Sexual abuse of children has been increasing in Vietnam, especially ♏in tourist destinations, but the country's Penal Code lacks a clause directly governing child sex tourism crimes, according to a joint survey from the Ministry of Justice and the United Nations Office on Drug and Crime (UNODC).
The survey, conducted in August and September in nine provinces and cities, is part of a four-year𒀰 project to combat the sexual expꦺloitation of children in the Mekong sub-region.
Speaking at a ꦍconference on October 18, Deputy Minister of Justice Hoang The Lien said that increases in tourism brought not only huge economic benefits but also new challenges, including child sex abuse.
Both male and female children had been victims of domestic and international child sex offenders, he said.
In the joint project ♊with UNODC, the ministry and agencies reviewed Vietnam 's legal framework in order to recommend amendments that coincided with international norms, he said.
Meanwhile, Zhuldyz Akisheva, the country manager of UNODC Viet🧜nam Office, said that poverty, lack of sustainable livelihoods and gender inequality were among the factors contributing to the boom of so-called sex-tourism involving minors in the sub-region including Vietnam .
However𓆉, Vietnam's Penal Code, passed 11 years ago, had many limitations ♔when it came to addressing sexual abuse by travelling offenders, she said, emphasising the need to amend the code.
Most respond🦩ents to the survey don't understand what child sex tourism is, reflecting the absence of a working definition.
About 80 percent of respondents in the surveyed cities and pr🌼ovi🀅nces believed child sex tourism was increasing, based on child-sex statistics.
Moreover, the 1999 Penal Code uses two definitions - "child" and "juvenile" - but both these subjects ar🐎e applied only to principles of criminal liability, where they mean that younger citizens are given softer punishments than adult 😼criminals.
Base🧜d on regulations of the Penal Code and child-related laws, children are defined as people under 16 years of age. This definition differs from the basic internationalstandard, which identifies children as those less than 18 years of age.This disparity significantly affects cross-border co-operation toprevent and combat child abuse.
UNODC recommends ensur꧋ing that the law defines children to be persons under the age of 18 and provides the full range of protections ꦛfor all children under this age threshold.
In Article 112 of the Penal Code, while thos♕e who commit several rape acts against children less than 13 ye💃ars of age in an organised manner are assigned penalties starting at 12 years of imprisonment, individuals who commit the same crime in similar circumstances against victims between 13 and 16 years of age receive sentences of 20 years or higher (Clause 3, Article 112).
According to the Supreme People's Procuracy, from 2007 to 2011, investigation agencies at all levels prosecuted 6,500 cases of child sexual abu🎀se, chargingnearly 6,800 offenders. People's Courts at all levels adjudicated 5,200cases with 5,700 offenders, who were not only native residents, butalso foreigners. According to the Ministry of Pꦅublic Security, there were 50 cases in which offenders were foreigners between 2009 and 2011.-VNA
The survey, conducted in August and September in nine provinces and cities, is part of a four-year𒀰 project to combat the sexual expꦺloitation of children in the Mekong sub-region.
Speaking at a ꦍconference on October 18, Deputy Minister of Justice Hoang The Lien said that increases in tourism brought not only huge economic benefits but also new challenges, including child sex abuse.
Both male and female children had been victims of domestic and international child sex offenders, he said.
In the joint project ♊with UNODC, the ministry and agencies reviewed Vietnam 's legal framework in order to recommend amendments that coincided with international norms, he said.
Meanwhile, Zhuldyz Akisheva, the country manager of UNODC Viet🧜nam Office, said that poverty, lack of sustainable livelihoods and gender inequality were among the factors contributing to the boom of so-called sex-tourism involving minors in the sub-region including Vietnam .
However𓆉, Vietnam's Penal Code, passed 11 years ago, had many limitations ♔when it came to addressing sexual abuse by travelling offenders, she said, emphasising the need to amend the code.
Most respond🦩ents to the survey don't understand what child sex tourism is, reflecting the absence of a working definition.
About 80 percent of respondents in the surveyed cities and pr🌼ovi🀅nces believed child sex tourism was increasing, based on child-sex statistics.
Moreover, the 1999 Penal Code uses two definitions - "child" and "juvenile" - but both these subjects ar🐎e applied only to principles of criminal liability, where they mean that younger citizens are given softer punishments than adult 😼criminals.
Base🧜d on regulations of the Penal Code and child-related laws, children are defined as people under 16 years of age. This definition differs from the basic internationalstandard, which identifies children as those less than 18 years of age.This disparity significantly affects cross-border co-operation toprevent and combat child abuse.
UNODC recommends ensur꧋ing that the law defines children to be persons under the age of 18 and provides the full range of protections ꦛfor all children under this age threshold.
In Article 112 of the Penal Code, while thos♕e who commit several rape acts against children less than 13 ye💃ars of age in an organised manner are assigned penalties starting at 12 years of imprisonment, individuals who commit the same crime in similar circumstances against victims between 13 and 16 years of age receive sentences of 20 years or higher (Clause 3, Article 112).
According to the Supreme People's Procuracy, from 2007 to 2011, investigation agencies at all levels prosecuted 6,500 cases of child sexual abu🎀se, chargingnearly 6,800 offenders. People's Courts at all levels adjudicated 5,200cases with 5,700 offenders, who were not only native residents, butalso foreigners. According to the Ministry of Pꦅublic Security, there were 50 cases in which offenders were foreigners between 2009 and 2011.-VNA
