Vietnam may pardon 32 foreigners in National Day amnesty program
Dozens of foreign inmates will likely receive a pardon from authorities in Vietnam on the occasion of the upcoming National Day.
There are 32 foreigners among more than 18,000 prisoners eligible for an annual amnesty program run in commemoration of National Day, September 2, according to what was discussed in a meeting in Hanoi on August 22.
The meeting was held by the Advisory Council for Amnesty at the Office of the Government to approve a proposed list of those qualified for an amnesty under a decision signed July 10 by State President Truong Tan Sang.
According to Lieutenant General Le Quy Vuong, Deputy Minister of Public Security and a permanent member of the council, officials have assessed over 18,000 records submitted for the amnesty from prisoners under the management of the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Defense, Nguoi Lao Dong (Laborer) newspaper reported.
As many as 18,399 records have been certified to be qualified but the members of the council has proposed granting an amnesty for just 18,331 prisoners, including 32 foreign inmates and one prisoner once compromising national security.
According to the council, there have been five waves of amnesties for about 63,500 prisoners and 678 others who were temporarily suspended from serving jail terms since the implementation of the amnesty law in 2009.
Vietnamese authorities have helped pardoned prisoners reintegrate into the community, preventing them from relapsing into previous crimes and encouraging them to become people useful to society.
The humanitarian policy of Vietnam’s Party and State toward prisoners has been reflected not only in granting annual amnesties but also in creating good conditions for them to reintegrate into the community, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc asserted in an article he wrote about this year’s amnesty that is about to be given on National Day.
On July 15, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung issued an offical mesage requiring the chairs of the people's committees of centrally-run provinces and cities to direct local governments and all bodies concerned to effectively implement Governmental Decree 80 dated September 16, 2011 on measures to ensure community reintegration for amnestied prisoners and people who have finished serving their sentences.