Circular No. 21 TC/HCVX guides the implementation of the Council of Ministers' decision on settling debts owed by the State to the people during the resistance war.

CIRCULAR

||| Guidelines for Implementing the Council of Ministers' Decision on Settling Debts Owed to the People During the Resistance War

___________________________

||| In accordance with the Council of Ministers' Standing Committee's decision on settling debts owed to the people during the resistance war, the Ministry of Finance provides the following guidelines:

||| I. PRINCIPLES FOR SETTLING DEBTS TO THE PEOPLE:

||| During the revolutionary and anti-French, anti-American wars, the State had various forms of borrowing from the people to ensure the supply necessary for the successful struggle; now, the State will repay those debts still owed to the people.

||| Contributions made by the people ||| pursuant to their civic duties ||| (such as contributions to defense funds, participation in the resistance war funds, public service funds) or donations made by the people to support the revolution ||| (such as fundraising campaigns to support the Viet Minh Front, the Vietnam Federation, the United Front of Vietnam, patriotic organizations...) are not considered debts owed by the State, thus the issue of settlement does not arise. |||

||| Debts owed by the State to the people include the following items:

||| - War bonds issued in 1948, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952; national securities issued in 1947, 1948; military support bonds issued in 1964.

||| - Money or foodstuffs borrowed by State agencies to purchase weapons, feed troops, and support cadres.

||| - Assets requisitioned or commandeered for the resistance war that have not yet been compensated by the State: machinery, transportation equipment, draft animals, tools, furniture...

||| - Deposits at credit institutions and the Revolutionary State Bank that have not yet been withdrawn. Funds deposited by overseas Vietnamese in State agencies abroad intended for transfer back home that have not yet been withdrawn. National promissory notes and banknotes issued that have not yet been exchanged.

||| Settlement principles:

||| 1. The State will repay debts to the people using money from the State Bank of Vietnam, and to ensure the value of the debt, it will convert the amount owed into rice based on the price at the time of borrowing, and now calculate repayment according to the current rice price, directing purchases under the two-way contract currently in effect where the debtor resides.

||| For certain war bonds and securities that stipulate recalculation, they will now be repaid both ||| principal and interest ||| as specified.

||| 2. Repayment will be based on evidence confirming the amount of debt: officially issued certificates such as war bonds, securities, banknotes, receipts, loan agreements, requisition orders bearing signatures and stamps of responsible agencies.

||| Given that borrowing occurred long ago, verifying the evidence is crucial and a key step in the process of reviewing requests for debt settlement. It is essential to thoroughly check the evidence to clarify the facts. Within feasible limits, compare evidence with records and documents still stored locally, if available (for example, comparing payment receipts from the Tax and Credit Production Department with the stubs of old Tax Departments). For personal receipts, consider whether the individual signed the loan agreement in a personal capacity or as a representative of an organization, and who can confirm this?

||| In cases where previously due to confidentiality reasons, formal loan agreements were not established, or where existing agreements were lost or destroyed due to enemy terror, now confirmation from the parties involved (specifically, the person who borrowed or the authorized cadre who approved the loan) must be obtained, along with certification from local grassroots organizations and approval from the people's government at the county level or higher. However, extraordinary evidence cases must be reviewed and decided upon by the Provincial People's Committee after consulting the provincial debt settlement committee.

||| 3. All citizens with the above debts will be eligible for settlement.

||| Those currently detained or undergoing reeducation, and those absent from the country for political reasons, will be temporarily deferred.

||| 4. If the debtor has passed away, the lawful heirs will receive the settlement payment.

||| Generally, lawful heirs are the biological parents, spouse, biological children, and others recognized by current law, certified by the People's Committee of the district.

||| In case of disputes over inheritance rights, these must be resolved by the People's Court at the county level or higher.

||| 5. Method of repaying debts: For amounts under 500 dong, a single payment will be made. For larger amounts, encourage the people to deposit them into savings funds and withdraw gradually for expenses, except in cases of genuine necessity.

||| 6. For those who voluntarily supported the revolution, the State will express gratitude and award appropriate honors.

||| II. Specific Provisions Regarding the Settlement of Each Type of Debt:

||| 1. Repaying Principal and Interest on Various Types of Bonds and Securities.

||| Generally, all cases with official certificates or receipts (in places where certificates were not issued) will be settled.

||| a) Converting Principal to Rice and Calculating Interest:

||| - National securities already marked with principal in terms of rice: for war bonds and southern securities marked with principal in currency (regardless of whether purchased with Vietnamese, Indochinese, or Southern Central Bank promissory notes), now convert the principal to rice based on the rice price at the time of issuance to ensure the buyer's benefit.

||| The Ministry of Finance will provide tables calculating the principal and interest converted to rice for war bonds and southern securities issued during the anti-French resistance period (based on the rice prices at each location when the bonds were sold).

||| For the "military support bonds" issued in southern Vietnam in 1964, since the rice price was noted on the back of the bond at the point of sale, this price will be used to convert the bond principal to rice.

||| - Interest calculation will follow the prescribed rate (3% or 4%) for the five-year period indicated on the bond, based on the principal converted to rice.

||| - Based on the calculated principal and interest converted to rice, repayment will now be made in cash to the bondholder according to the state's rice purchase price (two-way contract price) at the holder's current residence.

b) ||| Settlement of war bonds in the North: ||| In the North, settlement of securities was completed by December 31, 1960. Any remaining cases requesting settlement with valid reasons for delay will also be considered and resolved.

||| /war bonds/

- If only presenting the receipt for purchasing war bonds to request payment, it is absolutely necessary to obtain confirmation from the place of sale regarding the reason why the formal bond has not yet been officially handed over to the purchaser (to prevent the situation where the person had previously received money according to the war bond and now presents the receipt to request payment again, as some localities did not reclaim the receipt when handing over the war bond to the purchaser).

c) Payment of war bonds in the South (from Trị Thiên inward):

- Cases where compatriots and cadres who have war bonds brought them to the North and were repaid before December 31, 1960. Now, it is necessary to continue paying the war bonds of the people in newly liberated areas in the South according to the general procedures applied previously for war bonds in the North.

- In the South, due to the occupation situation, many provinces have only issued temporary receipts for those purchasing war bonds or Southern war bonds, but there are also provinces that have officially handed over the bonds to purchasers and reclaimed the receipts. Therefore, generally, cases presenting receipts for purchasing war bonds to request payment will be considered and resolved as if they had the formal bond. However, payments based on receipts must be carefully monitored to avoid double counting (to prevent the situation where some localities failed to reclaim the receipt when handing over the war bond to the purchaser).

- Specifically, for overseas Vietnamese residing in Thailand who purchased war bonds and paid in Thai currency (baht), now having returned to the country and presented the bond for payment, they do not need to convert the capital (money) into rice, but the principal and interest recorded on the war bond will be calculated according to the special exchange rate of 1 baht = 0.32 Vietnamese đồng. For example, a war bond of 200 đồng purchased in Thailand with 200 baht will now be paid as follows:

+ Principal 0.32 đồng x 200 = 64 đồng (73.60 đồng VN Bank)

+ Interest for 5 years 3 x 64 x 5                  =    9,60     (

      100

d) Inspection of war bonds:

It is necessary to carefully inspect all types of war bonds; pay attention to thoroughly examine the following cases:

- Price certificates (not conforming to the prescribed model, framework, lacking signatures and stamps of the selling agency...)

- Bonds with erased names of the bondholder or purchase date, month, year.

- Bonds newly recorded with recent dates (cases where old unsold bonds not yet canceled are being used to record new purchasers' names or dates to request payment).

- Bonds not issued by revolutionary organizations: during the anti-French resistance, some places saw the people mistakenly purchase this type of bond (such as "National War Bonds" in Tây Ninh).

- Bonds too torn to clearly identify the type of bond, amount, purchase date, and year.

2. Payment of amounts borrowed from the State, amounts requisitioned with compensation (according to Decree No. 100-SL dated May 30, 1950, and Circular No. 22-TTg dated June 7, 1950).

a) These amounts were mainly carried out during the resistance period; in various forms such as: borrowing money to purchase weapons or to cover living expenses for cadres lost contact with their agencies, borrowing foodstuffs for troops to launch campaigns, for cadres with salaries operating behind enemy lines..., requisitions of houses, furniture, machinery, livestock, transportation means, etc., to serve the resistance.

For these amounts, if there are sufficient documents proving the matter and confirmed by authorities at the district level or higher, they will be paid. Pay particular attention to resolving cases currently facing significant difficulties. When studying requests for payment, localities should delve deeply into the circumstances of each family and each incident to resolve them accurately. If there are families voluntarily supporting the State to contribute their share to the revolution and resistance, the State welcomes this and will provide appropriate commendation and recognition.

b) The debts and requisitions mentioned above, regardless of whether they were recorded in financial funds, credit bills, Indochinese currency, or in kind, will now be converted into rice according to the price of rice in the year and location where the event occurred, serving as the basis for payment in cash according to the current state purchase price of rice (two-way contract price) in the place of residence of the debtor.

Converting debts recorded in kind into rice is somewhat complex because it requires determining the monetary value of the items at the time of loan or requisition, then basing it on the rice price in the locality at that time to convert. It is necessary to research and collect data on past prices to establish a reasonable price for the items recorded in the loan documents, ensuring both the interests of the people and strict accounting for public funds.

3. Payment of amounts sent back to the country by overseas Vietnamese in France and Tân Đảo in 1946 and 1948:

- These are old French francs (French currency) sent back to the country through the Representative Office of our Government in Paris, which acknowledged and issued receipts. In 1955-1956, most overseas Vietnamese in France returned to the North and were paid according to the receipts. Now, we will continue to consider and resolve cases presenting receipts requesting payment, mainly those of overseas Vietnamese who returned to the country in the formerly temporarily occupied areas. Payments will be made according to the current exchange rate of 400 old Prs = 1 new Fr = 0.62 Vietnamese đồng.

- For overseas Vietnamese who previously resided in Thailand or Cambodia and have not yet collected money sent in baht or riels, they will also be considered and resolved if they have valid documents proving the deposit. In this case, payments will be made according to the exchange rates:

+ 1 baht = 0.206 Vietnamese đồng

+ 1 riels = 0.05 Vietnamese đồng

4. Payment of Vietnamese currency issued by the revolution during the resistance period (applicable exclusively to southern provinces, from Trị Thiên inward).

Currently, some compatriots in newly liberated areas in the South still hold Vietnamese currency issued by the Revolution during the anti-French resistance period and have requested to exchange it for the currently circulating Bank currency. To address this issue, after reaching consensus with the Central State Bank, the Ministry of Finance has stipulated as follows:

a) Regarding the subjects requesting payment of old Vietnamese currency:

The current place of residence must be an area that was previously permitted to circulate the type of currency being requested for payment. If there has been a change in location, it must be for a legitimate reason (for example, for those requesting exchange of the Fifth Liberated Zone Treasury Notes, the current place of residence must be in the former Central South provinces where such notes were circulated; or if residing elsewhere, confirmation of the previous residence within the Fifth Liberated Zone is required).

b) Regarding the types of old Vietnamese currency eligible for payment:

In accordance with the State's regulations on the issuance of new currency to replace old currency, and based on the situation of anti-enemy combat operations in areas temporarily occupied, only the following three types of currency issued under the Vietnamese Democratic Republic and still held by the people for presentation for payment will now be paid:

- Southern Paper Money

- Fifth Liberated Zone Treasury Notes

- National Bank Paper Money from 1951 (implemented separately for the former Quang Tri and Thua Thien provinces, where this type of paper money was also circulated).

For financial currency issued in 1945-1946, the State had already implemented a policy of recovery during the anti-French resistance period, so requests for payment of this type of currency will not be resolved now.

c) Regarding payments:

The aforementioned types of currency, when not yet paid, shall be converted into rice at the price of rice in the current place of residence of the person holding the currency (or the previous place of residence if the change of location is due to a legitimate reason) and a unified average price of rice for the last six months of 1954 (the time of concentration) in that location shall be used for conversion, then the amount payable shall be calculated according to the current state purchase price of rice (two-way contract price) in the place of residence of the person receiving payment.

5. Payment of other amounts such as contributions to shares in Phan Dinh Phung companies, Grain Company, People's Bank of Southern Vietnam...; amounts not yet settled by the State due to the war situation... etc.

For these amounts, each case should be considered individually, and priority should be given to cases requiring capital for production or reconstruction of houses destroyed in the war.

If payment is made, it will also be converted into rice and paid as mentioned in point 2-b above.

III. IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS:

1- Based on the decision of the Council of Ministers and this circular of the Ministry of Finance, it is proposed that the People's Committees of provinces and cities develop plans to lead the careful examination and resolution of the people's applications requesting payment of debts in accordance with the Government's policy, with full responsibility towards the people.

- This work is very complex, so the implementation organization needs to be strict.

In each province and city, a Debt Settlement Committee for the People should be established, headed by the Chairman or Vice-Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, with representatives from financial agencies and the State Bank as deputy heads (with finance serving as the permanent committee member). Other members include representatives from the provincial United Front, the Inspection Committee, the Social Welfare Department, and the Military Command. At the district and town level, if necessary, a similar Debt Settlement Committee can be formed to study applications, investigate and verify matters, and report to the provincial Debt Settlement Committee for decision-making. Reliable cadres with long-term experience and extensive knowledge of local borrowing situations prior to the war should be selected to join the Debt Settlement Committee for the People. These cadres will conduct in-depth research on each case, review and audit, and propose opinions for collective discussion by the Debt Settlement Committee before submitting to the provincial People's Committee for decision on resolution measures.

A collective decision must be made after thorough investigation and research, with specific records of the decision.

- In cases where the applicant does not have supporting documents or lacks specific evidence, cadres will be sent back to the locality where the matter occurred to request confirmation. After thorough investigation, the provincial or municipal People's Committee where the matter occurred must provide a conclusion on the debt.

- For cases where there is no longer sufficient basis for verification or difficulty in determining whether it is a loan or support, encouragement and explanation should be provided, and assistance should be considered if there are difficulties in living conditions. In special cases involving disputes, the committee should promptly report to the Ministry of Finance for advice on resolution.

- The investigation and collection of old rice prices on the market in the locality where the matter occurred must be handled carefully; information can be provided by the people, and based on this, the price department will study, analyze, and determine a reasonable price, which will be submitted for approval by the committee to serve as the basis for converting debts into rice.

2- Financial Departments are responsible for calculating the specific amount to be paid and setting the payment method according to the decision of the committee, based on the general principle stated in Section I.

- For cases where payment is made, the Financial Department will dispatch a team of cadres with funds to the District Financial Office in the place of residence of the applicant to pay off the debt, making it convenient for the people to collect money without having to travel far or make multiple trips.

- Documents that have been paid should be stamped "Paid" for record keeping.

- For those who voluntarily supported, the provincial or municipal Debt Settlement Committee will retain all documents, issue certificates, and directly express gratitude.

These documents should also be stamped "recovered" and stored separately for easy tracking and commendation. Commendations should be uniformly divided into two levels: certificates of merit and medals awarded by the provincial or municipal People's Committee. For particularly special cases, the provincial or municipal People's Committee may recommend the Minister of Finance to award commendations, and in the highest cases, the Prime Minister.

- In recent years, due to difficulties in living, some applicants have requested the State to settle their debts, but have only received partial assistance; if they are now paid, the amounts already assisted will not be deducted from the payment. For debts that have already been partially paid, the remaining balance will continue to be paid now.

3. The funds for settling the debts to the people (including assistance money and expenses for awards) mentioned in this Circular shall be borne by the Central State Budget and recorded under Category V, Item 64 in the State Budget Classification, with the following breakdown:

- Class 1: Repayment of War Bonds and National Debentures.

- Class 2: Repayment of other domestic debts.

Departments and Offices of Finance shall allocate local budget funds to the Central State Budget for advance payment, and then settle accounts every three months for the settled debts (according to the attached model) and submit them to the Ministry of Finance for adjustment. For the amount of funds advanced for debt settlement from the beginning of 1979 until the date of issuance of this Circular, the locality will immediately prepare the settlement report to be adjusted at a later time.

In the current situation where the whole country is striving to build socialism while defending the homeland, despite the difficulties in our economic and financial situation, the State still endeavors to resolve the debts owed to the people. This policy demonstrates the State's concern for the interests of those who previously enthusiastically contributed to the revolution and the war effort.

However, the work of settling these debts faces many difficulties and complexities, especially in cases where there are insufficient documents for verification. Therefore, to ensure the correct implementation of the aforementioned State policy and to maintain unity among the people, the Ministry of Finance requests all levels of authority to pay special attention to this work and develop specific plans to guide each stage of the process, from receiving applications, reviewing, verifying, to measures for reasonable and compassionate resolution (whether to settle or not, payment methods, award forms). Each province should directly guide exemplary work in one or two counties to draw lessons and disseminate them to other counties; the work should gradually expand.

Personnel assigned the responsibility for this work must thoroughly understand the State's policy and have a high sense of responsibility towards the people. In cases where there are applications requesting settlement, the specific staff handling the matter must promptly resolve them, avoiding any inconvenience or patronizing attitude towards the people.

During interactions with the people, it is necessary to always attach importance to political mobilization and ideological education; pay attention to explaining in detail so that the people can fully understand the State's policy on settling debts to the people, ensuring that those who are resolved or not resolved are both satisfied and enthusiastic.

Upon receipt of this Circular, the People's Committees of provinces and cities are requested to immediately proceed with the necessary steps, such as disseminating the Government's policy among personnel assigned to settle debts to the people, publicizing and disseminating policies to the general population, explaining and guiding those with debts to submit applications and present relevant documents, etc. Settlement offices at the provincial and city levels need to promptly and conclusively resolve each case, avoiding delays due to difficulties and complexities, which could affect the morale of the masses; efforts should be made to complete this work by the end of 1980./.