Unleash the creativity and talent of writers in building and developing Vietnamese culture and people.

Attending the meeting were Mr. Nguyen Quang Thieu, Chairman of the Vietnam Writers Association ; Ms. Ngo Phuong Lan, Vice Chairman of the Central Council for Theory and Criticism of Literature and Arts; leaders of the Department of Performing Arts, representatives of the Department of Legislation (Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism).

According to the report from the Department of Performing Arts at the working session, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is drafting a submission on revising and finalizing the draft proposal for a Decree regulating and encouraging the development of literature, in accordance with the directive of Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha in Notice No. 176/TB-VPCP dated April 23, 2024, from the Government Office .

Deputy Minister Ta Quang Dong chaired the working session.

Accordingly, in accordance with the provisions of the Law on Promulgation of Legal Documents, on January 22, 2024, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism submitted Report No. 16/TTr-BVHTTDL to the Government proposing the draft Decree on literary activities. In the report, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism submitted to the Government the draft Decree on literary activities as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 19 of the Law on Promulgation of Legal Documents and the draft policy content for the Decree on literary activities: (1) State mechanism for assigning tasks to encourage literary creation, literary theory and criticism using state budget funds to carry out political tasks. (2) Promoting the role and improving the effectiveness of the Literary Creation Camp, Literary Theory and Criticism Camp. (3) Improving the quality of the Competition for creating literary works, literary theory and criticism. (4) Regarding the National Literary Award. (5) Promote the introduction, promotion, development of literature and promote the value of Vietnamese literary works.

On April 11, 2024, at the Government Headquarters, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha chaired a meeting on the draft proposal for a Decree on literary activities. Attending the meeting were leaders from the Ministries and agencies: Culture, Sports and Tourism; Information and Communications; Education and Training; the Government Office; the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union; and the Standing Member of the National Assembly's Committee on Culture and Education, Chairman of the Central Council for Literary and Artistic Theory and Criticism; and representatives from the Ministries and agencies: Justice; Finance; Public Security; National Defense; and the Central Propaganda Department.

On April 23, 2024, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism received Notice No. 176/TB-VPCP from the Government Office regarding the conclusions of Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha at the meeting on the draft proposal for the construction of a Decree on literary activities, which requires focusing on completing the following contents: (a) Reviewing the policies of the Decree to ensure full and comprehensive institutionalization of the Party's major viewpoints, policies, and orientations on literature and art; resolving issues arising from practice that have been identified through the process of summarizing 15 years of implementing Resolution No. 23-NQ/TW of the Politburo on "Continuing to build and develop literature and art in the new era", the national scientific conference "80 years of the Vietnamese Cultural Outline" and the National Cultural Conference... The Decree, when promulgated, must create a space and promote creativity in literary creation, theory, and criticism; Building a national, scientific, and popular Vietnamese literature, promoting the nation's fine cultural values, protecting the Party's ideological and theoretical foundation, reflecting the vivid reality of the country's innovation and development and integrating into world trends.

(b) The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism shall preside over and coordinate with specialized agencies such as the Vietnam Writers Association and the Central Council for Literary and Artistic Theory and Criticism to determine the scope of application of the Decree; review the content of each policy to ensure comprehensiveness and completeness in order to promote creative activities (commissioning creative works, organizing creative camps, launching competitions, organizing literary awards, other support activities...), protect copyright, literary criticism and theory, digital transformation in the field of literature and promote literature on the internet, and promote reading culture; and unify concepts and terminology. Based on the scope of application and policy content, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism shall propose a suitable name; at the same time, clarify the political basis, practical basis, and necessity of having separate regulations regulating the field of literature in the Draft Proposal.

(c) Regarding some specific policy contents that need to be reviewed, supplemented, and improved: (i) Clearly define the responsibilities of state management at the central and local levels, including guidance on the organization of the management apparatus in accordance with practical requirements and relevant policies and legal regulations; (ii) Maximize the role of the Vietnam Writers Association and related professional organizations, including directly participating in organizing literary competitions and awards, establishing criteria and regulations closely following international trends, conducting training and disseminating knowledge and skills, strengthening copyright protection, introducing, promoting, and disseminating literature on the internet, and developing a reading culture; while also focusing on diversifying forms of honoring and promoting literary works; (iii) Diversify forms of organizing creative spaces to encourage all individuals to participate in creative activities in accordance with their specific circumstances and conditions; Strengthen the role of the State through training, coaching, information provision, exchange organization and other support activities.

Scene from the working session

After researching and consulting with the Vietnam Writers Association, the Central Council for Theory and Criticism of Literature and Arts and a number of relevant agencies, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism continues to revise and complete the draft Decree at the request of the Government Office, specifically as follows:

(1) Regarding the dossier components, order, and procedures for drafting: Implementing the directive of Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha on assigning the Ministry of Justice to issue a document clearly affirming the authority, order, and procedures for drafting, completing, and approving the proposal to draft a Decree regulating and encouraging the development of literature (Section 3 of Notice No. 176/TB-VPCP dated April 23, 2024 of the Government Office), within its functions and duties, after studying the documents, the Ministry of Justice has the following opinion: On December 8, 2023, the Ministry of Justice sent Official Letter No. 6087/BTP-PLHSHC to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism for comments on the dossier proposing the drafting of a Decree regulating and encouraging the development of literature. On May 13, 2024, the Ministry of Justice sent Official Letter No. 2378/BTP-PLHSHC to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism outlining the process for drafting a proposal for a Decree regulating and encouraging the development of literature. The letter requested the drafting agency to revise the content, synthesize feedback from relevant agencies, organizations, and individuals during the drafting process, and finalize the proposal in accordance with Clause 1, Article 87 of this Law, for submission to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision. Therefore, the dossier for proposing the drafting of the Decree regulating and encouraging the development of literature has the components, procedures, and processes outlined in Clause 2, Article 19 of the Law on Promulgation of Legal Normative Documents.

(2) Regarding the content of the adoption: Based on the political basis, practical basis and draft policies of the Decree, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism adopts and adjusts the name of the Decree according to Resolution No. 01/NQ-CP dated January 8, 2022 of the Government on the main tasks and solutions to implement the socio-economic development plan and state budget estimate for 2022. The Government assigned the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to develop a Decree on literary activities, adopting and adjusting it into a Decree regulating and encouraging the development of literature to be in line with the current reality and draft policies to encourage the development of literature.

Reviewing the policies of the Decree ensures the full and comprehensive institutionalization of the Party's major viewpoints, guidelines, and orientations on literature and art; addressing issues arising from practical experience identified through the 15-year review of the Politburo's Resolution No. 23-NQ/TW on "Continuing to build and develop literature and art in the new era," the national scientific conference "80 years of the Vietnamese Cultural Outline," and the National Cultural Conference... This issue has been incorporated and adjusted in the political basis section and specifically in the draft policies of the Decree.

This involves maximizing the role of the Vietnam Writers Association, the Central Council for Literary and Artistic Theory and Criticism, and related professional organizations, including directly participating in organizing literary competitions and awards, thematic literary workshops, and political tasks; national, international, and regional literary competitions; developing proposals and regulations for national literary awards in specific stages, including regulations on the procedures and documentation for awarding literary prizes; translating, introducing, and promoting Vietnamese literature abroad...

The report also clearly stated a number of explanatory contents such as: Introducing, promoting and popularizing literature on cyberspace; Activities, training and coaching for writers and authors...

Literary activists are very interested and waiting for the birth of legal documents suitable to the current literary practice situation.

At the meeting, representatives from the Vietnam Writers Association and the Central Council for Literary and Artistic Theory and Criticism agreed on the necessity of developing a Decree to regulate and encourage the development of literature. According to Mr. Nguyen Quang Thieu, the Decree aims to encourage the development of literature, promote investment in literary creation, regulate national literary awards, and highlight the effectiveness of writing camps... all of which are necessary and beneficial for writers. With the Decree in place, writers will have a clearer understanding of their rights and responsibilities.

Ms. Ngo Phuong Lan argued that literature is the root art of many other art forms, but the shortcoming is the lack of a separate legal document to regulate and manage it. She suggested that the drafting of the Decree should refer to the regulations on literary management in several countries with similar conditions to Vietnam, in order to ensure effective literary management and encourage its development.

Concluding the working session, Deputy Minister Ta Quang Dong affirmed that those involved in literary activities are very interested in and awaiting the promulgation of a legal document that is consistent with the current practical situation of literature, ensuring creative freedom, helping writers unleash their creativity, and wholeheartedly contributing their talents and efforts to the cause of building and developing Vietnamese culture and people, meeting the requirements of sustainable national development. To achieve this, the drafting of the Decree has been carried out cautiously and scientifically by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, with broad consultation from relevant ministries and sectors, and the main target of the Decree is writers and those who enjoy literary works. To finalize this draft submission, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will continue to seek opinions from the Vietnam Writers Association and the Central Council for Literary and Artistic Theory and Criticism. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will compile, revise, and finalize the submission and present it to the Government in the near future.

Source: https://toquoc.vn/xay-dung-nghi-dinh-ve-hoat-dong-van-hoc-khoi-thong-suc-sang-tao-tai-nang-cua-nha-van-vao-xay-dung-va-phat-trien-nen-van-hoa-con-nguoi-viet-nam-20240614210917274.htm