Child abuse and exploitation: No cases have been prosecuted yet.

Despite the existence of comprehensive penalties, child abuse continues to occur frequently; no locality has yet been prosecuted.

The legal system, particularly the 2016 Children's Law, has clearly stipulated the responsibilities of agencies, organizations, and individuals in protecting children and handling cases related to child abuse and violence.

Specifically, the People's Committees at the commune and ward levels are primarily responsible when child abuse occurs within their jurisdiction. However, in recent times, almost no localities have been held accountable.

A kindergarten teacher abused children at the Green Kindergarten in Ho Chi Minh City (photo: Tuoi Tre newspaper).

The Law on Children and Government Decree 56/2017/ND-CP stipulate that the chairpersons of the People's Committees at the commune, district, and provincial levels are the first to be held responsible when child abuse occurs in their areas.

The Chairpersons of the People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities are responsible to the Prime Minister for failing to promptly handle cases of violence and abuse against children occurring in their localities; and for failing to promptly support and intervene for children who have been subjected to violence or abuse.

Despite the existence of comprehensive penalties, child abuse remains a frequent occurrence. This is partly due to the lack of awareness among caregivers, the indifference of the surrounding community, and partly because children are afraid to speak out, as the abusers are sometimes their own parents.

Furthermore, administrative penalties ranging from 5 to 10 million VND are too low and not deterrent enough.

According to Mr. Ha Dinh Bon, Director of the Legal Department (Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs), a review of the Prime Minister's Decree 144 on administrative penalties in the field of child protection and care shows that Hanoi has not penalized any cases in the past five years.

Reports from other localities are similar, with virtually no administrative action taken.

With the current legal framework, many localities are still not fulfilling their responsibilities.

According to Mr. Ha Dinh Bon, a comprehensive review of the entire legal system, from the Law on Children, Criminal Law, and Civil Law, is needed to ensure consistency.

In addition, it is necessary to strengthen the dissemination and education of legal knowledge to raise community awareness.

"If we wait for instructions from higher authorities before taking action, we are not fulfilling our responsibilities, and those who are not fulfilling their responsibilities will not be held accountable. According to the Decree on administrative penalties, most localities do not handle administrative violations in the field of children's rights."

"Many localities, authorities, and neighborhood committees have not taken action; no cases have been dealt with. Hanoi also reported that, basically, no cases have been enforced under this Decree. Therefore, our implementation has not been effective. To ensure effective implementation, we need more specific and stringent regulations, more inspections and audits, and decisive action," Mr. Dinh Bon said.

Ms. Ngo Thi Minh, Deputy Chair of the National Assembly's Committee on Culture, Education, Youth and Children, also affirmed that current laws are quite comprehensive, but the organization of implementation and bringing the laws into practice remains a matter of concern.

Although the 2016 Children's Law already has a chapter clearly defining the responsibilities of agencies, organizations, individuals, educational institutions, and families in protecting children, the Law should be more specific, assigning clear responsibilities to each department within the commune government regarding the protection and care of children, instead of rigidly placing responsibility solely on the chairman of the People's Committee of the commune, ward, or town.

In particular, attention should be paid to developing a team of collaborators, as they are an extension of the family court system, tasked with preventing, detecting, and reporting acts of child abuse.

“The relevant ministries must have strong, close coordination and clearly defined responsibilities. The system of guiding documents must also be consistent. Recently, the Government has strongly established the National Child Protection Hotline to contribute to the timely provision of information and handling of child abuse and violence. More importantly, the establishment of the National Committee for Child Protection, assigning responsibility down to the commune level, with close and intimate relationships to prevent child violence and abuse,” said Ms. Ngo Thi Minh.

According to VOV