Prime Minister: Laws must be strictly enforced.

"Comrades have quickly shifted the focus of the struggle, reorganized forces, built a solid people's security posture, reformed policies, strategies, and work methods, creating a proactive and strategic approach to combating crime," the Prime Minister said.

During their duties, officers and soldiers of the Mobile Police Command fought bravely and resolutely to protect the Party, the lives, and the property of the people. Many comrades have heroically sacrificed their lives or shed their blood for the cause of protecting national security and maintaining social order and safety. Particularly in the incident at Dong Tam on January 9th, three police officers and soldiers, including two from the Mobile Police force, bravely sacrificed their lives while on duty. The Prime Minister stated that regarding the Dong Tam incident, Hanoi City has conducted a comprehensive inspection of the management and use of land in the Mieu Mon airport area. The Government Inspectorate has also chaired and coordinated with relevant ministries and agencies to review and verify the accuracy and legality of the Hanoi City inspection report. The authorities have been very cautious and thorough, basing their actions on legal regulations and relevant maps and documents, and have clearly determined that the land area of ​​Mieu Mon airport was reclaimed by the Prime Minister and handed over to the military in 1990 for national defense purposes.

The occurrence of citizen complaints is the responsibility of state management agencies for their lax management. Therefore, nearly 30 state officials who committed violations have been disciplined, some facing criminal charges. The Government Inspectorate and the Hanoi People's Committee also held dialogues with residents to clarify the nature of the issue, which was largely supported by local people. Military units have constructed fences around the land as per regulations. However, despite understanding the situation and receiving numerous warnings and persuasion efforts, unfortunately, some individuals deliberately violated the law, even using weapons and explosives to resist law enforcement, resulting in the deaths of three police officers.

This is a very serious matter. Authorities have initiated legal proceedings, charged several suspects, and are urgently investigating and prosecuting those who violated the law to bring them to trial in accordance with the law. “Our state is a socialist rule-of-law state. We are determined to protect the legitimate rights and interests of all citizens and also to promote and encourage all citizens to live and work according to the law. However, we also need to ensure that the law is strictly enforced. All officials, civil servants, and citizens have an obligation to comply with the law; anyone who violates it must be dealt with accordingly,” the Prime Minister stated. The Dong Tam incident was regrettable, but the situation has now returned to normal, and the people there, with the help of the government, are celebrating Tet and welcoming the Year of the Rat.

The Prime Minister shared his understanding of the difficulties, hardships, and even sacrifices made by the People's Public Security Force in protecting the political security, order, and social safety of the country. The Prime Minister extended his deepest condolences to the families of the fallen officers who sacrificed their lives to protect the peaceful lives of the people. The Party, the State, and the people of Vietnam will always remember, acknowledge, and highly appreciate the achievements of the People's Public Security Force and the accomplishments of the People's Police Force.

The Prime Minister requested that the People's Public Security Force, especially the riot police, continuously cultivate moral qualities, improve professional skills, and strengthen ties with the people to protect the legitimate rights of citizens, uphold the law, and properly fulfill the responsibilities of a People's Public Security officer and soldier.

2020 is a very important year, in the context of many challenges from the 4.0 revolution, non-traditional security issues that have been and are directly threatening the peace and stability of nations, including Vietnam, with many risks leading to insecurity and disorder, the Prime Minister stated. The People's Public Security forces in general, and the riot police in particular, must, in any situation, uphold national sovereignty and socio-political stability, creating a peaceful environment and favorable conditions for national development.

To achieve that goal in the coming period, the Prime Minister suggested focusing on effectively implementing key tasks.

Firstly, we must continue to thoroughly understand and effectively implement the Party and State's policies and guidelines on national security, and do a good job in Party building and force building.

Strengthening political and ideological education and traditional education is essential to cultivate in riot police officers and soldiers a firm political stance, absolute loyalty to the Party, the Fatherland, and the people, and readiness to fight and sacrifice for the cause of protecting national security and maintaining social order and safety; possessing military discipline and conduct, and strictly adhering to work and combat orders.

Improve the quality of professional training, actively cultivate and improve all aspects of skills and cultural conduct for officers and soldiers, and rationally arrange and allocate personnel. Establish a mechanism to prioritize the selection of soldiers for compulsory service in the People's Public Security, especially for specialized units such as the riot police, to train and assign them to units under the Command Headquarters to meet all mission requirements when adverse situations occur.

Secondly, proactively coordinate with professional units to thoroughly understand the situation and promptly advise the Ministry of Public Security on policies and solutions to ensure security and order. Proactively detect and understand the methods and tactics of criminals to develop training programs, plans, and operational strategies suitable for armed readiness, guarding, and ensuring the absolute safety of targets and special shipments. Continue to innovate the content and methods of training, strengthen the training of officers and soldiers, and regularly organize drills under different geographical and situational conditions to ensure that we are not caught off guard under any circumstances. In the immediate future, focus on ensuring the absolute safety of activities during the Lunar New Year 2020, events related to the ASEAN Summit 2020 held in Vietnam, Party congresses at all levels leading up to the 13th National Congress of the Party, and other important events of our country.

Thirdly, continue researching and implementing schemes and projects to build a professional, elite, and progressively modernized people's police force to meet the requirements of the new situation, focusing on researching and perfecting the system of legal documents and regulations on work, creating a legal basis for the organization and operation of the riot police.

Fourth, improve logistics to ensure combat readiness. Strengthen international cooperation with police forces of other countries in training, education, and equipment, especially in the areas of counter-terrorism, riot control, and protest prevention, in order to enhance the combat readiness of the riot police force.

The Prime Minister requested the Ministry of Public Security to pay full attention to the material and spiritual well-being of officers and soldiers during the Tet holiday. At the same time, he urged them to visit, encourage, and fully implement policies and regulations for wounded soldiers, sick soldiers, families of martyrs, and officers and soldiers facing difficult circumstances, so that officers and soldiers can focus on their work and combat duties with peace of mind.