As many as 285 domestic and 14 foreign inmates at the Thanh Xuan detention camp in Hanoi were freed on August 31 under the President’s Decision on Amnesty.
Attending the event, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Chairman of the Central Advisory Council on Amnesty, said the Vietnamese State decided to grant clemency to inmates with positive rehabilitation on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the August Revolution (August 19) and National Day (September 2).
 |
| Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (C) attends the ceremony to grant the State's amnesty decisions to inmates. |
The amnesty policy of the Vietnamese Party and State reflects the humanitarian tradition of the Vietnamese nation, which encourages offenders to rehabilitate and become useful members of society, Phuc said.
Consideration for amnesty was conducted in a public, transparent and democratic manner, receiving domestic concurrence and international applause, he said, adding that people and authorities across the country created all favourable conditions for the pardoned inmates to reintegrate into the community.
Deputy PM Phuc congratulated the pardoned inmates, saying the Vietnamese Party and State hope they will proactively reintegrate into society with the support of their family, the community, local authorities and police.
He encouraged those who are not eligible for this year’s amnesty to make greater efforts to rehabilitate.
In addition to amnesty, the Party and State’s policies are designed to reduce sentences for inmates with positive behaviours, he said.
He urged local authorities to monitor and support pardoned inmates to return home and find employment.
Under the President’s Decision on Amnesty, 18,298 prisoners serving jail terms and eligible for amnesty according to State law were freed ahead of their scheduled release dates on August 31, 2015.
Source: VNA