Friday, April 21, 2023

Sexual abuse is rampant in Vietnam

RFA

2023.04.19


The police detained Mr. B.C.T. April 17, 2023

 

The Investigation Police Agency of Kim Boi district, Hoa Binh province on April 17 informed the state media that it had initiated a criminal case, prosecuted and detained the accused Mr. B.C.T. - Principal of Binh Son Commune Primary and Secondary School to investigate the crime of lewdness against people under 16 years old.

According to the indictment, in early April, after calling two 9th graders to his office, the principal asked Tr.T.H.N. (15 years old) and P.T.T. (15 years old) is a 9th grader at Binh Son School about sex and lewd behavior.

Teacher Do Viet Khoa, a teacher at Thuong Tin High School - Hanoi, on April 19 commented:

“The education industry has constantly had incidents of physical and mental abuse of students for decades without stopping. I used to be this age, but they still publicize it to do that, then the weak student himself doesn't know what to do?

Almost 100% of schools neglect to educate students in self-defense skills in school. The first is the skills to deal with wrongdoing in the school, such as the skills to combat bullying, school violence, and the teacher's skills to deal with terrorism. Those skills are almost ignored or teachers sexually abusing students, for example.”


I told the students that they have to know how to protect themselves against wrongdoing. But when we talked about it, the principal also thought that I talked like that was not appropriate for the student's age. -Teacher Do Viet Khoa

Mr. Khoa said that it was partly due to the behavior of students and teachers that led to repeated violations. He continued:

“I told the students that they have to know how to protect themselves against wrongdoing. But when we talked about it, the principal thought that I talked like that was not appropriate for the student's age."

Previously, in December 2018, the Investigation Police Agency of Thanh Son District, Phu Tho Province prosecuted and arrested Mr. Dinh Bang My, Principal of Thanh Son District Ethnic Minority Boarding School for the crime of " Obscene to people under 16 years old”. By 2019, Mr. Dinh Bang My was sentenced to eight years in prison for lewdly sexually assaulting seven male students in Phu Tho.

To learn more about the law, RFA on April 19 contacted a former judge and lawyer in Vietnam who did not want to be named for security reasons, and he explained:

“Vietnam's criminal law does not regulate in any environment, only in which age group is infringed. For example 13 years old and back; over 13 years old to full 16 years old; over 16 years old to 18 years old and over 18 years old. The remaining problem for teachers and students, ie people under their management, or dependent on themselves like stepfathers and stepchildren of their wives... is an aggravating circumstance. Not a specific law, for example, a person under the age of 13, even if the child allows it, is still rape. From full 13 years old to under 16 years old, it is sexual intercourse with children. The current law has changed, in the past the abuser could only be a woman, but now anyone, for example, a man who is sexually assaulted, who the abuser is is still subject to criminal prosecution. "

Regarding the case of the principal of the primary and secondary school in Binh Son commune, Kim Boi district, Hoa Binh province, the lawyer added:

“If lewdness with one victim is different, but for two children, the circumstances are aggravating, considered a crime for many people. This is an aggravating circumstance, it will compensate for the extenuating circumstances. For example, he has many merit certificates, something will be reduced. The second problem is that the investigation process proves that he has invited these two children up many times, twice or more is called a crime against many people, which is an aggravating circumstance. But the extenuating circumstances are not according to the law, just arbitrarily invented in a certain court.”

In Vietnam, it's only been occasionally seen in the press lately, I believe that's just the tip of the iceberg. It is related to a part of Vietnamese culture, many people are afraid of it, often they hide it, they do not dare to react.

-Associate Professor, Dr. Hoang Dung

Behavior, education and awareness issues related to sexual abuse; Especially in the school environment, how is the education? Associate Professor, Dr. Hoang Dung, an expert in linguistics, currently teaching at Ho Chi Minh City University of Education, when talking to RFA on the evening of April 19, said:

“Sex education is taught in high schools, but it is not, and sometimes such cases of sexual abuse are a pain. In Vietnam, it's only been occasionally seen in the press lately, I believe that's just the tip of the iceberg. It is related to a part of Vietnamese culture, many people are afraid of it, often they hide it, they do not dare to react. For example, in the case of Da Thao Phuong, she has been abused since she was very young, but it is not until now that she dares to speak out publicly who abused her. Decades of living quietly like that to see that it is an aspect of Vietnamese culture.”

Associate Professor, Dr. Hoang Dung said that it is also possible to believe that what is known through the press is only a small part, and the victim does not dare to speak out is more. Mr. Dung said he believes that change cannot be overnight, but it takes time.

Mrs. Da Thao Phuong that Professor, Dr. Hoang Dung mentioned, is a poet, currently living in Cyprus. On April 3, 2022, she posted on Facebook that she had been sexually harassed by Luong Ngoc An between 1999 and 2000, despite her fierce objections. She then, along with the testimony of many people, denounced to the leader of the Van Nghe Newspaper, which was the governing body of the two at that time, but it was not resolved satisfactorily.

https://www.rfa.org/vietnamese/in_depth/sexual-abuse-is-rampant-in-vietnam-04192023133351.html

 

A child is sexually abused every eight hours in Vietnam

Friday, March 24, 2017, 17:39 GMT+7

https://tuoitrenews.vn/news/audio/20170324/a-child-is-sexually-abused-every-eight-hours-in-vietnam/10248.html

Vietnam records 1,000 child sexual abuse cases each year

More than 1,000 cases of sexual abuse against children occur in Vietnam each year and in the first quarter of 2017, 33 cases were reported, heard a forum in Hanoi on April 14.

VNA Friday, April 14, 2017 21:06  

https://en.vietnamplus.vn/vietnam-records-1000-child-sexual-abuse-cases-each-year/110284.vnp 

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