem, and adopted many other crucial strategies for the Vietnamese revolution.

A painting of President Ho Chi Minh at the National Congress in the then Tan Trao commune, Tuyen Quang province (Photo: qdnd.vn)

The Tan Trao National People’s Congress embodied the powerful will and united determination of the entire Vietnamese nation at a decisive moment in the country’s destiny. It committed to the course of a general uprising, the abolition of the colonial and feudal subjugation system, the implementation of the Viet Minh’s 10-point policy, and the laying of the first legal foundations for a new regime. This was a major victory for the Party and President Ho Chi Minh, who had accurately assessed the domestic and international revolutionary situation and seized the right moment to take power. The resolutions adopted by the National People’s Congress were a concrete exercise in democracy - building a state in which the people are the masters, and deciding the nation’s most vital issues in the very midst of the struggle for independence, in line with President Ho Chi Minh’s vision. From these decisions, the entire Vietnamese people rose as one to seize power, bringing the August 1945 General Uprising to a complete victory. On 2 September 1945, at historic Ba Dinh Square, President Ho Chi Minh proclaimed the Declaration of Independence, founding the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.

From the Tan Trao National People’s Congress to the birth of the first National Assembly, and through 80 years encompassing 15 tenures, the National Assembly has continuously inherited and upheld the values of the National People’s Congress. Each term has been a process of unceasing renewal in both organisation and operation, reaffirming the National Assembly’s status as a pivotal institution in the state apparatus - the highest representative body of the people and the supreme organ of state power in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. The National Assembly has consistently met the strategic demands of each revolutionary phase, making great and lasting contributions to the cause of national liberation, reunification, and the building and defence of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

The National Assembly has acted swiftly to translate the Party’s policies into law, reflecting with fidelity the will and aspirations of voters and the people, while remaining closely attuned to the demands of daily life. Through its determined efforts and reforms, legislative work has been steadily enhanced in both efficiency and quality. Today, Vietnam’s legal system is comprehensive, regulating virtually every sphere of social life in line with international standards, with nearly 300 codes and laws currently in force. Among its most significant legislative achievements, the National Assembly has passed five Constitutions, establishing the political and legal foundations for the country’s stable and sustainable development. Numerous landmark codes and laws in the fields of civil affairs, commerce, business, administration, criminal justice, litigation, and dispute resolution have been enacted and refined, exerting profound and far-reaching effects on the socio-economic fabric of the nation. These have provided the legal basis for reforming and improving the effectiveness of the state apparatus from central to local levels; promoting socialist democracy and the people’s mastery; advancing the socialist-oriented market economy; safeguarding the freedom of enterprise and legal equality; protecting and guaranteeing human and citizens’ rights; ensuring social security; protecting the environment; fostering social progress and justice; improving the material and spiritual well-being of the people; accelerating judicial reform; strengthening the fight against crime; consolidating national defence; safeguarding sovereignty and national security; protecting the regime; maintaining political stability, public order and safety; and actively promoting deep and comprehensive international integration.

The National Assembly has continually renewed its working methods, raising the quality and effectiveness of debates and resolutions on major national issues, and exercising its powers to decide critical economic and social matters in a full, flexible, and effective manner. The consideration and adoption of five-year and annual socio-economic development plans, as well as plans for economic restructuring, have been undertaken with an integrated approach, ensuring a close alignment between objectives and available resources. Many of its decisions have been unprecedented and breakthrough in nature, responding promptly to the demands of reality - for example, fiscal and monetary policy measures during the Covid-19 pandemic; special mechanisms and policies to promote private-sector development; pilot mechanisms to drive innovation in science, technology, and digital transformation at the national level; and strategic approvals for national programmes and projects, such as the National Target Programmes, the Long Thanh International Airport project, sections of the eastern North-South Expressway in the 2017-2020 and 2021-2025 phases, the North-South high-speed railway, the National Master Plan, and the National Marine Spatial Plan.

The National Assembly has also decided on key policies concerning defence, security, and fundamental foreign policy, thereby contributing to the protection of national borders, territorial sovereignty, and economic development, while opening up major opportunities and fresh prospects for the nation. It has made timely, lawful, and proper decisions on critical matters of state organisation and senior appointments, ensuring compliance with legal standards, qualifications, procedures, and practical requirements - thereby reinforcing and streamlining the effective operation of the state apparatus. Across its terms, the procedures for deliberating and deciding on the nation’s most important issues have been consistently reformed and improved, enabling the adoption of resolutions of high quality and practical feasibility that meet the needs of reality. This is the continuation of an unbroken current, one that consistently harnesses the collective wisdom, initiative, and creativity of National Assembly deputies, while faithfully reflecting the will and aspirations of the people.

A picture of the National Assembly today (Photo: VNA)

The nation is now entering a new era - an era of prosperity, civilisation, and enduring strength for the Vietnamese people under the leadership of the Party. General Secretary Tô Lâm has emphasised: “High-quality institutions and laws, aligned with the realities of development and the aspirations of the people, are the foremost factor determining the success of any nation. Therefore, for our country to advance vigorously, we must unequivocally say ‘no’ to any shortcomings or inadequacies in institutions and laws; we must not compromise with any weakness in policy design, legislative drafting, or implementation.” Against the backdrop of these new demands, the National Assembly will continue to uphold the spirit of unity, responsibility, and exemplary leadership, driving innovation and enhancing its operational effectiveness. It will focus particularly on the following key priorities:

1. Build on eight decades of achievements and experience to continue to innovate and further enhance the quality and effectiveness of the National Assembly’s work, meeting in full the requirements and tasks of the new era. Deepen awareness of the Assembly’s position and role within the political system under the leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam. Uphold the spirit of unity, democracy, openness, and transparency; harness collective wisdom; and adhere to the principle of putting the people at the heart - being close to them, understanding them, respecting them, listening to them, and serving them in every activity of the National Assembly, its bodies, and each deputy.

2. Implement with the highest resolve the Politburo’s Resolution No. 66-NQ/TW (30 April 2025) on reforming legislative work to meet national development requirements in the new era, together with the directives of General Secretary To Lam on law-making, must be carried out decisively. Alongside laws concerning human rights, citizens’ rights, and judicial procedure, other legislation - particularly those governing development - should be framed to set out only the fundamental principles under the Assembly’s remit, with regularly changing matters delegated to the Government, ministries, sectors, and localities to ensure flexibility and relevance. The Party’s comprehensive and direct leadership in legislative work must be guaranteed, with its policies promptly and fully codified into law, and a high degree of Party discipline upheld in both drafting and enforcement. Strict observance of discipline, regulations on power control, and measures to combat corruption, waste, negative practices, and vested interests in legislative processes will be treated as the “breakthrough of breakthroughs,” ensuring that the law itself becomes a competitive advantage.

3. Formulate a legislative orientation for the 16th National Assembly and annual law-making programmes of the highest quality and effectiveness, contributing to the completion of the institutional framework for national development in the new era. The target is that, by 2030, Vietnam will have a democratic, equitable, consistent, unified, transparent, and workable legal system, supported by strict and coherent implementation mechanisms - laying the groundwork for achieving two strategic goals: becoming a modern, industrialised, upper-middle-income developing country by 2030, and a developed socialist nation with high income by 2045. Focus will be placed on institutionalising four strategic Politburo resolutions; building and refining laws on the socialist-oriented market economy; on the development of culture, education, training, science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation; establishing legal frameworks for new and non-traditional issues to define a new growth model, foster new growth drivers, develop new productive forces, and promote emerging industries; revising and supplementing legislation in line with streamlining the political system’s apparatus, restructuring administrative units, and ensuring thorough and coherent decentralisation; and improving laws on the organisation and functioning of judicial and auxiliary judicial bodies to support judicial reform.

4. Strengthen oversight of the translation of Party policies into law and of law enforcement. Oversight by the National Assembly and People’s Councils at all levels must be reinforced as a key, regular means of controlling state power. Comprehensive reform of the Law on Oversight Activities is needed, clarifying concepts and unifying understanding of legislative oversight, while adhering to principles of constitutional and legal compliance, objectivity, openness, transparency, and focused, outcome-oriented scrutiny linked to policy improvement, law-making, and decision-making on national and local issues - without hindering the normal operations of those being supervised. Clear distinctions must be drawn between legislative oversight and the inspection, auditing, or supervision carried out by other state bodies; the scope and subjects of the Assembly’s regular supreme oversight must be defined; and the roles of the Standing Committee, Assembly bodies, delegations, deputies, and People’s Councils must be specified. The quality of questioning, answering, explanations, thematic oversight, handling of complaints and petitions must be raised, with a focus on reviewing subordinate legislation - particularly detailed regulations - as a key breakthrough.

5. Continue to innovate working methods, with digital transformation and AI adoption as one of four breakthroughs. Proactively apply the achievements of the Fourth Industrial Revolution to the National Assembly organisation and activities. Effective implementation of the National Assembly’s Digital Transformation Plan (2025-2030) will be pursued, with priority given to developing IT systems, digital applications, AI, and big data to support legislative, oversight, and decision-making functions. Common IT platforms and shared databases will be built for all Assembly bodies and its Office.

6. Make a breakthrough in the quality of deputies and support staff. This is decisive for improving the National Assembly’s effectiveness in fulfilling its constitutional functions and powers. The mechanism for selecting, nominating, and electing deputies will be refined; links between deputies and constituents will be strengthened; the number of full-time deputies will be increased, with their roles at both central and local levels maximised. Advisory and support bodies will be consolidated and strengthened in capacity.

Faithfully implementing these priorities will be a practical continuation of the values of the historic Tan Trao National People’s Congress - constantly improving the National Assembly’s performance to meet the demands of national development in this new era.

Senior Lieutenant General TRAN QUANG PHUONG, Member of the Party Central Committee, Vice Chairman of the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam