What is combat gear? Who is equipped with combat gears in Vietnam?

1. What is combat gear?

According to the provisions of Clause 11 Article 3 of the Law on management and use of weapons, explosives and combat gears 2017,  “combat gear” means equipment or military animals used for carrying out missions and providing protection, which aims to reduce and prevent the violators from resisting or running way, protect law enforcement officials , people performing protection missions or giving signals of emergency, including:

What is combat gear? Who is equipped with combat gears in Vietnam? (Internet image)

2. Types of combat gears in Vietnam

Clause 11 Article 3 of the Law on management and use of weapons, explosives and combat gears 2017 also stipulates that combat gears include the following groups of tools:

- Stun guns, guns shooting asphyxiant gas, guns shooting poisons, tranquillizer guns, coilguns, net guns; rope launchers; guns using plastic bullets, guns using exploding bullets, guns using rubber bullets, tear gas, flares, tracers and ammunition used for these types of guns;

- Devices used for spraying tear gas, asphyxiant gas, poisons, anesthetics or itching powder

- Smoke grenades, tear gas grenades

- Stun batons, rubber batons, metal batons; figure-8 handcuffs, spike-boards, barbed wires; armors; electric gloves, knife gloves; shields, bulletproof helmets; sonic weapons;

- Military animals which are animals trained and used for protecting national security and ensuring social order and safety;

- Devices with similar properties and effects which are equipment not manufactured in conformity with technical standards and designs of legal producers and have their properties and effects similar to the combat gears as prescribed above.

3. Who is equipped with combat gears in Vietnam?

Persons equipped with combat gears specified in Article 55 of the Law on management and use of weapons, explosives and combat gears 2017, include:

- Vietnam People’s Army;

- Vietnam Civil Defense Force;

- Vietnam Coast Guards

- Vietnam People's Public Security

- Cipher force;

- Investigating authorities affiliated to People’s Supreme Procuracy;

- Authorities in charge of enforcement of civil judgments

- Foresters, full-time forest protection forces, Vietnam Fisheries Resources Surveillance, forces directly carry out specialized fishery inspections;

- Customs officers working at border checkpoints and full-time forces carrying out tasks of anti-smuggling affiliated to customs to Vietnam Customs.

- Inspecting teams affiliated to the market control forces;

- Aviation security force, forces directly carry out specialized inspections related to transportation;

- Guardians of authorities, organizations; providers of security services;

- Neighborhood security guards;

- Sporting clubs and providers of training in sports that have obtained operating licenses;

- Drug detoxification facilities;

- According to properties, requirements and missions, the Minister of Public’s Security shall decide to provide combat gears for other entities.

According to properties, requirements and missions, the Minister of Public’s Security shall stipulate the equipment of combat gears for personnel of the Vietnam People’s Army, Vietnam Civil Defense Force, Vietnam coast guard, cipher force and sporting clubs and providers of training in sports under the management of the Ministry of National Defense.

According to properties, requirements and missions, the Minister of Public’s Security shall stipulate the equipment of combat gears for entities not under the management of the Ministry of National Defense.

4. Regulations on the use of combat gears in Vietnam

According to Article 61 of the Law on management and use of weapons, explosives and combat gears 2017,  a person assigned to use combat gears shall comply with regulations of Clause 2, Article 22 of the Law on management and use of weapons, explosives and combat gears 2017 and  is allowed to use these weapons if:

- One of the cases prescribed in Article 23 of the Law on management and use of weapons, explosives and combat gears 2017;

- Combat gears are used for preventing and dispersing illegal demonstrations, riots, disturbance to the public order and violation of national security, social order and safety;

- Combat gears are used for preventing a person from threatening lives and health of law enforcement officials or other people;

- Combat gears are used for preventing and dispersing the disturbance, opposition or disobedience to the orders of law enforcement officials, risks to security and safety of prisons, detention camps, custody houses, reformatories, compulsory education establishments and drug detoxification facilities;

- Combat gears are used in case of justified self-defense or emergency as prescribed by law.

People assigned to use combat gears shall not take responsibility for damage cause by the use of combat gears if they comply with the above regulations and other relevant regulations of law. If a person uses combat gears beyond the justified force in self-defense, causes obvious damage beyond the urgent circumstances, abuses the use of combat gears for violating the lives, health, legal rights and interests of an organization or another person, he/she shall be dealt with in accordance with regulations of law.

Nhu Mai

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