Guidelines in Vietnam for jurisdiction in the trial of military courts by subject matter

Guidelines in Vietnam for jurisdiction in the trial of military courts by subject matter (Internet image) 

On December 28, 2023, the Chief Justice of the Supreme People's Court issued Circular 03/2023/TT-TANDTC, providing guidelines for jurisdiction in the trial of military courts.

Guidelines in Vietnam for jurisdiction in the trial of military courts by subject matter

(1) Military courts have jurisdiction to try criminal cases as stipulated in point a, paragraph 1, Article 272 of the Criminal Procedure Code, committed by offenders falling into one of the following categories, regardless of the nature and location of the offense:

- "Military personnel on active duty" includes officers, professional military personnel, non-commissioned officers, and soldiers as defined in the Law on Officers of the People's Army of Vietnam, the Law on Professional Military Personnel, civilian employees and defense officials, and the Law on Military Service Obligations.

- "Defense officials" are Vietnamese citizens recruited into positions and titles corresponding to their employment in organizations and units of the People's Army of Vietnam who are not officers, professional military personnel, civilian employees, or defense officials.

- "Civilian employees and defense officials" include individuals defined in paragraph 2, Article 2 of the Law on professional servicemen, national defense workers and officials.

- Reserve military personnel during training and readiness checks, as defined in the Law on military reserve forces.

- Militia and self-defense forces during the period when the competent authority decides to train or subordinate them to the People's Army of Vietnam in combat or for combat service, as stipulated in the Law on Militia and Self-Defense Forces.

- Citizens mobilized or conscripted to serve in the military or perform labor contracts at military units.

(2) Military courts have jurisdiction to try criminal cases as stipulated in point b, paragraph 1, Article 272 of the Criminal Procedure Code, in which the offense committed by the offender is related to military secrets or causes harm to the military, or offenses committed within military bases or military areas under the management and protection of the People's Army of Vietnam, as follows:

- Military secrets include those of the military, those related to national defense security, and state secrets in the field of national defense, as regulated in documents of State agencies and party organizations with jurisdiction.

- Causing harm to the military includes harm to the life, health, honor, and dignity of military personnel on active duty, civil servants, civilian employees, defense officials, reserve military personnel during training or readiness checks, or causing harm to the property, honor, and reputation of the military.

- Offenses committed within military bases or military areas under the management and protection of the People's Army of Vietnam.

(3) For individuals serving in the military, military courts have jurisdiction to try all criminal cases committed by them, regardless of the type of offense and the time of committing the crime.

For individuals no longer serving in the military but found to have committed crimes during their service in the military, military courts have jurisdiction to try offenses as guided in (2); other offenses are tried by people's courts.

(4) The starting point of military service to determine the jurisdiction of military courts is determined as follows:

- For annual conscripts fulfilling military service obligations, it is the date of conscription.

- For cases of individual conscription, it is the date of individual conscription according to the regulations of the competent authority, and the individual is subject to overall management by the military.

- For citizens selected through military entrance examinations for training at educational institutions, it is the date of acceptance according to the regulations of the competent authority, and the individual is subject to overall management by the military.

- For cases of reserve officers called up for service, it is the date of acceptance by the organization or unit according to the regulations of the competent authority, and the individual is subject to overall management by the military.

- For cases of conscription upon mobilization orders, it is the date of acceptance by the permanent force unit of the military according to the decision of the competent authority, and the individual is subject to overall management by the military.

- For cases of recruitment, it is the effective date of the recruitment decision by the competent authority, and the individual is subject to overall management by the military.

- For cases of receiving unjustly sentenced prisoners, missing persons, or discharged soldiers who have returned to the military unit, it is the date of acceptance by the organization or unit serving in the military with the effective execution of the decision.

- For reserve military personnel, militia, and self-defense forces, it is the date they are required to be present for training, exercises, readiness checks, combat coordination, combat service, and direct management by the military unit.

- For contract labor, it is the date of starting work as agreed in the labor contract.

- For other individuals mobilized or conscripted for military or defense tasks, it is the date when the citizen starts to perform military or defense tasks and is under direct management by the military unit.

(5) The end of military service to determine the jurisdiction of the Military Court is determined as follows:

- For cases of retirement, discharge, resignation, medical discharge, or transfer to rehabilitation centers for veterans, social welfare facilities, or facilities for the care of deserving individuals, the effective date of the decision is considered the end of military service.

- For cases of revocation of military titles or forced discharge, the date of handover of military personnel to the district-level military authority or the commune-level People's Committee where they reside is considered the end of military service.

- For cases of conscription, the date when the written notification is sent to the commune-level People's Committee and the district-level military authority where the individual resides and their family about the reduction of military personnel under the military's establishment for conscripted individuals is considered the end of military service.

- For cases of military personnel, civil servants, workers, and defense officials deserting to join enemy ranks or fleeing abroad, the date when the individual commits such acts is considered the end of military service.

- For cases of civil servants, workers, and defense officials voluntarily quitting their jobs without any valid reason, the date when the notification is sent to the commune-level People's Committee and their family about this matter is considered the end of military service.

- For military personnel, civil servants, workers, and defense officials sent for training abroad, the end of the study period, if they stay abroad without permission from the competent authority, is considered the end of military service. The written notification is sent to the commune-level People's Committee and the district-level military authority where the individual resides and their family about the reduction of military personnel under the military's establishment.

- For reserve military personnel, militia, and self-defense forces, the end of the training period for conducting training, inspections, combat coordination, combat service, and no longer being under the direct management of the military unit is considered the end of military service.

- For contract labor, the termination of the labor contract as agreed upon or stated in the labor contract termination agreement is considered the end of military service.

- For other individuals mobilized or conscripted for military or defense tasks, the end of the military or defense task period and no longer being under the direct management of the military unit is considered the end of military service.

More details can be found in Circular 03/2023/TT-TANDTC, taking effect on February 15, 2024, for further information.

During the implementation process, if there are any difficulties or proposals, suggestions should be reported to the Supreme People's Court for timely guidance and resolution. The amendments to Circular 03/2023/TT-TANDTC will be decided by the Chief Justice of the Supreme People's Court.

Ho Quoc Tuan

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