English - CEDAW Southeast Asia

CEDAW and the Law:
is experienced primarily as beatings, ill-treatment and other forms of physical violence, as well
as mental violence such as scolding, insulting, neglect, and irresponsible actions. 257 There is
very limited information on violence exerted against those in situations of cohabitation without
the benefit of marriage and those in intimate and dating relationships.
Encouragingly, the VASS Survey contains some questions on domestic violence that
may be a useful starting point for planned interventions and as a baseline to measure changes
in domestic violence in Viet Nam. 258 Reducing family violence is included in the VDGs,
CPRGS, and ‘Strategy on Building of Vietnamese Families in the 2005-2010 Period’. The
National Assembly is drafting a domestic violence law which is scheduled to be adopted in
November 2007. A law on domestic violence that contains a comprehensive definition and
scope as suggested above will enable better recognition of these cases, leading to appropriate
interventions to address them.
Measures under law for victims of domestic violence are limited. Remedies under the
present laws, which are mentioned in Part V.1.3.3 and Part V.1.3.6, are mostly focused on
punishing the perpetrator and providing compensation. As such, there are inadequate measures
in law designed to address the needs of victims of domestic violence.
It is also noteworthy to mention that there are several projects that target interventions
for victims that have been initiated. Many of them are promising, although they have limited
resources and geographical scope, technical expertise of staff needs improvement, and efforts
lack coordination with other initiatives. Examples are: (a) care workers in a hospital in Gia Lam
district in Ha Noi are undergoing specific training to address victims of domestic violence, the
Women’s Refuge set up by Ha Noi Health Services, a government hotline in Ha Noi for family
violence, and setting up of domestic violence task force in one province; 259 and (b) a film by
Viet Nam Women’s Union and Viet Nam Television (VTV) on violence against women. 260
As to conciliation or mediation, there are no procedures relating to domestic violence or
to the handling of cases where domestic violence exists. There are, however, general provisions
on this matter. To view them, see Part V.1.3.3, Indicator 12.
120
In relation to whether there is a law that mandates an inter-agency mechanism to
address domestic violence, there is no such mechanism specific to domestic violence.
However, mechanisms established for gender equality can obviously be used, as GBV is a
form of gender discrimination. For more information, see Part V.1.3.4, Indicator 1. During the
finalization of this review, the Decree on MCST has identified MCST as the state management
agency for the domestic violence law.
Recommendation: The adoption of a Law on Domestic Violence is necessary. The
law must:
257
Viet Nam Women’s Union, ‘Review Report: 10-year Implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action by Viet Nam
Women’s Union’, September 2005 (Viet Nam Women’s Union Report), p. 34
258
Wells, op. cit., p. 50 citing VASS Survey
259
Kabeer, et al., op. cit., pp. 29
260
Viet Nam Women’s Union Report, p. 37
Review of key legal documents and compliance with CEDAW