Amnesty decision is announced at Chi Hoa prison (Photo: VNA) Speaking at the MIC conference to provide information about Vietnam’s human rights work to the media on August 24, Colonel Tran Nguyen Quan, Deputy Director of the Ministry of Public Security’s Department of Legal Affairs, and Judicial and Administrative Reform, said that projects on disseminating the convention and Vietnam's laws on torture prevention and control, issued by the Prime Minister, ministries, sectors and 63 localities, have been built and carried out across the nation.
Many provisions on the prevention and punishment of torture-related acts in the CAT have been included in the Penal Code 2015 (amended and supplemented in 2017), the Criminal Procedure Code 2015 (amended and supplemented in 2021), the Law on Organisation of Criminal Investigation Bodies 2015, the Law on Custody and Temporary Detention 2015, the Law on Execution of Criminal Judgments, the revised Law on Handling of Administrative Violations 2020, along with relevant guidance documents.
Vietnam has enhanced grassroots democracy, especially in incarceration facilities, compulsory education institutions and reformatories under the Ministry of Public Security; in inspection and settlement of complaints and denunciations; and in specifying information to be disclosed and the form of disclosure, said Quan.
According to the officer, one of Vietnam's positive changes is the installation and use of audio and video recording during the interrogation of the accused and during the litigation process, thus contributing to the prevention of acts of torture. After the pilot period, to date, Vietnam has installed fixed audio and video recording equipment in 204 interrogation rooms, and established 25 monitoring and data storage rooms in 25 detention facilities nationwide.
A friendly investigation room model to deal with cases involving people under 18 years old and related to abuses of those aged under 18 has been designed and decorated as an office room, creating a peaceful environment for victims. At present, 33 friendly investigation rooms have been put into operation nationwide./.
Vietnam has paid special attention to the national report on the implementation of the convention. It submitted the first report to the Committee Against Torture in 2017. The country is now working to finalise the second national report./.
VNA
