Vietnam - NA debates corruption, juvenile crime

VietNamNet Bridge – Ways to control corruption and the increasing number of juvenile crimes provided grist for debate between deputies in the ongoing 13th National Assembly yesterday, Nov 1.

Most deputies agreed the fight against corruption has made progress, contributing to economic development and social order and security. However, its results still fail to meet voters' expectations.

Deputy Pham Truong Dan from Quang Nam Province said the number of corruption cases detected and prosecuted seemed to be much fewer than the actual number of cases.

The Government Inspectorate's report showed that more than 337 corruption cases with 823 defendants have been prosecuted this year. And in more than 34 per cent of 167 judged corruption cases, defendants have been granted suspended sentences.

Deputy Truong Thi Yen Linh from Ca Mau Province said many voters asked whether the anti-corruption fight had taken effect when listing assets of officials or Party members — as an important anti- corruption tool — has yet to be transparently and publicly utilised.

Deputy Nguyen Thi Phuc from Binh Thuan Province said more than 81 per cent of people who are responsible for listing their assets and incomes at their offices have failed to do that.

She said corruption used to be predominant in the economic sector alone, but now has spread to other areas such as health and education. Many corruption cases have not been detected in time.

Some deputies suggested forming an independent anti-corruption agency. Deputy Tran Dinh Nha from Thua Thien Hue Province said this agency would focus on investigating corruption cases and its members would have the right to make important decisions.

He said the agency's offices could be set up in localities - or even agencies - with high risks of corruption: "If we want to win the fight against corruption, it is time for us to change our tactics and players."

Nha also suggested suspended sentences or probation should not be granted in corruption cases.

Deputy Nguyen Xuan Phuc from Quang Nam Province said more drastic measures should be taken in investigating and prosecuting corruption cases.

His peers agreed that people who are willing to come forward about incidents of corruption should be encouraged and protected.

Juvenile crime prevention

Regarding preventing crime, most deputies expressed concern about the fact that juvenile offences have been increasing in both quantity and seriousness level.

Deputy Ho Trong Ngu from Vinh Long Province said juvenile cases made up 18 per cent of total arrests, with nearly 18,000 young people brought in each year. During the 2007-12 period, more than 40,000 criminal cases were investigated with the participation of 76,000 juveniles, although not all of them were brought into court.

Despite their youth, these criminals took part in serious cases such as murder, prostitution, drug smuggling, and violating laws in high technology and economic sectors that caused major losses for people, he said.

Especially disturbing was the statistic that more than 85 per cent of them used dangerous weapons such as guns and knives, he said.

Deputy Nguyen Thai Hoc from Phu Yen Province agreed, saying juvenile criminals were increasingly using more complex techniques to commit more sophisticated crimes.

A lack of morality education, unemployment and the availability of negative information on the Internet are the three main reasons for this spike in crime, according to the deputies.

Deputy Hoc said indifference to morality, culture and law on the part of school administrators led directly to this situation.

"Schools only care about teaching knowledge and theory, not showing students how to behave with others or react to situations that come up in daily life."

"So, a large number of young people are leading a selfish lifestyle that easily drives them into committing crime," he said.

Deputy Luu Thi Huyen from Ninh Binh Province said many young people had fallen into unemployment or left for other localities to look for a temporary job in the current difficult economy. Without experience, knowledge or family supervision, they could easily commit offences.

"Besides, violent information and entertainment programmes are illegally being spread on the Internet. Regular access to such programs negatively affects the behavior of young people," she said.

The deputies also offered suggestions to put juvenile crime under control.

Deputy Ma Thi Thuy from Tuyen Quang Province said schools, families and relevant authorities should work together to decrease juvenile crimes: schools could integrate law education into their official curriculum, families could change how they supervise their children and relevant authorities could make sure young people were not exposed to dangerous information.

Meanwhile, Deputy Huyen from Ninh Binh Province said vocational training courses and more jobs should be provided for young people, especially in rural areas.

Deputy Ngu also suggested the Government define specific responsibilities and tasks for local leaders in fighting crime, especially among the youth, and implement punishments for leaders of localities with rapidly increasing crime rates.

VietNamNet/VNS

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