Directive No. 1408/CT-TTg on strengthening work to protect and care for children

DIRECTIVE

On Strengthening Work to Protect and Care for Children

_______________________

After nearly ten years of implementing the National Action Program for Children in Vietnam for the period 2001-2010, under the leadership and guidance of Party committees and governments at all levels, with the cooperation of relevant sectors and mass organizations, and the care provided by families and communities, work to protect and care for children has achieved some notable accomplishments; many goals and targets for 2010 regarding health care and education for children have been met or exceeded.

However, in reality, some rights of children have not been well implemented, and some targets for 2010 regarding child protection under the National Action Program for Children in Vietnam for the period 2001-2010 (Decision No. 23/2001/QĐ-TTg dated February 26, 2001 of the Prime Minister) and the Program on Preventing and Resolving the Situation of Children Living on the Streets, Children Subjected to Sexual Abuse, and Children Engaged in Hazardous Labor from 2004 to 2010 (Decision No. 19/2004/QĐ-TTg dated February 12, 2004 of the Prime Minister) may not be reached, particularly the target of reducing the number of children subjected to sexual abuse, overworked, trafficked, subjected to violence, injured, infected with HIV, and committing serious crimes. Many acts seriously violating children's rights, including sexual abuse, violence, and trafficking of children, have caused public outrage.

The main reasons for the above situation are: the legal system and policies on protecting and caring for children are incomplete and inconsistent; the workforce engaged in protecting and caring for children is insufficient in quantity and limited in professional capacity, especially at the commune level; the service system for protecting and caring for children in difficult circumstances is not fully established and does not meet requirements; the awareness of law enforcement among a portion of officials, civil servants, employees, parents, teachers, and citizens is poor; knowledge and skills in protecting and caring for children among many families and children are inadequate; the information management system and database on protecting and caring for children are incomplete and unreliable.

To strengthen work to protect and care for children, especially child protection, and to effectively implement the goals for children until 2010, thereby laying a foundation for effective child protection and care in subsequent years, the Prime Minister issues the following directive:

1. The Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs shall take the lead, coordinate with relevant agencies and provincial People's Committees:

a) Review and assess the implementation of current legal documents on protecting and caring for children to amend, supplement, abolish, or promulgate new regulations within their authority, or propose competent authorities to amend, supplement, abolish, or promulgate new specific standards, norms, and procedures for protecting and caring for children in difficult circumstances (from prevention and timely detection of cases where children are at risk of falling into difficult circumstances to providing support services for recovery and reintegration into family and community life for children requiring intervention and assistance). The review and assessment of the implementation of current legal documents on protecting and caring for children, and the completion of specific standards, norms, and procedures for protecting and caring for children in difficult circumstances must be completed no later than the end of 2010.

b) Strengthen inspection and evaluation of the implementation of the National Action Program for Children in Vietnam for the period 2001-2010 and the Program on Preventing and Resolving the Situation of Children Living on the Streets, Children Subjected to Sexual Abuse, and Children Engaged in Hazardous Labor from 2004 to 2010 to prepare for the finalization in 2010; no later than September 2009, issue guidelines for implementing the National Action Plan for Children Affected by HIV/AIDS until 2010 and the vision until 2020 (Decision No. 84/2009/QĐ-TTg dated June 4, 2009 of the Prime Minister);

c) Vigorously implement preventive measures and assistance for children in difficult circumstances; focus on addressing the situation of children subjected to sexual abuse, overworked, trafficked, and subjected to violence; enhance activities to prevent and combat accidents and injuries to children, particularly drowning, through increased guidance and inspection of compliance with regulations on preventing and combating accidents and injuries to children;

d) Draft a Decree stipulating administrative penalties in the field of protecting and caring for children, to be submitted to the Government in the fourth quarter of 2009; draft the National Action Program for Children in Vietnam for the period 2011-2020 and the National Program for Child Protection for the period 2011-2015, to be submitted to the Prime Minister in the fourth quarter of 2010;

đ) Provide guidance on standards, benefits, expertise, and professional practices for staff involved in protecting and caring for children at all levels as prescribed by law;

e) In the fourth quarter of 2009 and 2010, develop and pilot the System for Protecting and Caring for Children and the Model Social Work Center for Children in some centrally governed cities and provinces; summarize experiences, replicate these models after 2010. Study and complete in 2010 the construction of a specialized database on protecting and caring for children, serving as a basis for evaluating the implementation of laws and policies on protecting and caring for children and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

2. The Ministry of Public Security:

a) Strengthen inspection and evaluation of the implementation of the Action Program to Prevent and Combat Trafficking of Women and Children for the 2004-2010 period (Decision No. 130/2004/QĐ-TTg dated July 14, 2004 of the Government Prime Minister) and the Scheme to Combat Various Types of Crimes Against Children and Juvenile Delinquency under the National Program to Prevent and Combat Crime (Decision No. 138/1998/QĐ-TTg dated July 31, 1998 of the Government Prime Minister) to prepare for the development of programs and plans to prevent and combat crimes against children and juvenile delinquency for the 2011-2020 period and the 2011-2015 period;

b) Direct public security agencies at all levels to develop and implement resolute and continuous plans to combat crimes against children and juvenile delinquency; strengthen verification work on files of children with unclear origins but introduced as adopted children of foreign nationals; strictly handle acts of falsifying children's origin records, bribery, and accepting bribes related to the process of allowing children to be adopted by foreign nationals or taking advantage of introducing, processing, and registering children for adoption by foreign nationals to gain illegal material benefits.

3. The Ministry of Justice:

a) Take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, and other relevant agencies to study, build, and submit to competent authorities for amendment, supplementation, abolition, and issuance of new regulatory legal documents related to the handling of crimes against children and the handling of minors who violate the law, aiming to prevent crimes against children and enhance the effectiveness of education and rehabilitation for minors who violate the law;

b) Strengthen guidance and regularly inspect the operation and activities of legal aid organizations for children and the registration of birth certificates for children within the prescribed time limit;

c) Strengthen the performance of state management functions regarding adoption, ensuring the humanitarian nature of this activity and preventing its abuse for child trafficking. Ensure that the introduction and processing of children for adoption by foreign nationals in Vietnam are conducted within the scope of authority, procedures, and formalities stipulated by current laws; strictly check the files of individuals seeking to adopt and the files of children introduced for adoption by foreign nationals according to the provisions of current laws.

4. The Ministry of Education and Training shall direct the construction of a healthy educational environment free from violence; continue to effectively implement the movement "Building Friendly Schools and Active Students," focusing on training life skills, self-protection skills, communication, and behavioral skills for students in schools.

5. The Ministry of Health:

a) Direct the effective implementation of policies for medical examination and treatment for children under six years old, children in special circumstances, and children from poor households; restore functional capacity for disabled children; pilot some types of emergency health services for children who have been sexually abused or are victims of violence; rescue, care for, and restore functional capacity for children injured in accidents;

b) Continue to vigorously implement the National Policy on Prevention and Control of Accidents and Injuries for the 2002-2010 period (Decision No. 197/2001/QĐ-TTg dated December 27, 2001 of the Government Prime Minister), focusing on preventing and controlling accidents and injuries among children.

6. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism:

a) Strengthen supervision, inspection, and strict management of cultural products and entertainment services for children;

b) Take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs to research and propose the establishment and development of a system of child protection services in families, aimed at enhancing the ability of family members to protect children.

7. The Ministry of Information and Communications shall take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs to strengthen guidance and direct mass media agencies to intensify and innovate their communication and education activities about the Party's policies and State laws on protecting and caring for children; focus on educating communities, families, and children about protective skills and measures; strengthen inspection and supervision of information, press, publishing (including publication, printing, distribution of publications), and online information for children and related to children; strictly handle the publication of products and information materials for children containing obscene content and inciting violence.

8. The Ministry of Home Affairs shall take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs and relevant agencies to guide localities in arranging personnel for child protection and care at communes, wards, and towns.

9. The Ministry of Planning and Investment shall take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs and relevant agencies to incorporate targets for child protection and care into the Socio-Economic Development Strategy for the 2011-2020 period, the Socio-Economic Development Plan for the 2011-2015 period, and the Socio-Economic Development Plan for 2010.

10. The Ministry of Finance:

a) Allocate funds to effectively implement programs, schemes, and projects on child protection and care approved by the Government Prime Minister during the 2001-2010 period; prioritize funding allocation for implementing child protection and care targets in ethnic minority areas, mountainous regions, the Central Highlands, and areas with difficult socio-economic conditions and extremely difficult conditions;

b) While planning the annual regular budget allocation, ensure funding for child protection and care services and monthly social assistance payments for children benefiting from State social assistance policies according to the current budgetary classification.

11. The Voice of Vietnam Radio, Vietnam Television, and other mass media agencies shall increase broadcasting time, number of articles, and improve the quality of propaganda on child protection and care in programs, special sections, and columns.

12. People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities:

a) Ensure the unified guidance of local authorities at all levels for the work of protecting and caring for children. In 2009, allocate sufficient staff to handle the protection and care of children at all levels, especially at the commune level; establish a network of volunteers for the protection and care of children in residential wards, clusters of communities, villages, hamlets, phums, socs, villages, and towns; strengthen the Child Welfare Fund to enhance the mobilization of resources from domestic and international organizations and individuals for the cause of protecting and caring for children;

b) Continue to direct and organize the effective implementation of the goals and contents of the National Action Program for Children in Vietnam for the period 2001-2010, the Program to Prevent and Resolve the Situation of Children Wandering, Children Suffering Sexual Abuse, and Children Engaged in Heavy Labor under Hazardous Conditions for the period 2004-2010, focusing on the work of preventing and combating accidents and injuries to children under the National Policy on Prevention and Control of Accidents and Injuries for the period 2002-2010, the Action Program to Prevent and Combat Crimes of Trafficking Women and Children for the period 2004-2010, the Project to Combat Various Types of Offenses Against Children and Crimes Committed by Juveniles under the National Program to Prevent and Combat Crime; integrate the effective implementation of programs, plans, projects, and initiatives on the protection and care of children with the implementation of other economic and social development programs in the area; issue special mechanisms and solutions appropriate to address specific issues related to the protection and care of children in the locality; gradually build communes and urban districts suitable for children;

c) Continue to intensify propaganda and mobilize the people to implement the Party's policies and state laws on the protection and care of children; effectively implement current policies for children in difficult circumstances and children in poor households to significantly reduce the number of wandering children, children exploited for labor, orphaned children without support, abandoned children, disabled children, HIV-infected children, children injured in accidents, and children who are victims of violence; ensure the provision of adequate and quality services for the care and protection of children;

d) Strengthen inspection and supervision, promptly detect and strictly handle according to the provisions of the law any acts violating children's rights and activities violating current regulations on granting foreign nationals permission to adopt children in the locality; direct the effective performance of community management tasks, promptly detect and handle acts of harm to children and violence against children causing serious consequences, understand the circumstances of households and the number of children engaged in various forms of livelihood labor; regularly inspect the implementation of legal provisions regarding the reception and nurturing of children at child care facilities. The Chairpersons of the People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities shall be responsible if situations of harm, violence, trafficking of children, and violations of children's rights occur in their localities;

13. Propose the Vietnam Fatherland Front and its member organizations, particularly the Vietnam Women's Union, the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, the Vietnam Farmers' Union, and the Vietnam Elderly Association, to strengthen propaganda and mobilization of members and the general public to effectively implement the Party's policies and state laws on the protection and care of children; mobilize members to actively participate in activities to protect and care for children;

14. Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of agencies under the Government, Chairpersons of the People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities shall be responsible for implementing this Directive; report annually on the results of implementing the Directive to the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs;

The Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs shall monitor, inspect, and urge the implementation of the Directive; compile the situation of implementing the Directive annually to report to the Prime Minister./.