Should a suspended sentence be given for child abuse in Vietnam?

Judgment 17/2018/HS-ST dated August 16, 2018 is an example of a trial of lewdness against a person under the age of 16 with the following content:

“According to documents contained in the case file and developments at the court hearing, the contents of the case are summarized as follows: Around 08:00 on February 25, 2018, after drinking alcohol or beer; Defendant V went to Mr. Ho Truong M's house in hamlet 4, town 7, Chau Thanh A district, Hau Giang province for the purpose of inviting Mr. M to drink. When he arrived, Mr. M was away from home and he was alone. Ho Le MS was Mr. M's daughter sleeping, so V had a lewd intention toward Ho Le MS, V went into the room and went to the bed where S was sleeping and opened the mosquito net. When he got in, S was lying facing in, so V leaned over and kissed S's cheek and lips, S woke up and pushed V out. V used his left hand to hold S's hands and tried to pull S's shirt up with his right hand, but S protested pulling down his shirt, V continued to squeeze S's breasts from the outside with his hands,

At this time, S kicked V out with her foot, causing V to fall to the ground, so V took a 100,000 dong bill from his pocket and gave it to S, but S didn't take it, so V left the money on the bed and left, about 4 p.m. on the same day, S Tell Mr. M the whole incident.

The court sentenced Nguyen Van V to 01 (one) year in prison, suspended for 2 years.”

A suspended sentence is a criminal legal institution related to serving a sentence. A suspended sentence is understood as a temporary exemption from serving a conditional prison sentence, a penalty for a person who violates the law at a less serious level and satisfies a number of other conditions. This is a special regulation of the law to create conditions for those who have made mistakes to have the opportunity to correct their mistakes without losing their freedom, self-control, being able to take care of their loved ones, and having the least impact on daily life. day. At the same time, the institution also shows the leniency of the Vietnamese state law, which wants to encourage people to correct their mistakes and turn to good.

However, for some criminals, the use of a suspended sentence is as controversial as the sentence above. Currently, the crime of child abuse is having a complicated development, appearing in many places, causing a lot of frustration for the public. In the first 6 months of 2019, there were 8 cases of child abuse, causing 1 death. The tricks of the subjects are sophisticated, taking advantage of the dependent relationship to control, so they go undetected for a long time, only when the victim is pregnant or has an injury on her body, her family members are killed. If the family finds out or denounces it, they will notify the authorities. There are cases where the crime occurs, causing small and insignificant consequences, but there are also cases where it destroys a child's life.

Should there be suspended sentences for child abuse crimes?

First of all, we need to know the provisions of the law on suspended sentences. According to Article 65 of the Criminal Code and Article 2 of Resolution 02/2018/NQ-HDTP, in order to enjoy a suspended sentence, the following conditions must be met:

1. Being sentenced to imprisonment for not more than 03 years.

2. Have a good character.

3. There are many extenuating circumstances.

4. Have a clear place of residence or a stable place of work.

5. Considering that there is no need to enforce the imprisonment penalty.

In cases of child abuse in general, there are serious and especially serious cases, but there are also less serious cases. As for the idea of ​​lifting suspended sentences for the above cases, the writer himself disagrees with this opinion. Because of:

Firstly, to enjoy a suspended sentence, offenders need to meet many conditions under the 2015 Penal Code and Resolution 02/2018/NQ-HDTP. In addition, in practice often only first-time offenders are granted probation by the Court. So it shows that getting a suspended sentence is not easy.

Secondly, we cannot fully measure the nature, extent and behavior of cases related to child abuse. The evidence is that there are cases where the victim encourages and urges to commit a crime such as having sex with a person under 16 when falling in love. If all cases do not allow them to receive a suspended sentence, it may be too strict.

However, recently, there have been many cases of child abuse that have increased in number and complexity in nature, so to protect children, the Court should limit the suspension of sentences for these crimes. The fact also shows that for cases that are of interest to society and cause a lot of public opinions, offenders will certainly not receive suspended sentences. This is enough to deter, educate and propagate about child protection. At the same time, changing minds and raising Vietnamese people's awareness of the issue of child protection against abuse has been happening, but until now, many new cases have really been noticed.