Directive No. 20/2002/CT-TTg on organizing and implementing the Administrative Violation Handling Ordinance 2002

DIRECTIVE

Regarding the organization and implementation of enforcement

Administrative Offense Handling Ordinance 2002

On July 2, 2002, the Standing Committee of the National Assembly adopted the Administrative Offense Handling Ordinance. This Ordinance replaces the Administrative Offense Handling Ordinance of 1995 and becomes effective from October 1, 2002. It is a legal normative document stipulating fundamental issues on administrative offense handling to meet the requirements for preventing and combating administrative offenses in the country at present. To promptly organize and effectively implement the Administrative Offense Handling Ordinance 2002 (hereinafter referred to as the Administrative Offense Handling Ordinance), creating favorable conditions for the provisions of the Ordinance to be practically effective in social life, the Prime Minister issues the following directive:

1. Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government agencies, Chairpersons of provincial People's Committees, and municipal People's Committees directly under the Central Government, within their respective functions and powers, shall have the responsibility to closely coordinate with the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee, provincial-level Vietnam Fatherland Front Committees, and member organizations of the Front to widely publicize among the people, cadres, and civil servants about the Administrative Offense Handling Ordinance. The publicity and dissemination of the new Ordinance must be carried out extensively throughout the country, reaching all subjects and social strata; the publicity work must ensure completeness, accuracy, and consistency in content so that everyone understands the spirit of the Ordinance's provisions correctly; emphasis should be placed on contents directly related to the management scope of the Ministry or sector, and the characteristics of the locality or unit to contribute to enhancing the awareness of law compliance among the people, cadres, and civil servants, mobilizing the strength of the masses in the struggle to prevent and combat administrative offenses. From the fourth quarter of 2002, ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government agencies, and People's Committees at all levels must develop and implement plans for disseminating and popularizing the Administrative Offense Handling Ordinance within their agencies, units, and localities, and consider this as a key task in the dissemination, education, and promotion of law in the last months of 2002 and throughout 2003.

The Government's Steering Committee for Popularizing and Educating Law and the Provincial and Municipal Steering Committees for Popularizing and Educating Law directly under the Central Government shall take the lead and unify the guidance and direction of activities to publicize the Administrative Offense Handling Ordinance; they shall have specific plans for organizing the dissemination and popularization of the content of this Ordinance across all sectors and localities nationwide.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Vietnam Television, Voice of Vietnam Radio, local radio and television stations, central and local press agencies, and other mass communication agencies have the responsibility to focus on widely publicizing the purpose and content of the Administrative Offense Handling Ordinance when it comes into effect, while also having regular plans to publicize laws on administrative offense handling, contributing to the effectiveness of the Administrative Offense Handling Ordinance's provisions in social life.

The Ministry of Justice shall be responsible for compiling dissemination materials on the Administrative Offense Handling Ordinance, ensuring complete and consistent content; it shall have plans to disseminate the content of the Administrative Offense Handling Ordinance to legal institutions under ministries and sectors at the central level and provincial-level Departments of Justice.

2. Ministries and sectors with agencies and forces granted authority to handle administrative offenses according to the Administrative Offense Handling Ordinance, and People's Committees at all levels must urgently reorganize their machinery and improve organizational structures to ensure the proper exercise of the authority to handle administrative offenses assigned when the Ordinance takes effect, thereby ensuring high effectiveness in the struggle against administrative offenses.

Ministries and sectors with agencies and forces granted authority to handle administrative offenses need to promptly plan specialized training on the content of the Ordinance for staff and civil servants with authority to handle administrative offenses and those related, paying particular attention to newly defined positions with authority to handle administrative offenses in the Ordinance. The specialized training content must be specific and practical, closely aligned with the Ordinance's provisions and combined with the scope of state management of the ministry or sector, while guiding solutions to emerging issues during the implementation of the Administrative Offense Handling Ordinance 1995.

Specialized training must be completed in the fourth quarter of 2002. The funds for training shall be balanced from the annual budget allocated for the regular operations of the ministries and sectors.

3. Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government agencies, and Chairpersons of People's Committees at all levels shall be responsible for timely and lawful handling of administrative violations occurring within their respective fields and areas of management; regularly summarizing, evaluating, and reporting to the Prime Minister and superior authorities on the results of administrative offense handling; strengthening supervision over staff and civil servants with authority to handle administrative offenses under their management in performing their duties; resolutely and promptly dealing with those with authority to handle administrative offenses who violate the law according to Article 121 of the Administrative Offense Handling Ordinance, gradually establishing strict discipline in administrative offense handling work. Strictly prohibit the use of fines collected from administrative offenses or proceeds from the sale of confiscated items or means of transportation for rewards.

4. Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, and agencies under the Government, within their respective functions and powers, must promptly conduct reviews, amendments, supplements, issuance of new regulations, or submit to the Government or the Prime Minister for issuance of detailed implementing regulations of the Administrative Violation Handling Ordinance in each field of state management and other administrative handling measures, ensuring the consistency and synchronization of the legal system on administrative violation handling. Specifically:

a) From now until December 2002, the following ministries and sectors must complete the drafting and submission to the Government for consideration and issuance of decrees detailing certain provisions of the 2002 Administrative Violation Handling Ordinance:

- The Ministry of Justice shall take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, and related ministries and sectors in drafting the Decree detailing certain articles of the Administrative Violation Handling Ordinance;

- The Ministry of Public Security shall take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Justice, and related ministries and sectors in drafting the Decree on the management of foreigners violating Vietnamese laws during deportation procedures; the Decree of the Government promulgating the Regulation on temporary detention of persons under administrative procedures; the Decree of the Government stipulating the procedures for applying coercive administrative measures; and the decrees amending and supplementing Decree No. 19/CP dated April 6, 1996 of the Government promulgating the Regulation on community-based education for law violators, Decree No. 31/CP dated April 14, 1997 of the Government promulgating the Regulation on administrative control, Decree No. 32/CP dated April 14, 1997 of the Government promulgating the Regulation on educational facilities, and Decree No. 33/CP dated April 14, 1997 of the Government promulgating the Regulation on reformatory schools;

- The Ministry of Finance shall take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Planning and Investment, and related ministries and sectors in drafting the Decree of the Government stipulating the management of receipts for fines and administrative violation payments;

- The Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs shall take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Public Security, and related ministries and sectors in drafting the Decree amending and supplementing Decree No. 20/CP dated April 13, 1996 of the Government promulgating the Regulation on medical facilities;

b) From now until the first quarter of 2003, ministries, ministerial-level agencies, and agencies under the Government shall be responsible for taking the lead and coordinating with the Ministry of Justice and related ministries and sectors in researching the amendment and supplementation of current government decrees stipulating administrative penalties in fields of state management within their responsibilities, in accordance with the provisions of the Administrative Violation Handling Ordinance, for submission to the Government for consideration and issuance;

5. The People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City shall take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Justice and related ministries and sectors in promptly drafting the Decree of the Government on administrative penalties in urban order and safety fields for submission to the Government for consideration and issuance;

6. Ministries and sectors with authorities to handle administrative violations, People's Committees at all levels must direct the competent authorities within their ministries, sectors, and localities to concentrate on promptly resolving pending administrative violation cases, creating favorable conditions for the implementation of the Administrative Violation Handling Ordinance;

As of October 1, 2002, the provisions of the Administrative Violation Handling Ordinance must be strictly implemented immediately. Legal provisions on administrative violation handling issued before the 2002 Administrative Violation Handling Ordinance took effect and which do not conflict with its provisions shall continue to be implemented until new regulations amend, supplement, or replace them;

7. The Minister of Justice shall be responsible for urging, inspecting, and coordinating with relevant ministries and sectors in amending and supplementing current government decrees stipulating administrative penalties in fields of state management, government decrees promulgating regulations on other administrative handling measures, and drafting new regulatory legal documents on administrative violation handling; leading and coordinating with the Chairman of the Government Office in urging, inspecting, and compiling reports to the Prime Minister on the results of reviewing, amending, supplementing, and drafting new regulatory legal documents to implement the Administrative Violation Handling Ordinance;

Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of agencies under the Government, Chairmen of provincial and centrally-administered city People's Committees shall be responsible for organizing and directing the implementation of this Directive and reporting to the Prime Minister on the results of implementation every three months.