HÀ NỘI – Some 4,200 prisoners are expected to be granted amnesty later this year, a senior police officer said yesterday.

Lieutenant General Nguyễn Ngọc Bằng, Director General of the Department of Criminal Verdict Implementation and Legal Aid, said the department, which is in charge of the issue, had sent a list of qualified prisoners to cities and provinces’ police departments for verification.

The department, which operates under the Ministry of Public Security, also asked these police departments to introduce a supporting plan and give advice to local authorities in managing, monitoring and helping pardoned prisoners return to normal life to prevent them from committing crimes again.

“The Amnesty Consultative Council will review the list of prisoners for the last time on November 22 and then propose it to the president, who will make the final decision,” Lieutenant General Bằng said.

Earlier in September, on the occasion of Việt Nam National Day (September 2), nearly 2,100 prisoners were granted amnesty while more than 22,000 others enjoyed reduced sentences.

In 2015, a total of over 18,000 prisoners were granted pardons.

This huge number of pardoned prisoners last year is one of the reasons why the number this year is lower, according to Lieutenant General Bằng. In addition, the conditions for receiving a pardon have also been tightened to prevent future crimes, in line with regulations on conditional prisoner pardons in the Penal Code 2015. 

Under a decision by President Trần Đại Quang in October, prisoners hoping to be pardoned this year include those who have served half of their terms (for those with determinate sentences) or who have served at least 15 years (for those with a life sentence reduced to a determinate sentence). In addition, they must abide by prison regulations and show strong signs of rehabilitation.

For those who have served at least one-third of their sentence, receiving a pardon requires achieving a remarkable feat while serving their sentence in prison, being a war invalid, being a juvenile when the crime was committed or being over 70 years old. – VNS