The Democratic Republic of Vietnam (official name: Viêt – Nam Dan Chu Cong Hoa), which at the census of 1 March 1960 had 15,903,000 residents, is governed by the constitution which entered into force on 1 January 1960 and which can be compared in many respects to that of the People’s Republic of China. In the preamble it is stated that Northern Vietnam is a democratic people’s state based on the alliance between workers and peasants and led by the working class. Legislative power is exercised by the National Assembly which is elected every four years and which normally meets twice a year. The executive power is represented by the President of the Republic, who remains in office for five years and which the parliament elects, choosing from among its members, with a two-thirds majority. The president, who is also the supreme head of the armed forces, designates the prime minister who in turn chooses the members of the government. Local government is organized on the basis of “democratic centralism”; a special form of autonomous administration has been established for regions inhabited by ethnic minorities. Since 1945 the head of state is Ho Chi-minh (which some identify with Nguyen-Ai-Quoc founder in 1927 of the Vietnamese national party or Viet-Nam Quoc-Dan-Dang), who also held, until September 1955, the office of prime minister. The actual governing bodies are the Dang Lao-Dong (or Labor Party) and the Patriotic Front. The communist Dang Lao-Dong recognizes in the Vietnam revolution “an integral part of the world revolution led by the Soviet Union”. Since 1945 the head of state is Ho Chi-minh (which some identify with Nguyen-Ai-Quoc founder in 1927 of the Vietnamese national party or Viet-Nam Quoc-Dan-Dang), who also held, until September 1955, the office of prime minister. The actual governing bodies are the Dang Lao-Dong (or Labor Party) and the Patriotic Front. The communist Dang Lao-Dong recognizes in the Vietnam revolution “an integral part of the world revolution led by the Soviet Union”. Since 1945 the head of state is Ho Chi-minh (which some identify with Nguyen-Ai-Quoc founder in 1927 of the Vietnamese national party or Viet-Nam Quoc-Dan-Dang), who also held, until September 1955, the office of prime minister. The actual governing bodies are the Dang Lao-Dong (or Labor Party) and the Patriotic Front. The communist Dang Lao-Dong recognizes in the Vietnam revolution “an integral part of the world revolution led by the Soviet Union”.
In May 1955 an autonomous Thai-Meo area was created, southeast of the Red River, with an area of about 19,300 square miles and a population of about 330,000; in August of the following year an autonomous zone Viêt-Bac was created north-east of the Red River with an area of 10,000 square miles and 800,000 residents, mostly Tho and Nung. In theory, the two areas should enjoy a decentralized administration and a different tax system from that of the provinces of the delta.
The first elections for the Northern Vietnam National Assembly took place in May 1960 and the first session of the Assembly was held in July.
According to the Constitution, the state directs all economic activities according to a unitary plan, encouraging the various forms of ownership; the state one, considered as the guide of the national economy, the cooperative one, that of the individual workers, that of the national capitalists. The state protects the right of citizens to own legitimately earned money, savings, homes and other assets, and to inherit private property in accordance with the law. The national currency is the plate or dong, the exchange rate of which, in April 1955, was 32 piastres for 1 Indochinese plate; there is currently no official exchange rate, but in April 1958, one Hong Kong dollar was equivalent to approximately 630 piastres.
The Republic of Vietnam (official name: Viêt – Nam Cong Hua) has a population (according to 1958 estimates) of 13 million residents including 700,000 Chinese, 132,000 Cambodians, 13,000 French. The popular referendum of 23 October 1955 was 98% in favor of the deposition of Emperor Bao Dai and the appointment of Ngo Dinh-Diem as head of state, the first act of which, as soon as he was officially elected to this office, was to declare the Vietnam Southern republic, automatically becoming its president. On October 26, 1956, a constitution was promulgated that delegates executive power to the president of the Republic and the legislative power to a unicameral National Assembly, both to be elected by universal and secret suffrage. The general elections of 30 August 1959 gave 74 seats to the People’s Revolutionary Movement and 49 to members of other parties.
The Franco-Vietnamese courts of justice were dissolved on September 16, 1954, the country had full sovereignty in the judicial sphere and the 1956 constitution guarantees the independence of the judiciary.
The Vietnamese banking system is made up of 11 commercial banks (of which 8 are representatives of foreign banks), which are mainly dedicated to financing foreign trade. The scarcity of capital, in the presence of state action aimed at creating, with foreign aid, local industries to complement agricultural activity, has led the government authorities to recently organize a system of special institutions for industrial credit. and agricultural (created in 1957) and for artisan credit (in 1958). The State Bank itself was authorized in 1958 to acquire stakes in industrial companies. The issuing institution began operating in January 1955 as a central bank. The official exchange rate of the plate is 75 for 1 dollar.
