On October 22, within the framework of the 8th session, the National Assembly continued to discuss in the hall the contents of the draft Law on Prevention and Combat of Human Trafficking (amended) on which there are still different opinions. Delegates basically agreed with many contents of the draft, but also suggested that it is necessary to supplement and carefully review the provisions to ensure consistency, strictness and feasibility, in order to complete the draft for submission to the National Assembly for approval at the end of the session.
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Clear regulations on victim support regime
Delegates highly appreciated the addition of a provision prohibiting the act of “agreeing to buy and sell human beings while they are still fetuses” in Clause 2, Article 3. However, there were still many opinions suggesting that the related provisions need to be clarified to ensure feasibility in implementation.
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| Delegate Thach Phuoc Binh (National Assembly Delegation of Tra Vinh province). (Photo: Quochoi.vn) |
Regarding psychological support for victims (Article 41), delegate Thach Phuoc Binh (National Assembly Delegation of Tra Vinh Province) stated that this is an important aspect to help victims overcome mental trauma. However, the current support period of no more than 3 months is not enough for cases of serious trauma. Therefore, the delegate suggested that the support period should be flexible and extended according to the condition of each victim.
In addition, Mr. Binh also proposed the need to add soft skills training programs and specialized career counseling to help victims integrate into the new working environment, become financially independent and stabilize their lives. He also called for specific regulations on subsidy levels and conditions for receiving support to ensure fairness and transparency.
Translation support and translation monitoring mechanism
Regarding translation support (Article 45), delegate Thach Phuoc Binh emphasized the importance of providing translation support for victims who do not know or understand Vietnamese. However, to ensure the rights of victims, he proposed that there should be a mechanism to monitor translation quality, ensuring that the translation is performed accurately and objectively.
Sharing the same view, delegate Nguyen Minh Tam (National Assembly Delegation of Quang Binh Province) proposed to add the phrase “and accompanying persons under 18 years of age” after the phrase “victim”. Accordingly, this clause should be rewritten as follows: “Victims and accompanying persons under 18 years of age who do not know or understand Vietnamese will be supported with translation costs during their stay at the Social Assistance Facility or Victim Support Facility”.
Mr. Tam also proposed to amend Article 31, replacing the phrase “Provincial-level Foreign Affairs Specialized Agency” with “Department of Foreign Affairs or Foreign Affairs Division under the Office of the Provincial People’s Committee” to make it easier to understand and more consistent with the Government’s regulations on the organization of specialized agencies. At the same time, it is necessary to add the phrase “International Border Guard Station under the Border Guard of the province or centrally-run city” to ensure consistency with the Vietnam Border Guard Law.
Ensuring feasibility and consistency in law enforcement
Delegate Trinh Thi Tu Anh (National Assembly Delegation of Lam Dong Province) proposed adding a coordination mechanism between functional agencies in detecting violations for effective handling, especially in cases of complex violations involving many localities. This will help ensure consistency and effectiveness in the law enforcement process.
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| Delegate Trinh Thi Tu Anh (National Assembly Delegation of Lam Dong Province). (Photo: Quochoi.vn) |
Regarding the rescue, reception and verification of victims abroad (Article 29), Ms. Trinh Thi Tu Anh said that Clause 3 of this Article still has many shortcomings and needs to be amended so that Vietnamese representative agencies abroad can coordinate to bring victims back to the country without having to wait for lengthy verification from domestic agencies. The delegate proposed to rewrite this provision as follows: "In case there is not enough basis to issue one of the papers and documents as prescribed in Clause 1, Article 33 of this Law, Vietnamese representative agencies abroad shall implement citizen protection measures in accordance with the provisions of law and coordinate to bring these victims back to the country for verification by competent Vietnamese agencies in accordance with the provisions of Article 30 of this Law".
Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Nguyen Khac Dinh stated that the National Assembly Standing Committee will organize a full synthesis of the delegates' discussion opinions and send them to the National Assembly delegates and relevant agencies for study and acceptance. It will promptly direct the drafting agency and the reviewing agency to accept, revise and complete the draft Law, and report to the National Assembly Standing Committee for consideration and comments to develop the draft Law with the best quality, and submit it to the National Assembly for consideration and approval at the end of this Session.
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