What are the penalties for act of body shaming in Vietnam?

What are the penalties for act of body shaming in Vietnam? (Internet image) 

What is body shaming?

Currently, body shaming of others is quite common, especially in cyberspace. This English term can be understood as follows:

Body shaming is the act of one person aiming to "disparage" another person's appearance and body through actions such as: Using language, gestures, etc. to disparage, mock, evaluate, judge, etc. maliciously about another person's appearance.

The act of criticizing others with a negative meaning can easily cause the victim to become depressed and even seek death because of feelings of inferiority, guilt, or having their dignity and honor violated.

Body shaming is common nowadays, especially on social networks such as Facebook, Zalo, TikTok, etc.

Disparaging others or body shaming can just come from a joke like "fat like a pig, have you gotten fat lately?

But the act of body shaming can also mean insulting the honor and dignity of others, such as: being so fat/ugly, you still want to compete in a beauty pageant; being stupid as cattle;…

Body shaming statements, unintentionally or intentionally, also bring negative thoughts to others and are "invisible weapons" that hurt others. And in particular, body shaming of others has been happening very commonly on social networks as well as in everyday life.

What are the penalties for act of body shaming in Vietnam?

Body-shaming others also has many levels. If body-shaming behavior affects the honor, dignity, and reputation of others, it can be handled depending on the nature and extent of the behavior.

Case of being administratively sanctioned for body-shaming others

Pursuant to Point a, Clause 3, Article 7 of Decree 144/2021/ND-CP, if they commit acts of provoking, teasing, insulting, or defaming the honor and dignity of others, they may be fined from 02 - 03 million VND, except in the following cases:

- Insulting the honor and dignity of people performing official duties shall be fined from 04 - 06 million VND.

- Insulting the honor and dignity of family members will result in a 05 - 20 million VND.

In addition to the above fine, if the violators post false information, distort, slander, or insult your reputation, honor, and personal dignity in the online environment (Facebook, Zalo, Tiktok, etc.), they may be fined 20 to 30 million VND (according to point a, clause 3, Article 99 of Decree 15/2020/ND-CP).

Will body shaming be criminally prosecuted in Vietnam?

If the act of body shaming seriously offends the dignity and honor of others, you may be responsible for the crime of humiliating others or the crime of slander.

- For the crime of humiliating others (Article 155 of the Penal Code 2015):

Penalties range from warnings to fines ranging from 10 - 30 million VND, and the heaviest up to 05 years in prison if the victim commits suicide.

- For slander (Article 156 of the Penal Code 2015):

The lightest penalty is fabricating or spreading false information to seriously insult the dignity and honor of others, which will result in non-custodial reform for up to 02 years, and the heaviest penalty is up to 07 years in prison if the victim commits suicide or for despicable motives...

Liability to compensate for damages caused by body-shaming others in Vietnam

A person who commits body shaming of another person may also have to compensate the victim for damages if the body shaming causes damage to that person.

According to Article 592 of the Civil Code 2015, when violating the honor, dignity, and reputation of another person, compensation may be required.

Regarding the level of compensation, according to Article 592 of the Civil Code 2015, the parties can agree on the level of compensation.

If no agreement can be reached, the maximum compensation level shall not exceed 10 times the base salary (currently applying 1.49 million VND/month). The maximum compensation level will be 14.9 million VND.

From July 1, 2023, the base salary is 1.8 million VND/month, so the maximum compensation will be 18 million VND.

Chau Thanh

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