Circular No. 47/2012/TT-BQP stipulates on the construction, management, and exploitation of Legal Bookshelves in the military.

CIRCULAR

Regulations on the construction, management, and exploitation of Legal Bookcases in the Military

Pursuant to the Law on Legislative Documents of 2008;

Pursuant to Decree No. 104/2008/NĐ-CP dated September 16, 2008 of the Government on the Functions, Tasks, Authorities, and Organizational Structure of the Ministry of National Defense;

Pursuant to Decision No. 06/2010/QĐ-TTg dated January 25, 2010 of the Prime Minister on the construction, management, and exploitation of Legal Bookcases;

Considering the proposal of the Director of the Department of Legal Affairs, Ministry of National Defense,

The Minister of National Defense hereby stipulates regulations on the construction, management, and exploitation of Legal Bookcases in the Military as follows:

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

These Circulars regulate the construction, management, and exploitation of Legal Bookcases at agencies and units. Responsibilities of agencies, organizations, and individuals related to the construction, management, and exploitation of Legal Bookcases.

Article 2. Applicability

This Circular applies to:

1. Agencies, units, enterprises, academies, schools (hereinafter referred to as agencies and units) and the Steering Committee for Popularizing and Educating Law at all levels.

2. Commanders of agencies and units; officers, non-commissioned officers, soldiers (hereinafter referred to as officers and soldiers), civil servants, public officials (hereinafter referred to as defense civil servants) in agencies and units; cadres engaged in popularizing and educating law at all levels.

Article 3. Legal Bookcase, types of Legal Bookcases in the Military

1. Legal Bookcase in the Military is one of the forms and measures for propaganda, popularization, and education of law; it is a place to store documents on policies and guidelines of the Party, laws of the State, Regulations, Rules, internal regulations, and provisions of the Ministry of National Defense to serve the needs of work, research, and understanding of officers and soldiers, defense civil servants in agencies and units.

2. Types of Legal Bookcases

a) Battalion, company-level Legal Bookcases and equivalent are places providing sources of materials on policies and guidelines of the Party, laws of the State, Regulations, Rules, internal regulations, and provisions of the Ministry of National Defense to serve the needs of research and understanding to enhance legal awareness and protect the legitimate rights and interests of officers and soldiers, defense civil servants in agencies and units;

b) Legal Bookcases of agencies at regiment level and above are places providing sources of materials on policies and guidelines of the Party, laws of the State, Regulations, Rules, internal regulations, and provisions of the Ministry of National Defense to serve cadres' research, application, and correct implementation of laws and specialized laws and fields to resolve tasks.

Article 4. Principles of Construction, Management, and Exploitation of Legal Bookcases

1. Content and form must be diverse and appropriate to the functions and tasks of agencies and units.

2. Ensure economy and effective management and exploitation.

3. Foster reading culture, self-study, and self-learning among officers and soldiers, defense civil servants.

4. Regularly updated and supplemented.

Article 5. Construction of Legal Bookcases

1. Decision on Construction of Legal Bookcases

a) The head of regiments and equivalent issues decisions on the construction of Legal Bookcases of agencies and units;

b) The decision on the construction of Legal Bookcases includes the following contents:

- Type of Legal Bookcase;

- Location of the Legal Bookcase;

- Types of books, newspapers, magazines needed in the Legal Bookcase;

- Cadre responsible for the Legal Bookcase;

- Scope and target served;

- Tasks and benefits of the cadre responsible for the Legal Bookcase;

- Main activities of the Legal Bookcase and annual supplementary budget.

2. Location of the Legal Bookcase

a) The location of the Legal Bookcase must ensure convenience for officers and soldiers, defense civil servants to study, search, and understand laws in agencies and units;

b) Based on actual conditions, battalion, company-level Legal Bookcases; Legal Bookcases of agencies at regiment level and above can be located in collective activity rooms, Ho Chi Minh Rooms, meeting rooms, reading rooms, or libraries of agencies and units.

3. Types of Books, Newspapers, and Materials in the Legal Bookcase

a) Types of books, newspapers, and materials in the Legal Bookcase need to be selected appropriately according to the nature, functions, tasks, industries, and fields of activities of each agency and unit and each target served;

b) The Legal Bookcase has the following types of books, newspapers, and materials:

- Documents and Resolutions of the Party;

- Legal normative documents: current legal normative documents of the State directly related to the functions, tasks, and activities of agencies and units serving the research, reference, search, citation, and application of laws in each professional field of cadres and the understanding of laws by soldiers, defense civil servants;

- General legal materials: question-and-answer books on law; scientific comments on law; explanations of law regarding citizens' rights and obligations; outlines for popularizing and educating law and materials guiding citizens to understand law;

- Books and legal materials serving management, professional guidance, training, and learning of officers and soldiers, defense civil servants;

- The Official Gazette of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam; law-related journals, periodicals, special-interest newspapers of judicial, prosecution, court organs, and legal news bulletins of various sectors;

c) In addition to the types of books, newspapers, and materials specified in Point b Clause 3 of this Article, Legal Bookcases of agencies and units need to collect and supplement materials on Regulations, Rules, internal regulations, and provisions of the Ministry of National Defense and select and supplement other types of books, newspapers, and legal materials relevant to the functions, tasks, powers of the Ministry of National Defense, and military branches to serve the needs of researching and understanding laws by cadres and soldiers in agencies and units.

4. Supplementing Legal Books, Newspapers, and Materials to the Legal Bookcase

Agencies and units must update and supplement legal books and newspapers within six months or one year, and legal newspapers must be regularly updated and supplemented.

5. Mobilizing the Participation and Contributions of Organizations and Individuals in the Construction of Legal Bookcases

Mobilize books, newspapers, and legal documents available among officers and soldiers within agencies and units to establish a Legal Bookshelf; encourage organizations and individuals both inside and outside the Military, with particular emphasis on encouraging the press, publishing houses, and enterprises to support books, newspapers, and legal documents, and invest funds for the Legal Bookshelf of agencies and units.

6. Enhance the application of information technology in exploiting legal texts and documents.

Article 6. Management of the Legal Bookshelf

1. The organization and operation of the Legal Bookshelf are directly under the direction of the Political Commissar, Political Instructor, and political organs at all levels; propaganda organs at all levels are responsible for guiding the construction, management, and exploitation of the Legal Bookshelf within their agencies and units.

2. Books, newspapers, and legal documents must be registered in a logbook and preserved according to the regulations of the State and the Ministry of National Defense.

Article 7. Exploitation of the Legal Bookshelf

1. Propaganda organs (political cadres) at all levels are responsible for establishing operational rules for the Legal Bookshelf to be submitted for approval by the heads of agencies and units.

a) The operational rules of the Legal Bookshelf include the following main contents:

- Principles for building, managing, and exploiting the Legal Bookshelf;

- Service formats;

- Service hours;

- Authorities and responsibilities of staff responsible for the Legal Bookshelf;

- Conditions and procedures for borrowing books, newspapers, and legal documents;

- Responsibilities of readers;

- Handling of cases involving damage or loss of books, newspapers, and legal documents.

b) The operational rules of the Legal Bookshelf must be posted at the location where the Legal Bookshelf is placed.

2. Service Hours

a) For the Legal Bookshelf in units, it shall be open daily during sports time, production time, and on rest days to meet the research and learning needs of officers and soldiers, civilian employees in defense.

b) For the Legal Bookshelf in agencies, it shall be open daily during working hours to meet the needs of searching, understanding, and applying laws, specialized laws, and fields to resolve work matters of officers.

3. Service Forms

a) Reading and studying books, newspapers, and legal documents on-site;

b) Lending books, newspapers, and legal documents for a limited period.

4. Methods of Exploiting the Legal Bookshelf

a) Based on actual conditions, living and working circumstances, and the need to understand laws of officers and soldiers, civilian employees in defense within agencies and units to organize activities of the Legal Bookshelf in accordance with the nature, functions, and tasks of the agencies and units;

b) Regularly supplementing and thoroughly exploiting sources of books, newspapers, and legal documents within the Legal Bookshelf to serve the reading and understanding needs of officers and soldiers, civilian employees in defense;

c) Widely and promptly disseminating various types of books, newspapers, and legal documents through bibliographic information, search guidance, and other forms of information dissemination; introducing new content of books, newspapers, and legal documents on bulletin boards and internal radio broadcasts to facilitate officers and soldiers, civilian employees in defense reading, studying, and understanding laws;

d) Promoting and mobilizing officers and soldiers, civilian employees in defense to read and understand books, newspapers, and legal documents;

đ) Organizing special lectures to introduce new books, newspapers, and legal documents to enhance the effectiveness of exploiting the Legal Bookshelf.

Article 8. Officials Responsible for the Legal Bookcase

1. Depending on specific conditions, agencies and units shall assign one official to concurrently be responsible for the Legal Bookcase appropriately.

The official responsible for the Legal Bookcase must have a certain understanding of laws, library information work; possess a sense of responsibility and enthusiasm for the job.

2. Duties of the official responsible for the Legal Bookcase

a) Prepare the budget estimate for the construction and annual supplementary funding for books, newspapers, and legal materials of the Legal Bookcase to submit to the agency or unit head for approval;

b) Manage books, newspapers, and legal materials according to regulations; lend out and guide the use of books, newspapers, and legal materials; monitor borrowing, returning, and circulation of books, newspapers, and legal materials;

c) Conduct an inventory of books, newspapers, and legal materials annually; prepare six-monthly and annual reports to the Interagency Coordination Board on the dissemination and education of laws regarding the situation of building, managing, and utilizing the Legal Bookcase;

d) Propose handling measures for old, damaged, or obsolete books, newspapers, journals, and legal materials.

3. Benefits of the official responsible for the Legal Bookcase

a) Receive guidance on the business of building, managing, and utilizing the Legal Bookcase and legal knowledge;

b) Be rewarded by the competent authority according to regulations when achieving outstanding results in the construction, management, and utilization of the Legal Bookcase.

Article 9. Responsibilities of the Interagency Coordination Board on the Dissemination and Education of Laws

1. The Interagency Coordination Board on the Dissemination and Education of Laws under the Ministry of National Defense

a) Submit to the Minister of National Defense for consideration and decision on programs, projects, draft reports to the Government on the work of building, managing, and utilizing the Legal Bookcase in the military;

b) Advise and propose to assist the Minister in directing and managing state affairs concerning the work of building, managing, and utilizing the Legal Bookcase throughout the military;

c) Direct relevant functional agencies to provide guidance on business and draft legal documents related to the work of building, managing, and utilizing the Legal Bookcase;

d) Organize professional training on building, managing, and utilizing the Legal Bookcase for officials responsible for the Legal Bookcase at agencies and units;

đ) Direct agencies and units to implement legal documents, national programs, plans, and projects on the work of building the Legal Bookcase throughout the military;

e) Issue guiding and professional documents within its authority on the work of building, managing, and utilizing the Legal Bookcase;

g) Organize inspections of the implementation of the work of building, managing, and utilizing the Legal Bookcase by agencies and units;

h) Annually organize mid-term and final reviews; decide rewards or propose competent authorities to reward outstanding collectives and individuals in the work of building, managing, and utilizing the Legal Bookcase.

2. The Interagency Coordination Board on the Dissemination and Education of Laws at Agencies and Units

a) Direct the work of building, managing, and utilizing the Legal Bookcase in subordinate agencies and units;

b) Annually develop plans for building and maintaining the Legal Bookcase; build activity programs, investment plans, consolidation, and development of the Legal Bookcase at their own agencies and units;

c) Direct and regularly inspect and evaluate the activities of the Legal Bookcase, implement periodic inventory systems;

d) Annually organize mid-term and final reviews of the work of building, maintaining, consolidating, and developing the Legal Bookcase in agencies and units; report progress, results of activities of the Legal Bookcase to the Interagency Coordination Board on the Dissemination and Education of Laws under the Ministry of National Defense;

đ) Propose competent authorities to reward outstanding collectives and individuals in the work of building, managing, and utilizing the Legal Bookcase;

e) Accept, manage, and use upper-level and unit budget funds to build the Legal Bookcase in agencies and units.

Article 10. Responsibilities of officials engaged in legal dissemination and education work

1. Advise and propose to the Heads of agencies and units to direct and manage the construction, management, and exploitation of the Legal Bookcase.

2. Implement and organize the execution based on the guidance of the Coordination Councils for legal dissemination and education at all levels.

3. Summarize and report semi-annually and annually to the Coordination Council for legal dissemination and education of the agency or unit on the situation of managing and exploiting the Legal Bookcase.

Article 11. Budget for constructing, managing the Legal Bookcase

1. The budget for constructing, managing, and exploiting the Legal Bookcase is included in the annual budget estimate of the agency or unit. Annually, based on the guidance of the Ministry of Finance and the plan and tasks for constructing, managing, and exploiting the Legal Bookcase, the agencies and units prepare the budget estimate for constructing, managing, and exploiting the Legal Bookcase to be submitted to the financial authority for consolidation into the annual budget estimate of the agency or unit to be submitted to the competent authority for approval.

2. The Ministry of National Defense, based on actual conditions, annually allocates the budget for constructing and managing the Legal Bookcase according to the proposal of the Coordination Council for legal dissemination and education of the Ministry of National Defense.

3. Self-raised funds and contributions from agencies and units.

Article 12. Implementation Organization

1. Commanders of agencies and units directly direct the construction, management, and exploitation of the Legal Bookcase within their agencies and units.

2. Political Departments of units direct propaganda departments to guide the construction, management, and exploitation of the Legal Bookcase in subordinate units; implement periodic inventory systems; conduct mid-term reviews, final summaries, evaluations, commendations, and rewards for collectives and individuals with outstanding achievements in constructing, managing, and exploiting the Legal Bookcase; report activity results to the higher-level Coordination Council for legal dissemination and education as prescribed.

Annually, develop plans for building, maintaining, upgrading the Legal Bookcase, establish action programs, investment plans, consolidation and development plans, book purchasing plans from agencies and units supplying legal publications, submit to the Head of the unit for approval.

3. The Propaganda Department of the General Political Department is responsible for monitoring, inspecting, and urging the construction, management, and exploitation of the Legal Bookcase in the library system and reading rooms throughout the military.

4. The Legal Affairs Department of the Ministry of National Defense, in collaboration with relevant functional agencies, guides business operations, drafts legal documents, and compiles activity results on constructing, managing, and exploiting the Legal Bookcase throughout the military to report periodically or urgently to the Head of the Ministry.

Article 13. Effective Date

This Circular takes effect 45 days from the date of signature.

1. The Minister, Heads of Ministries equivalent to ministries, Heads of government agencies, Chairmen of provincial People's Committees under the central government, and related agencies, units, and individuals are responsible for implementing this Circular.

1. The Head of the Legal Affairs Department of the Ministry of National Defense, the Heads of agencies and units throughout the military are responsible for implementing this Circular.

2. In the course of implementation, if there are difficulties, agencies and units are requested to reflect them to the Ministry of National Defense (through the Legal Affairs Department of the Ministry of National Defense) for guidance on implementation./.