Vietnam to remove death penalty for embezzlement, sparing tycoon's life, Asia News
HANOI — Vietnam will remove the death penalty for eight offences from next month, including embezzlement and activities aimed at overthrowing the government, parliament said on Wednesday (June 25), sparing the life of a tycoon in a US$12-billion (S$15.3-billion) fraud case.
The National Assembly, the country's lawmaking body, unanimously ratified the amendment to the Criminal Code earlier on Wednesday to abolish the death penalty for the crimes, it said in a statement.
Other crimes that will no longer lead to the death penalty include vandalising state property, manufacturing fake medicine, jeopardising peace, triggering invasive wars, espionage and carrying drugs, official Vietnam News Agency said.
The maximum sentence for these crimes will now be life imprisonment, the report said.
Those who were sentenced to death for these offences before July 1 but have not yet been executed will have their sentences commuted to life imprisonment, the report added.
These will include real estate tycoon Truong My Lan, the chairwoman of real estate developer Van Thinh Phat Holdings Group, who was sentenced to death last year on embezzlement charges.
Lan's lawyers didn't immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
"According to the amendment of the Criminal Code, her sentence will automatically be reduced to life imprisonment," lawyer Ngo Anh Tuan, who is not part of Lan's defence team, told Reuters.
Ten offences will remain subject to capital punishment in Vietnam, including murder, treason, terrorism and the sexual abuse of children, according to the report. Drug trafficking will also remain a capital offence.
Capital punishment data is a state secret in Vietnam and it is not known how many people are currently on death row in the country. Lethal injection is the only method of execution after firing squads were abolished in 2011.
[[nid:712024]]
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
20 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Ex-Russian president Medvedev calls EU an enemy, says Ukrainian membership would be dangerous
Deputy head of Russia's security council Dmitry Medvedev chairs a meeting on manning the Russian Armed Forces with contract servicemen, in Moscow on July 4, 2023. PHOTO: REUTERS Ex-Russian president Medvedev calls EU an enemy, says Ukrainian membership would be dangerous MOSCOW - Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev said on June 25 that the European Union had evolved into an enemy of Russia that posed a direct threat to its security, and Moscow was now opposed to Ukraine joining the bloc. Russia has long been opposed to Ukraine joining the Nato Western military alliance – one of the reasons it gives for its decision to launch a full-scale war against Ukraine in 2022. But it has in the past been more relaxed about the prospect of Kyiv becoming a member of the EU. President Vladimir Putin said in June 2022 that Russia had 'nothing against' that, and the Kremlin said as recently as February that joining the bloc was Ukraine's sovereign right. However, Mr Medvedev, who is now deputy chairman of Russia's security council, said that the EU had shifted from being an economic bloc dedicated to preventing war into what he called a politicised anti-Russian organisation that was slowly turning into a military bloc. 'Brussels today is a real enemy of Russia. In its current twisted form, the European Union is no less of a threat to us than the North Atlantic Alliance,' Mr Medvedev wrote on social media platform Telegram. He said it was therefore wrong to say now that Ukraine should be free to 'join anything you like' apart from Nato. 'The EU, stuffed with weapons... is a direct threat to Russia. That is exactly how it should be treated. At least until it changes its approach to us,' he added. 'Thus, the so-called (idea of) Ukraine in the EU is a danger for our country.' Ukraine applied for EU membership shortly after the start of the war in 2022 and was granted candidate status later that year. Mr Medvedev said that bilateral cooperation between Moscow and certain individual EU member states should, however, continue. He did not name specific countries, but central European neighbours Hungary and Slovakia have taken pains to maintain cordial relations with Mr Putin since the start of the war. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
20 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Greece arrests Georgian suspected of fuelling Chios fire with cigarette
A firefighting helicopter drops water to extinguish fire at the area of Kontylopos on Chios island, Greece, June 24, 2025. REUTERS/Kostas Anagnostou ATHENS - Greece has arrested a Georgian woman suspected of discarding a cigarette that helped trigger one of several wildfires razing land and threatening homes on the island of Chios. Blazes broke out on Chios in the Aegean Sea on Sunday and tore through 10,000 acres of mainly bush and pasture land in three days, Greece's climate crisis and civil protection ministry said on Wednesday. The fire brigade said in a statement that the woman was arrested on Tuesday night and that authorities were still investigating the cause of the fires. The Georgian was charged with unintentional arson, two fire brigade officials told Reuters on condition anonymity. Witnesses saw her drop a cigarette, one of the officials said. Though the wildfires were largely contained by Wednesday, hundreds of firefighters remained on Chios to prevent rekindling and bring all fronts under control, the Greek fire brigade said. At Europe's southernmost tip, Greece is often hit by wildfires during its hot and dry summers, but authorities say the fast-changing climate is fuelling more destructive blazes. The Greek government has paid hundreds of millions of euros in damages related to extreme weather to households and farmers and to update firefighting equipment. It has upped firefighter numbers to a record 18,000 this year in anticipation of a challenging fire season. They will be assisted by 294 firefighters from five European countries from July 1 to Sept. 15. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
34 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Greece holds Georgian suspected of fuelling Chios fire with cigarette
A firefighting helicopter drops water to extinguish fire at the area of Kontylopos on Chios island, Greece, June 24, 2025. REUTERS/Kostas Anagnostou ATHENS - Greece has arrested a Georgian woman suspected of discarding a cigarette that helped trigger one of several wildfires razing land and threatening homes on the island of Chios. Blazes broke out on Chios in the Aegean Sea on Sunday and tore through 10,000 acres of mainly bush and pasture land in three days, Greece's climate crisis and civil protection ministry said on Wednesday. The Georgian was charged with unintentional arson, two fire brigade officials told Reuters on condition anonymity. Witnesses saw her drop a cigarette, one of the officials said. There was no official confirmation of the arrest or identity of the suspect. Though the wildfires were largely contained by Wednesday, hundreds of firefighters remained on Chios to prevent rekindling and bring all fronts under control, the Greek fire brigade said. At Europe's southernmost tip, Greece is often hit by wildfires during its hot and dry summers, but authorities say the fast-changing climate is fuelling more destructive blazes. The Greek government has paid hundreds of millions of euros in damages related to extreme weather to households and farmers and to update firefighting equipment. It has upped firefighter numbers to a record 18,000 this year in anticipation of a challenging fire season. They will be assisted by 294 firefighters from five European countries from July 1 to Sept. 15. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
