Defend the Defenders | 16/7/2014
by Vu Quoc Ngu, Sept 15, 2014
Vietnam’s legislative body National Assembly (NA) on Sept 11 held its first public hearing to consider measures to deal with police brutality and make it harder for heavy-handed interrogators to halt torture and coercion.
A policeman, flanked of local militia members, tries to stop a foreign journalist from taking pictures outside the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Court on August 10, 2011 where Pham Minh Hoang, a French-Vietnamese lecturer and blogger was standing trial. (Ian Timberlake/AFP/Getty Images)
Lawmaker Truong Trong Nghia, who is also vice chairman of the Vietnam Bar Association, condemned those practices as a threat to the integrity and stability of the nation, the Thanh Nien newspaper reported.
There are a number of torture cases in which police investigators treat suspects like their enemies rather than their equals, said Mr. Nghia at the hearing, adding that wrongful verdicts, threats and torture are critical threats to the system itself.
During the session, Minister of Public Security Tran Dai Quang reported that 19 police officers have been fired for torturing suspects between 2011 and 2013. During the period, 183 others were disciplined for violating investigative procedures and regulations through dismissal, demotion or reassignment, he said.
According to Vice Head of the Supreme People’s Court Nguyen Son, the use of torture by police is on the rise.
The courts nationwide have heard ten cases in which 23 police officers were accused of conducting torture between 2011 and 2013. Of those cases, the court saw two defendants in 2011, seven in 2012 and fourteen in 2013, he said.
Nguyen Hai Phong, vice director of the People’s Supreme Procuracy, the country’s highest prosecutors office, said the actual number could be higher.
According to Vietnam’s current law, the punishments for torturing are too lenient, with maximum punishment of 15 years in prison, said Le Thuc Anh, chairman of the Vietnam Bar Association.
In some localities, those convicted of the crime have been granted even more lenient sentences, he added.
Nguyen Van Hien, chairman of the NA’s Legal Committee, said torture has led to many wrongful verdicts while Nguyen Sy Cuong, a member of the committee demanded full statistics on the number of people who died in police custody. Nearly 20 people died during police’s detention across the nation during the past few years and the number of people severely beaten by policemen is very high, according to independent sources.
At the session, many deputies proposed solutions to prevent threats and torture during the course of an investigation, including making the use of video and audio recording devices mandatory for the entirety of police interrogations.
Le Thi Nga, deputy chairwoman of the Legal Committee, said that the Ministry of Public Security should allow a third party to record video and/or audio tapes of confessions if the ministry claims they don’t have the money to do so.
If police are doing investigations properly, they have nothing to fear, she said.
Deputy Minister of Public Security Le Quy Vuong said suspects should have the right to insist that their interrogations are recorded.
He said his ministry is researching many measures to avoid torture and coercion, including punishing supervisors for the misconduct of their subordinates.
Mr. Phong, the vice director of the Supreme People’s Procuracy, said investigators should be trained to improve legal awareness.
“Even if we pass a law requiring the use of cameras, torture can continue if those involved are unwilling to abide by it,” he said.
Vietnam is a communist country where police forces are receiving huge financial and human resources to protect the one-party regime.
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September 16, 2014
Vietnam Parliament Holds First Hearing to Confront Police Torture
by Nhan Quyen • [Human Rights]
Defend the Defenders | 16/7/2014
by Vu Quoc Ngu, Sept 15, 2014
A policeman, flanked of local militia members, tries to stop a foreign journalist from taking pictures outside the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Court on August 10, 2011 where Pham Minh Hoang, a French-Vietnamese lecturer and blogger was standing trial. (Ian Timberlake/AFP/Getty Images)
Lawmaker Truong Trong Nghia, who is also vice chairman of the Vietnam Bar Association, condemned those practices as a threat to the integrity and stability of the nation, the Thanh Nien newspaper reported.
There are a number of torture cases in which police investigators treat suspects like their enemies rather than their equals, said Mr. Nghia at the hearing, adding that wrongful verdicts, threats and torture are critical threats to the system itself.
During the session, Minister of Public Security Tran Dai Quang reported that 19 police officers have been fired for torturing suspects between 2011 and 2013. During the period, 183 others were disciplined for violating investigative procedures and regulations through dismissal, demotion or reassignment, he said.
According to Vice Head of the Supreme People’s Court Nguyen Son, the use of torture by police is on the rise.
The courts nationwide have heard ten cases in which 23 police officers were accused of conducting torture between 2011 and 2013. Of those cases, the court saw two defendants in 2011, seven in 2012 and fourteen in 2013, he said.
Nguyen Hai Phong, vice director of the People’s Supreme Procuracy, the country’s highest prosecutors office, said the actual number could be higher.
According to Vietnam’s current law, the punishments for torturing are too lenient, with maximum punishment of 15 years in prison, said Le Thuc Anh, chairman of the Vietnam Bar Association.
In some localities, those convicted of the crime have been granted even more lenient sentences, he added.
Nguyen Van Hien, chairman of the NA’s Legal Committee, said torture has led to many wrongful verdicts while Nguyen Sy Cuong, a member of the committee demanded full statistics on the number of people who died in police custody. Nearly 20 people died during police’s detention across the nation during the past few years and the number of people severely beaten by policemen is very high, according to independent sources.
At the session, many deputies proposed solutions to prevent threats and torture during the course of an investigation, including making the use of video and audio recording devices mandatory for the entirety of police interrogations.
Le Thi Nga, deputy chairwoman of the Legal Committee, said that the Ministry of Public Security should allow a third party to record video and/or audio tapes of confessions if the ministry claims they don’t have the money to do so.
If police are doing investigations properly, they have nothing to fear, she said.
Deputy Minister of Public Security Le Quy Vuong said suspects should have the right to insist that their interrogations are recorded.
He said his ministry is researching many measures to avoid torture and coercion, including punishing supervisors for the misconduct of their subordinates.
Mr. Phong, the vice director of the Supreme People’s Procuracy, said investigators should be trained to improve legal awareness.
“Even if we pass a law requiring the use of cameras, torture can continue if those involved are unwilling to abide by it,” he said.
Vietnam is a communist country where police forces are receiving huge financial and human resources to protect the one-party regime.