English - CEDAW Southeast Asia

A Gendered and Rights-Based Review of Vietnamese Legal Documents through the Lens of CEDAW
Also, in the Directive on Sending Abroad, the Ministry of Trade (MT) and General
Department of Tourism (GDT) were tasked to supervise and punish service establishments
that organize overseas tours to take Vietnamese women and children abroad to for sex work
or to sell them to foreigners. This was reiterated in Decision 130/2004/QD-TTG of 14 July 2004
Decision of the Prime Minister for Approval of the National Plan of Action against Crime of
Trafficking in Children and Women during the period of 2004-2010 as a responsibility of MPS.
Recommendation: It is suggested that, to ensure that appropriate attention is
given to sex tourism, it must be specifically defined and prohibited.
Indicator 49
Are there measures required by law to address the needs of
women exploited for prostitution
The handling of violations of the prohibitions on prostitution is provided for as follows:
Article 23: Handling of Prostitutes
(1) Prostitutes shall, depending on the nature and seriousness of their violations, be administratively
sanctioned, applied with the measure of education at communes, wards
or townships or sent into medical treatment establishments. Foreign prostitutes shall
depending on the nature and seriousness of their violations, be administratively sanctioned
in the forms or caution, fine and/or expulsion.
(2) Prostitutes who, though being aware of the HIV infection deliberately transmit the disease
to other persons shall be examined for penal liability.
The provision on handling of prostitutes is supposedly aimed at rehabilitation of women
who are in prostitution. The application of the measures of education at communes, wards and
district towns is applicable to those women engaged in prostitution aged 14 years or older with
given residence places and it has a duration of three to six months. 327 It is put in place to educate
and manage these women at their residence places. 328 In executing the decision, depending
on the person involved, a meeting will be called with representatives of the Viet Nam
Fatherland Front, police, Viet Nam Women’s Union, Viet Nam Farmers’ Association and Viet
Nam Youth Union in the locality, and school and family of the person subject to education. After
such meeting, the agencies or organizations are assigned to manage and educated these
women and encourage them in their life, and to help them find jobs or propose conditions for
women to find jobs. 329 Once a month the agencies/organizations assigned will report to the
commune-level People’s Committee. 330
As to the measure of sending into medical establishments, it is to labour, and to received
general education, job learning and medical treatment. 331 Also, per Article 20 of the Ordinance
on Prostitution: “Medical treatment establishments set up under the Ordinance on Handling
Administrative Violations shall have to: (1) Organize study and education on ethics and
lifestyle; organize job training, productive labour, and vocational guidance; provide medical
163
327
Ordinance on Administrative Violations, Article 23(2)(c)
328
Ibid., Article 23(1)
329
Ibid., Article 72
330
Ibid.
331
Ibid., Article 26
Trafficking and exploitation of prostitution (Article 6 of CEDAW)