March 1949, the French National Assembly voted a law permitting the creation of a Territorial Assembly of Cochinchina. This new Cochinchinese parliament was elected on 10 April 1949, with the Vietnamese representatives then becoming a majority. On 23 April, the Territorial Assembly approved the merger of the Provisional Government of Southern Vietnam with the Provisional Central Government of Vietnam. The decision was in turn approved by the French National Assembly on 20 May, and the merger was effective on 4 June. The State of Vietnam was then be proclaimed, with Bảo Đại as head of state. Administration Government Following the French colonial invasion, Vietnamese mandarins withdrew from Cochinchina, forcing the French to adopt a policy of direct rule. The highest office in the government of French Cochinchina was the Governor of Cochinchina (統督南圻, Thống đốc Nam Kỳ), who after 1887 reported directly to the Governor-General of French Indochina. As French Cochinchina was a directly-ruled colony the French colonial apparatus operated at every level of government including at the provincial, district, and communal levels. Each Cochinchinese province was headed by French official with the title of "Chủ tỉnh" (主省) or "Tỉnh trưởng" (省長), these French officials had similar roles and responsibilities as the equivalent French "Công sứ" (公使) had in the provinces of the Nguyễn dynasty. The provinces of French Cochinchina was further divided into districts known as "Tong" headed by a "Chanh tong", which were further divided into communes known as "xã" (社), which were headed by a "Huong ca". Both the district and commune chiefs were salaried employees of the French colonial administration. Laws During the early periods of French rule in Cochinchina both French laws and Nguyễn dynasty laws applied and offenders of both faced trial in French courts. Initially French people were tried using French laws and Vietnamese people (then known as "Annamese people") were tried using the Nguyễn dynasty's laws alongside a new set of provisions that the French had introduced for their colonial subjects. The French courts applied their rulings based on the two different legal systems. After their consolidation of power the Nguyễn's laws were completely abolished in French Cochinchina and only French laws applied to everyone in the colony. On 6 January 1903, the Governor-General of French Indochina Jean Baptiste Paul Beau issued a decree that stated that offences for both French and indigenous laws would go to French courts and that offenders