Decision No. 52/2010/QD-TTg On policies to support legal assistance aimed at enhancing awareness and knowledge of law for the poor and ethnic minority groups in poor districts during the period 2011-2020

Pursuant to …;

Regarding the legal support policy to enhance awareness and understanding of the law for the poor and ethnic minority groups in poor districts during the period from 2011 to 2020,

in poor districts during the period from 2011 to 2020,

__________________________

PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated December 25, 2001;

Pursuant to Resolution No. 30a/2008/NQ-CP dated December 27, 2008 of the Government on the Program for Rapid and Sustainable Poverty Reduction in Poor Districts;

Considering the proposal of the Minister of Justice.

 DECIDES:

 Article 1. Scope of Application

This Decision stipulates the legal support policy aimed at enhancing awareness and understanding of the law for the poor and ethnic minority groups in poor districts during the period from 2011 to 2020 pursuant to Resolution No. 30a/2008/NQ-CP of the Government dated December 27, 2008 (hereinafter referred to as Resolution No. 30a/2008/NQ-CP).

Article 2. Applicability

The beneficiaries of legal support include:

1. The poor.

2. Ethnic minority groups in poor districts according to Resolution No. 30a/2008/NQ-CP.

Article 3. Contents of Legal Support Policy

1. Providing direct legal support to the poor and ethnic minority groups in poor districts.

2. Enhancing the capacity of organizations providing legal aid, legal aid providers, Judicial Administrative Offices, and Conciliation Groups to directly provide legal support to the poor and ethnic minority groups in poor districts.

Article 4. Activities to Implement the Legal Support Policy

1. Direct legal support activities for the poor and ethnic minority groups:

a) Providing free legal services to the poor and ethnic minority groups through the following forms:

- Legal counseling;

- Participation in litigation;

- Representation outside litigation;

- Other forms of legal aid as prescribed by laws on legal aid.

b) Organizing mobile legal aid campaigns in communes within poor districts to provide free legal services to the poor and ethnic minority groups.

c) Organizing legal aid club meetings to resolve legal issues and provide legal information to enhance awareness and understanding of the law for the poor and ethnic minority groups in communes within poor districts.

d) Organizing conciliation group meetings to resolve minor disputes within communities;

đ) Popularizing, educating, and disseminating laws to the poor and ethnic minority groups through activities such as specialized legal seminars; evening legal classes; printing and distributing free legal pamphlets and audio tapes, CDs in Vietnamese and ethnic minority languages; integrating legal content into cultural events, ethnic festivals, and other appropriate local customs to enhance legal knowledge and awareness among those receiving legal aid;

e) Communicating about legal aid to the poor and ethnic minority groups by placing Information Boards and Legal Aid Mailboxes at the offices of Commune People's Committees and community centers so that the public can be aware of and exercise their right to legal aid;

g) Organizing the implementation of birth registration, certification, and other judicial administrative and household registration activities for the poor and ethnic minority groups in commune areas.

2. Enhancing the capacity of organizations providing legal aid, legal aid providers, conciliation group members, and judicial administrative and household registration officers at the commune level to provide legal support to the poor and ethnic minority groups through the following activities:

a) Conducting training and professional development courses on legal aid to update legal knowledge and legal aid skills for legal aid providers, heads of legal aid clubs in poor districts; providing training in ethnic minority languages for legal aid providers in poor districts;

b) Updating legal knowledge and professional skills, and providing training materials for judicial administrative and household registration officers at the commune level in poor districts; providing the Vietnam Law Newspaper to Commune People's Committees and legal aid clubs in communes within poor districts;

c) Organizing training sessions on conciliation skills for conciliation group members; compiling and distributing free legal materials to conciliation groups in communes within poor districts;

d) Supporting staff working at branches of legal aid centers in poor districts to participate in cultural and legal studies, attending lawyer training courses to qualify as legal aid providers;

đ) Supporting funding for secondary-level law education for judicial administrative and household registration officers at the commune level who do not have a secondary-level law degree or ethnic minority individuals in the recruitment plan for judicial administrative and household registration officers at the commune level. Those selected for study must commit to returning to work in their home district as assigned by the competent authority or must reimburse the training costs if they do not return to work as assigned.

Article 5. Financial quotas for implementing legal support activities

Article 6. Mechanism for human resources and financial assurance to implement the policy

1. Regarding human resources:

Prioritizing the selection of cadres participating in capacity-building activities stipulated in Clause 2, Article 4 of this Decision as those living in communes within poor districts, ethnic minority groups, or those who know ethnic minority languages; focusing on female cadres and those with experience in legal aid activities. Attracting village elders, village chiefs, clan leaders, and respected community members from various ethnic groups to serve as Legal Aid Volunteers.

2. Regarding capital sources:

a) Central budget: funds from the Poverty Reduction Program for Poor Districts according to Resolution No. 30a/2008/NQ-CP and support from international cooperation projects, contributions from domestic and foreign organizations and individuals (if any) to support the implementation of activities stipulated in Article 4 of this Decision. These funds are allocated in the annual budget of the Vietnam Legal Aid Fund.

b) Local budget ensuring regular activity expenses, staffing, infrastructure, and equipment for branches of State Legal Aid Centers in poor districts.

Article 7. Responsibilities of Ministries, sectors, and localities in organizing the implementation

1. Ministry of Justice:

a) Take the lead and coordinate with relevant ministries and sectors to guide localities in implementing legal support activities in poor districts;

b) Take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Finance to guide localities in preparing budgets, managing, settling accounts, and auditing annual state budgets for the implementation of this Decision;

c) Aggregate the budget estimates for legal support and submit them to the Ministry of Finance for approval by the competent authority; allocate legal support funds to localities through the Vietnam Legal Aid Fund;

d) Organize inspections, supervision, and evaluation of policy implementation; report periodically to the Prime Minister on an annual basis;

2. Ministry of Finance:

a) Take the lead and coordinate with relevant ministries and sectors to propose the competent authority to allocate funds for the implementation of the policies stipulated in this Decision;

b) Coordinate with the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Planning and Investment, and other relevant ministries and sectors to inspect the use of funds by localities;

3. Relevant ministries and sectors shall have the responsibility to support localities in effectively implementing the activities prescribed in this Decision according to their functions and tasks;

4. People's Committees of provinces having poor districts pursuant to Resolution 30a/2008/NQ-CP of the Government:

a) Direct the Department of Justice, the Department of Finance, and related departments to determine the annual legal support needs at the locality, prepare budget estimates for implementing legal support policies at the locality, and submit them to the Ministry of Justice for consolidation;

b) Direct and organize the implementation of legal support policies in accordance with the guidance of relevant ministries and sectors;

c) Direct the Civil Service Department and related departments to ensure staffing, infrastructure, equipment, transportation means, and working conditions, and regular operating expenses for the State Legal Aid Center and its branches located in poor districts; prepare supplementary local budget estimates and mobilize, integrate programs and projects within the locality to implement legal support policies; if unable to ensure these requirements, they must propose support solutions to competent authorities;

d) Inspect and ensure that the policy is implemented correctly to the target groups, preventing any loss or waste;

e) Report periodically every six months and annually on the results of implementing legal support policies at the locality to the Ministry of Justice for consolidation and reporting to the Prime Minister;

Article 8. Effective Date

This Decision takes effect from October 2, 2010.

Article 9. Responsibility for implementation

Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government agencies, and Chairpersons of provincial and centrally-administered city People's Committees are responsible for enforcing this Decision./.