DECREE

PROMULGATING THE REGULATION ON PRISONS

THE GOVERNMENT

Pursuant to the December 25, 2001 Law on Organization of the Government;
Pursuant to the March 8, 1993 Ordinance on Enforcement of Imprisonment Judgments and the October 19, 2007 Ordinance Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Ordinance on Enforcement of Imprisonment Judgments;
At the proposal of the Minister of Public Security and the Minister of Defense,

DECREES:

Article 1. To promulgate together with this Decree the Regulation on Prisons.

Article 2. This Decree applies to prisoners serving imprisonment penalty in prisons and detention camps.

Article 3. This Decree takes effect 15 days after its publication in "CONG BAO" and replaces the Government's Decree N0.60-CP of September 16, 1993 promulgating the Regulation on Prisons, and Decree No. 60/2001/ND-CP of September 4, 2001, amending Article 3 of the Regulation on Prisons promulgated together with Decree No.60-CP of September 16,1993.

Article 4. The Minister of Public Security and the Minister of Defense shall guide, organize and inspect the implementation of this Decree.

Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-attached agencies and presidents of provincial/municipal People's Committees shall implement this Decree.

REGULATION ON PRISONS
(Promulgated together with the Government's Decree No. 113/2008/ND-CP of October 28, 2008)

Chapter I

ORGANIZATION OF A PRISON

Article 1. Prison is a place where persons sentenced to termed imprisonment or life imprisonment are admitted. Persons serving imprisonment penalty are referred to as prisoners.

Article 2. The Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Defense shall directly manage prisons. Construction items and security control systems in prisons are constructed and installed in accordance with regulations and uniform designing models issued by the Ministry of Public Security or the Ministry of Defense. The establishment, dissolution and merger of prisons and prison divisions shall be decided by the Minister of Public Security or the Minister of Defense.

Article 3. Each prison under the Ministry of Public Security will manage between 2,000 and 5,000 prisoners (special cases will be decided by the Minister of Public Security). Each prison may set up a number of divisions, each of which will manage between 500 and 1,000 prisoners. Each prison under the Ministry of Defense will manage between 100 and 500 prisoners.

Article 4. The managerial apparatus of a prison comprises a warden, deputy wardens, heads and deputy heads of prison divisions, team leaders and deputy leaders; operation officers and non commissioned officers; technical officers and non commissioned officers; armed security officers, non-commissioned officers and soldiers; and workers and civil servants. The functions and tasks of deputy wardens, heads and deputy heads of prison divisions; team leaders and deputy leaders, operation officers and non-commissioned officers; technical officers and non-commissioned officers; armed security officers, non-commissioned officers and soldiers; and workers and civil servants shall be prescribed by the Minister of Public Security or the Minister of Defense.

Article 5.

1. Wardens have the following tasks and powers:

a) To command their officers and soldiers and take responsibility for the management, detention and education of prisoners according to law;

b) To decide on matters related to activities of the prisons, which are prescribed by law or assigned by their superiors, and take personal responsibility for their decisions;

c) To exercise other rights and perform other obligations, which are prescribed by law.

2. Deputy wardens shall perform tasks assigned by their wardens.

Article 6.

1. Wardens, deputy wardens:- heads and deputy heads of prison divisions; team leaders and deputy leaders; operation officers and non-commissioned officers; technical officers and non-commissioned officers; armed security officers, non-commissioned officers and soldiers; and workers and civil servants must be those who possess good political quality, are loyal to the Party and the regime, have a high sense of organization and discipline, firmly grasp policies, know, respect and strictly observe laws.

2. Wardens, deputy wardens, heads of prison divisions and team leaders must be those who have graduated from the police university, security university or law university or possess an equivalent or higher degree.

Deputy heads of prison divisions, team deputy leaders, operation officers and non-commissioned officers and armed security officers must graduate from an intermediate police or security school or have an equivalent or higher degree.

Technical officers and non-commissioned officers must possess an intermediate-level degree in the professional fields they undertake.

Armed security non-commissioned officers and soldiers must be persons who have been already trained in the protection of prisons.

Workers and civil servants must be persons who have been trained in, and firmly grasp the knowledge about, the professional fields they undertake.

Chapter II

REGIMES ON MANAGEMENT, DETENTION AND ESCORT OF PRISONERS

Article 7.

1. Based on the nature of prisoners' offenses and sentences, a prison shall organize their detention as follows:

a) Area for detention of persons sentenced to over 15 years in prison or life imprisonment and persons sentenced to imprisonment for dangerous recidivism;

b) Area for detention of persons sentenced to 15 years or less in prison.

2. Female and juvenile prisoners shall be detained separately.

Article 8.

1. The sending of a person sentenced to imprisonment to prison must fully have the following papers:

a) A copy of the effective judgment and the first-instance judgment in case of appellate, cassation or review trial;

b) The judgment enforcement decision;

c) The document evidencing the prisoner's personal identity;

d) A copy of the passport or another paper evidencing the nationality of the person sentenced to imprisonment if he/she is a foreigner;

e) A health check paper and other documents related to the prisoner's health (if any);

f) The decision of the prison-managing agency to send the prisoner to prison;

g) Other documents related to the prisoner (if any);

h) Written remarks on the observance of detention center rules; for a prisoner transferred from another prison or from a detention center where he/she has served his/her sentences for a month or more, there must be remarks on and his/her ranking in the emulation to serve his/her prison term.

2. For prisoners' children who follow their fathers or mothers into-the prison, their birth certificates are required. If no birth certificate is available, the following papers are required: the birth certification issued by the medical establishment where the child was born; if the child was born outside a medical establishment, the birth certification can be substituted by a witness's written certification; if these papers are not available, there must be a report of the detention center from which the prisoner is transferred and the father's or mother's written guarantee that the birth of his/her child is true. The warden shall carry out procedures for the child's birth registration according to the civil status registration and management law. In case a prisoner gives birth to a child while serving his/her prison term, the commune-level People's Committee of the locality where the prison is located shall issue a birth certificate for the child at the proposal of the warden.

3. Upon prisoners' entry into a prison, the prison's health station shall conduct health checks for prisoners, determining their health conditions and ailments in order to open their medical files to serve their detention, labor, study and medical examination and treatment.

4. Based on the nature of crime, levels of sentences, age, gender, health conditions and other personal characters of prisoners, wardens shall decide on the classification and classification-based detention of prisoners according to regulations of the Minister of Public Security or the Minister of Defense. Prisoners who regularly break prison rules shall be separately detained.

Article 9. The separation of prisoners from prisons for investigation, prosecution or adjudication purposes or in other special cases may be effected only under separation orders of the director of the Prison Management Department of the Ministry of Public Security or the director of the Criminal Investigation Department of the Ministry of Defense.

A separation order must clearly state the separation purpose and duration: the body receiving the separated prisoners shall escort and manage them throughout the separation duration. When the separation duration expires, the body receiving the separated prisoners shall send written notices thereof to the Prison Management Department of the Ministry of Public Security or the Criminal Investigation Department of the Ministry of Defense for issuance of decisions to send the prisoners back into prisons to serve their remaining imprisonment duration; in case of further separation, they shall request the separation extension. The separation duration must not be longer than the remaining imprisonment duration. If the separated prisoner's imprisonment term expires during the separation duration, the prison warden shall carry out procedures to grant a certificate of completely serving the prison term to the separated prisoner. In case of separation for investigation, prosecution and adjudication under a competent court's decision to cancel the judgment, the separation order will not specify the separation duration. For all cases of separation, written records on handover and receipt of prisoners and their files must be made.

The separation duration shall be counted into the imprisonment-serving duration.

Article 10. Prisons shall be strictly and safely protected; cells shall be solidly constructed, ensuring sufficient light and environmental hygiene. Armed security forces shall organize patrols and guard around the clock.

All prisoners shall stay in their cells within the prescribed duration; when going out of their cells, they shall get their wardens* orders.

Article 11. Before prisoners enter their cells or after opening cell doors for prisoners to go out, officers, non-commissioner officers or soldiers or duty shall make a roll-call and check them by appearance. Unauthorized prison staff and other persons may neither enter cells nor contact prisoners without wardens' permission.

Article 12.

1. Prisoners may only bring into their cells things necessary for personal use under regulations of the Ministry of Public Security or the Ministry' of Defense. Their unused personal belongings must be deposited in prisons' custody.

2. Prisoners may not use cash in prisons. The Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Defense shall specify the use of cash-substitute books or tickets by prisoners.

3. Prisoners are forbidden to bring into their cells things on ban lists. The lists of things banned from bringing into cells by prisoners will be stipulated by the Minister of Public Security or the Minister of Defense. Wardens shall conduct regular or irregular inspections, seize things on the ban list and handle violations according to regulations of the Minister of Public Security or the Minister of Defense.

Article 13. Wardens shall base themselves on the number of prisoners, levels of their sentences, types of crime, personal characters and the nature of each kind of labor to arrange forces for management, guard and escort of prisoners.

When sending prisoners out of prisons for medical examination and treatment, wardens shall arrange escorts and guards to ensure safety against escapes.

Article 14.

1. Immediately on the date of expiry of their prison term, persons completely serving their prison term shall be set free.

Wardens shall sign and issue certificates of completely serving the prison term and papers of recommendation to the People's Committees of communes, wards or units where the persons reside or agencies or organizations where they work; at the same time, duplicate and send such certificates to the prison-managing agency, the court which has issued the judgment enforcement decisions and civil judgment enforcement body of the same level (if such persons are subject to monetary fines, civil obligations in the judgments or decisions of criminal courts); provide them with money for their travel fares and meals and a set of clothing (if they do not bring along personal clothing) for their return to their residence or work places.

2. Persons completely serving their prison terms will have their personal belongings and money deposited at prisons fully returned and be paid with bonuses (if any) for their labor in the sentence-serving duration.

3. Two months before prisoners completely serve their prison terms, wardens will notify in writing the sentence-serving results and other necessary information on the prisoners to local administrations or agencies, organizations or units where the prisoners return to live so that the latter can arrange and establish a normal life for them. For foreign prisoners, wardens will notify in writing the above contents to the consular office of the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs for notification to the representation agencies of the countries of which the prisoners are nationals.

In case a person completely serving his)her prison term does not know his)her native place, has no relatives or is not received by his)her former agency or unit and has no other residence place, the warden may contact a local administration, state agency, social organization, etc., for receipt of the person or the prison may receive the person to live and work if he)she so wishes.

Foreigners completely serving their prison term may stay at accommodation places managed by the Ministry of Public Security or the Ministry of Defense while procedures are carried out for their exit. The Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Defense shall decide to establish and dissolve such accommodation places. The fund for construction of accommodation places and for foreigners' accommodations and meals shall be covered by the state budget.

Chapter III

REGIMES ON MEALS, CLOTHING, ACCOMMODATION, DAILY-LIFE ACTIVITIES AND MEDICAL TREATMENT OF PRISONERS

Article 15. Prisoners live in collective cells, excluding those being detained in disciplinary cells or detained separately under Clause 4 Article 8 of this Regulation. Prisoners showing signs of mental disease, other illnesses which deprive them of the capacity to be aware of their acts or a number of contagious diseases shall be detained in isolation rooms.

A prisoner's sleeping place is at least 2 m2, with an enameled-tile platform, floor plank or bed. For prisoners with children staying together, the sleeping place will be at least 3 m2 each.

Article 16.

1. The monthly food ration for a prisoner includes:

17 kg of ordinary rice; 0.7 kg of meat and 0.8 kg of fish; 0.5 kg of sugar; 1 kg of kitchen salt; 15 kg of vegetables: 0.75 liter of fish sauce; 0.1 kg of seasonings; fuel equivalent to 15 kg of firewood or 17 kg of coal. This ration will be provided by the State and converted into money at market prices in localities where prisons are located.

For prisoners performing heavy and hazardous jobs on the lists prescribed by law, the monthly food ration may increase 15% over the above-said ration.

On festive days and Tet (Lunar New Year) festivals (according to state regulations), prisoners will have additional food, but their food ration (inclusive of additional food) must not exceed five times the ration for normal days.

Wardens may decide to convert the above-said food ration to suit the practical situation in order to ensure that prisoners can consume all their food rations.

2. Prisoners have food according to rations, drink clean water, and use their families' presents and labor bonuses for additional meals which, however, must net exceed three times the monthly ration prescribed by the State for each prisoner.

Prisoners are forbidden to drink alcohol or beer and use other stimulants. Food will be prepared by prisoners under the supervision and inspection of prison officers.

Prisoners' children staying together with their fathers or mothers in prisons will enjoy the food rations like their fathers or mothers. In addition, on June 1 and mid-autumn festivals, their food ration will be doubled. Wardens shall decide the food regime suitable to nutrition requirements of such children.

3. Each prison division may organize a kitchen and be supplied with necessary tools for cooking, water boiling and food rationing. A kitchen's tools for every prisoners include a net-covered food cabinet, 3 big frying pans and 1 small pan, 1 big cooking pot and 1 rice bowl for each prisoner, which are used for five years; and assorted knives, chopping boards, baskets, washing basins..., which are used for one year. Kitchen tools for every 6 prisoners include one food tray (used for five years); 1 food-tray cover, 1 rice pot, 1 soup pot, 2 food plates, 1 sauce bowl and 1 ladle, or tools for a prisoner on separate ration, including a plastic 3-compartment food box, (which are used for 2 years) and 1 spoon (plastic).

Article 17. Each year, a prisoner will be supplied with 2 sets of clothes in ordinary fabrics, tailored according to uniform designs. 2 underwear sets, 2 face towels, 1 mat. 2 pairs of slippers, 1 leaf cap or conical palm hat. A prisoner will be supplied monthly with 0.3 kg of washing detergent (female prisoners will be additionally supplied with things necessary for their personal hygiene, which are equivalent to 1.5 kg of rice); and every 4 years with 1 mosquito net and 1 blanket. Prisoners in prisons from Da Nang province southwards will be provided each with a thin blanket and in prisons from Thua Thien-Hue northwards each with a cotton blanket of not more than 2 kg and 1 winter coat to be used for 5 years.

Depending on specific conditions, working environment and jobs, a laboring prisoner will be supplied with 2 sets of safety clothing a year and necessary labor safety equipment.

The designs and colors of labor safety clothing and equipment shall be prescribed by the Ministry of Public Security or the Ministry of Defense.

Prisoners' children staying together with then-fathers or mothers in prisons will be supplied annually with 2 sets of clothing in ordinary fabrics, 2 face towels, 2 kg of soap each, and every 3 years with 1 mosquito net and 1 blanket suitable to their age, a thin blanket for prisons from Da Nang southwards and a cotton blanket of no more than 2 kg and 1 winter coat for prisons from Thua Thien-Hue northwards, which will be used for 1 year. A female prisoner who gives birth to a child in prison will be supplied with 7 m of ordinary cloth for use as diapers.

Article 18. Prisoners may participate in physical-training, sports, cultural and artistic activities in accordance with prison regulations.

Each prison division may set up a library, a playing area and a sports ground. Daily, every 30 prisoners is supplied with a Nhan Dan (People) newspaper.

Each prison division is equipped with a public-addressing system and each collective cell with a color television set of 21 inches or larger.

Prisoners may read books, newspapers, listen to Voice of Vietnam radio, local radios and intra-prison public addressing systems, and watch television according to regulations of the Ministry of Public Security or the Ministry of Defense.

Article 19.

1. For prisoners suspected of having a mental disease or another disease which deprives them of the capacity to be aware of or to control their acts, wardens may propose presidents of provincial-level People's Courts or of military-zone courts martial where the prisoners were sentenced to imprisonment to request medical examination. After the Medical Examination Council concludes that such persons suffer from a mental disease or another disease to the extent of losing their capacity to be aware of or to control their acts, the wardens shall propose the presidents of provincial-level People's Courts or of military-zone courts martial of the localities where the sentenced persons serve their prison terms to issue decisions sending them to specialized medical establishments for compulsory treatment. The compulsory treatment duration will be counted into their prison terms.

2. Sick prisoners shall be given medical examination and treatment at health stations of prisons. The regime on their meals, medication and health improvement will be prescribed by prisons' health stations according to their respective health conditions. Medication money is equivalent to 2kg of rice)person)month. In case prisoners suffer from serious ailments falling beyond the treatment capacity of prisons* health stations, wardens shall decide to transfer them to a state-run hospital for treatment and treatment costs will be paid by prisons to the hospital. Wardens shall coordinate with medical centers or hospitals near their prisons in building some exclusive rooms in those centers or hospitals for treatment of sick prisoners. The construction of these treatment rooms and the management of hospitalized prisoners shall be undertaken by prisons. The funding for medical treatment and construction of treatment rooms for prisoners will be supplied by the state budget. For HIV)AIDS-infected prisoners, their care and treatment comply with current legal provisions. Wardens shall notify cases of prisoners' serious ailments to their relatives or lawful representatives for coordinated care and treatment. Wardens shall arrange work and study to prisoners suitable to their health conditions based on prison health stations conclusions on prisoners’ health ratings.

The Ministry of Health will coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Finance in prescribing the regimes, funds for, and organization of, disease and epidemic prevention and combat and medical examination and treatment for prisoners.

Article 20.

1. When a prisoner dies, the warden shall immediately report the death to the investigation body, the procuracy and the health agency of the district level or the investigation agency, the military procuracy and the military hospital of the military zone of the locality where the prisoner dies for determination of the cause of his)her death and record making; for a prisoner who dies in prison, witnessing by a representative of other prisoners is required and death declaration procedures shall be carried out with the commune-level People's Committee of the locality where the prison is located. For a prisoner dying of HIV)AIDS infection, autopsy and sample test are not required. For a prisoner who dies while receiving medical treatment at a state-run medical establishment, the establishment shall notify his)her death and send the death certification paper to the prison.

Immediately after a prisoner dies, the warden shall notify his)her death to his)her relatives or lawful representative before carrying out funeral procedures, then send a written notice to the court which has issued the judgment enforcement decision If the dead prisoner is a foreigner, the warden shall send a written notice thereof to the consular office of the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs as soon as possible for notification to the representative mission of the country of which such person is a national.

Twenty-four hours after notifying the dead person's relatives and the above-said agencies directly or by telephone, telegraph or in writing, the warden shall organize a funeral and decide on the form of cremation or burial, depending on geographical conditions, customs and practices. Local administrations shall create favorable conditions for prisons to organize funerals for prisoners.

For a prisoner who dies or gets injured due to labor accident, the warden shall carry out necessary procedures as prescribed above and ensure the support regimes provided by the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs. For the death of an imprisonment-serving prisoner who previously participated in compulsory social insurance but has not yet received a lump-sum social insurance allowance or enjoyed pension, his/her relatives will enjoy the survivorship allowance under the social insurance law.

If a relative or a lawful representative of a dead prisoner files a written request to take back for burial the corpse or the remains already buried for full 3 years or more at a cemetery managed by the prison or local administration, the warden may consider and decide thereon, unless this would affect security and order and environmental hygiene; dead prisoners' families shall themselves bear all costs of burial.

2. Funding for medication, medical examination and treatment, labor accident allowances for prisoners, post-mortem examination and funerals (including burial and cremation) of dead prisoners will be supplied by the state budget.

Article 21. Detoxification will be arranged for prisoners being drug addicts at prisons. The detoxification funding will be supplied by the state budget according to current regulations.

Chapter IV

PRISONERS' WORKING AND STUDYING REGIMES

Article 22.

1. Prisoners shall work 8 hours a day and take rest on holidays, Tet (Lunar New Year) festival and Sundays and study on Saturdays. The time of prisoners' general education, vocational training, briefings on news, policies, law and civic education will be subtracted from their working time. In extraordinary cases, wardens may request prisoners to work on extra hours but for not more than 2 hours a day or to work on Saturdays and Sundays, but for not more than 8 hours a day. Prisoners may enjoy some time off or allowances in cash or kind in compensation for their extra-hour work or work on Saturdays and Sundays.

2. For female and juvenile prisoners, wardens shall organize work suitable to their age groups, gender and health conditions. These prisoners shall not be employed to perform heavy or hazardous jobs on the list of jobs banned from employment of female and minor laborers. Pregnant prisoners are entitled to pre- and post-natal leaves according to common regulations of the State. During their pregnancy and maternity leaves, they shall be supplied with food rations like other laboring prisoners.

Prisoners with children aged over 36 months shall send them to their families' or relatives' care. If they have no families or relatives, wardens shall contact and send them to social relief centers in localities where the prisons are located. Social relief centers shall receive and nurture children of prisoners at the proposal of prison wardens. At prisons where stay many children of prisoners, wardens shall organize creches for them during prisoner' working or learning hours.

Article 23. Prisoners shall be divided into groups and teams for labor, study and other activities. The number of prisoners of each group or team in prisons shall be prescribed by the Ministry of Public Security or the Ministry of Defense.

Article 24.

1. All revenues from, and expenditures for, labor and vocational training activities of prisoners must be expressed through book-keeping systems of prisons under the State's current accounting and statistical regulations. The fruits of prisoners' labor, after subtracting reasonable expenses, shall be used as follows:

a) Addition to prisoners* food rations;

b) Addition to welfare and commendation funds of prisons;

c) Rewards for prisoners with labor results surpassing plan norms or with high labor productivity;

d) Re-investment in prisons, procurement of working equipment and tools and building of material foundations for prisoners' labor, education and vocational training.

2. The Ministry of Finance shall assume prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Defense in, guiding the implementation of the provisions of this Article.

Article 25.

1. Illiterate prisoners are entitled to anti-illiteracy education and juvenile prisoners to primary education. Prisoners being foreigners or ethnic minority people are encouraged to learn Vietnamese.

Depending on their prisons' specific conditions, wardens shall arrange time for illiterate and juvenile prisoners to learn three sessions a week and 4 hours for each session during the working time.

2. All prisoners are entitled to briefings on current news, policies and t0 the civic education program on Saturdays (for 4 hours each briefing).

 3. Prisoners are entitled to vocational training depending on the specific conditions of prisons. Vocational training for juvenile prisoners is compulsory. The vocational training duration shall be counted into the working time.

 4. The Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Education and Training, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs shall jointly prescribe the education and vocational-training curricula, arrange teachers, supply equipment as well as funds for general education, civic education and vocational training programs for prisoners.

Article 26. Each prison division has a prisoners self-management board, which shall annually be elected by a prisoners' conference and recognized by the warden's decision.

The self-management board shall assist wardens in maintaining order, hygiene, internal rules and a cultured lifestyle in prisons, prison divisions and cells; propose petitions, requests and aspirations of prisoners to wardens and submit to the wardens' supervision and management.

Chapter V

REGIMES OF MEETS WITH RELATIVES, RECEIPT AND SENDING OF LETTERS, PRESENTS, AND ON COMPLAINTS AND DENUNCIATIONS

Article 27.

1. Prisoners are entitled to meet their relatives once a month (except disciplined prisoners) at reception houses in prisons and strictly abide by regulations on visits by, and meets with, relatives.

Each meet with their relatives must not exceed one hour; for prisoners with great merits or in special cases, wardens may decide on longer meets with relatives, which, however, must not exceed 2 hours each or on an additional meet in the month.

Prisoners who have made great efforts in labor, strictly observed prison rules or recorded merits while serving their prison terms are entitled to meet their relatives (wives or husbands) for not more than 24 hours.

2. Upon meeting with their relatives, prisoners may receive presents, letters and money. Particularly for cash, prisoners shall deposit their cash in prisons' custody and use the money under Clause 2, Article 12 of this Regulation. Prisoners who are entitled to meet their relatives for 3 hours or more may meet their relatives in separate rooms within visitors' houses of the prisons.

 3. Prisoners' relatives coming to visit prisoners must have visiting books or applications (with the certification of local administrations of localities where they reside or offices where they work or study). Visits to and meets with foreign prisoners or foreigners' visits to, and meets with. Vietnamese prisoners are subject to consent of the director of the Prison Management Department of the Ministry of Public Security or the director of the Criminal Investigation Department of the Ministry of Defense. All consular meets are subject to consent of the Ministry of Public Security or the Ministry of Defense.

Prisoners may contact their relatives by domestic telephone calls in Vietnamese language once a month for not more than 5 minutes each time. Wardens shall consider and decide to permit prisoners to make telephone contacts and organize the strict control of telephone contacts between prisoners and their relatives so that such contacts will not affect security and order.

Article 28. Prisoners are entitled to send 2 letters a month. The sent and received letters shall be censored.

Each month, prisoners may each receive 1 package of presents (weighing not more than 7 kg). Before the prisoners receive the presents, prison officers shall check them.

Article 29. Written complaints or denunciations of prisoners shall be addressed to investigation bodies, procuracies, courts and prisons' superior agencies.

Upon receiving written complaints or denunciations of prisoners, agencies and units shall verify and clarify matters and reply the prisoners in accordance with the law on complaints and denunciations.

Article 30. Foreign prisoners shall be detained separately in prisons. The regimes on food rations, clothing, accommodation, labor, study, receipt and sending of letters and presents, complaints and denunciations, consideration of commutation, reward and discipline applicable to foreign prisoners comply with the provisions of the Ordinance on Enforcement of Imprisonment Judgments and this Regulation, unless otherwise provided for by treaties :to which Vietnam is a contracting party.

Article 31. Construction and repair of prisons and the supply of necessary equipment and means for management, detention, labor and study of prisoners shall be financed separately by the state budget at the proposal of the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Defense.

Chapter VI

PROCEDURES FOR ADMISSION OF SURRENDERING PRISONERS, COMMUTATION AND SUSPENSION OF ENFORCEMENT OF IMPRISONMENT SENTENCES

Article 32.

1. For prisoners who, while serving their imprisonment in prisons, escaped then gave themselves up, wardens shall, after examining their identity cards and personal characters, admit them into prisons, make records of their surrenders, then report thereon to competent investigation bodies and the Prison Management Department of the Ministry of Public Security or the Criminal Investigation Department of the Ministry of Defense. Pending decisions of investigation bodies, the prisoners shall continue serving their sentences.

2. For prisoners who, while serving their sentences in one prison, escaped then gave themselves up at another prison, after making records of their surrenders, wardens shall immediately report such to competent investigation bodies, the Prison Management Department of the Ministry of Public Security or the Criminal Investigation Department of the Ministry of Defense for consideration and decision in accordance with the law and wait for decisions of the investigation bodies.

Article 33. When prisoners are fully eligible for imprisonment sentence enforcement suspension or commutation, wardens shall carry out procedures to propose the imprisonment enforcement suspension or commutation for such prisoners in strict accordance with the Criminal Procedure Code and other relevant provisions of law.

The consideration of proposals for imprisonment sentence enforcement suspension or commutation shall be carried out regularly or irregularly for every prisoner, provided that he)she is eligible.

Chapter VII

REGIMES OF COMMENDATION AND DISCIPLINE OF PRISONERS

Article 34. While serving their imprisonment sentences, if prisoners truly redeem their past, well observe prison rules, surpass their labor targets and plans, record merits, etc., wardens shall consider and decide to commend them in the following forms:

Praise; Award in cash or kind:

Increase of the number and duration of their meets with relatives, the time of receiving presents and the quantity of received presents:

- Proposal on commutation under law.

Commendation decisions shall be made in writing and archived in prisoners' files.

Article 35.

1.  While in prisons, if prisoners breach prison rules and are lazy in labor, wardens shall consider and decide to discipline them in the following forms:

- Warning;

- Confinement to a disciplinary cell for up to 7 days and possible extension to 15 days. During this time, if they make progress, wardens may decide to reduce the time of confinement.

- If prisoners' law-breaking acts show criminal signs failing under the jurisdiction of the Investigation Police Office, wardens shall issue decisions to institute the criminal cases, conduct investigations and transfer case files to competent investigation bodies according to the criminal procedure law.

2. Prisoners shall pay compensations if they cause damage to or loss of property of prisons or other prisoners.

3. Disciplinary decisions shall be made in writing and archived in prisoners' files.

Article 36. Disciplinary cells shall be solidly constructed. While being disciplined, prisoners may have their feet in stocks (excluding female or juvenile prisoners).