Directive No. 05/2000/CT-TTg On Strengthening Legal Aid Work

DIRECTIVE

On Strengthening Legal Aid Work

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In recent times, with the efforts of ministries, sectors, and local people's committees at all levels, free legal aid work has been promptly, strictly, and effectively implemented, creating conditions for many poor people and policy beneficiaries to understand the law, helping them protect their legitimate rights and interests.

Legal aid work has directly guided citizens to live and work according to the Constitution and laws, fulfill civic duties, maintain unity within the community, ensure that citizens' rights are respected in practice, contribute to social order stability, consolidate public trust in the State and law, and promote economic and social development. Although ministries, sectors, and local people's committees have recently paid more attention to investing and supporting this activity, it has not yet received appropriate attention, the legal aid staff team is still insufficient compared to assigned tasks, many places still lack suitable offices for citizens to access, and some provinces have not established Legal Aid Centers. At the same time, coordination among agencies, sectors, relevant organizations in ensuring conditions for implementing legal aid activities has not been tight and has not become a specific, regular mechanism. Therefore, the demand for free legal aid for target groups is still limited, and the full effectiveness of this work has not been fully realized.

To continue to strengthen and improve the efficiency of legal aid activities in the future, meeting diverse and increasingly growing needs of the people, affirming the core role of the State in providing legal assistance to the poor and policy beneficiaries, and attracting the participation of mass organizations, organizations, and the community, the Government Prime Minister issues the following Directive:

1. Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government-affiliated agencies, local people's committees at all levels, and relevant agencies and organizations must deeply grasp the Party's viewpoint on legal aid work. Legal aid is the responsibility of the State towards citizens, with the purpose of protecting the rule of law, protecting the interests of the State, society, and citizens. This work is an important part of the overall policy to implement democracy at the grassroots level, strengthen discipline and law enforcement, and achieve social justice.

2. The Ministry of Justice is responsible for coordinating with relevant ministries, sectors, agencies, and organizations to effectively perform state management functions over legal aid work; focusing on directing local judicial agencies and legal aid organizations to intensify professional activities; urgently building a proposal to establish a Legal Aid Fund, expanding and developing effective cooperation relationships with domestic and foreign organizations and individuals to support legal aid work; guiding professional matters for legal aid organizations under political-social organizations.

When receiving requests from legal aid organizations, ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government-affiliated agencies, local people's committees at all levels, and subordinate units must consider and resolve them promptly and respond in writing within thirty days from the date of receipt of the request.

3. The Government Organizational and Cadre Affairs Commission and the Ministry of Justice will coordinate with provincial and centrally-administered city people's committees to timely arrange staffing within the total number of staff allocated to local people's committees, improve the organizational structure of Legal Aid Centers to effectively meet the legal aid needs of target groups.

In addition to building a legal aid staff team, the Ministry of Justice will direct the use of a network of cooperating members, expand and enhance the quality of service for legal aid activities down to the district and commune levels so that poor people and policy beneficiaries in remote, mountainous, and far-flung areas can truly receive legal aid.

Legal aid staff and cooperating members have the obligation to continuously study, improve their knowledge and skills, cultivate professional ethics, serve the people with dedication, and maintain and enhance professional ethics in legal aid work.

4. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Vietnam Television, and Voice of Vietnam will cooperate with the Ministry of Justice to widely disseminate information about the organization and activities of legal aid free of charge through mass media to inform the public about these activities; gradually establish special sections and columns on free legal aid with appropriate duration.

5. The Ministry of Finance, in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice, will guide financial regulations to ensure that provincial and centrally-administered city people's committees provide necessary material bases and working conditions for Legal Aid Centers.

6. Provincial and centrally-administered city people's committees are responsible for directing and urging the Department of Justice, the Civil Service Committee, the Department of Finance, and related local units to coordinate and create favorable conditions for Legal Aid Centers to effectively carry out this work locally.

In provinces where Legal Aid Centers have not been established, provincial people's committees need to urgently plan for establishment and create conditions for Legal Aid Centers to start operations as soon as possible.

It is requested that the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuracy, political-social organizations, and mass organizations actively cooperate to effectively implement legal aid work.

Upon receipt of this Directive, heads of ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government-affiliated agencies, and chairmen of provincial and centrally-administered city people's committees are required to develop specific plans to implement the tasks mentioned.

The Ministry of Justice is responsible for monitoring, urging, inspecting the implementation of this Directive, and reporting to the Prime Minister of the Government. /