Decree 54 Vietnam

[Jule Watkinson]

New York) - The Vietnamese government's new media decree, which fines journalists for vague infractions and requires them to publish sources, is a further blow to freedom of expression in Vietnam, Human Rights Watch said today. Decree No. 2, Sanctions for Administrative Violations in Journalism and Publishing, goes into effect on February 25, 2011.

The decree, which Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung signed on January 6, stipulates fines from one million to 40 million dong (US$50-2,000) for journalists and newspapers that violate the decree's overly broad and vague provisions, such as failing to abide by the requirements of the 1990 Press Law (as amended in 1999) to "provide honest domestic and international news in accordance with the interests of the country and the people."

Decree No. 2 authorizes many branches of government to impose fines on journalists and newspapers at any time, based on arbitrary determinations by officials at various levels and from numerous agencies of what constitutes "the interests of the country and the people." These include inspectors from the Ministry of Information and Communications, chairs of the People's Committees at all levels, the police force, the border army, the marine police, customs and tax officials, market management inspectors, and others.

"In any country, authorizing officials from multiple departments and levels to regulate media content and impose fines would be a disaster, but this is especially dangerous in Vietnam, where corruption is deep-seated and endemic," Robertson said. "Instead of being used to improve journalistic standards, this law will become yet another way for local officials to fatten their own purses."

"The new media decree appears designed to intimidate whistle-blowers and victims of rights abuses from cooperating with the media," Robertson said. "It will discourage them from providing information to journalists for fear of being exposed and then targeted for reprisals by authorities."

Decree No. 2 appears to conflict with another Vietnamese law, the 1990 Press Law, which states in article 7 that "the press has the right and duty not to disclose the names of those who provide information if it is harmful to them, unless requested by the Head of the People's Procuracy or the Judge of the People's Court at the provincial and equivalent level or higher, for investigation and trial of serious criminal cases."

Decree No. 2 is likely to deepen the already pervasive censorship in the country and the repression of journalists and bloggers with independent views, Human Rights Watch said. Vietnam already bans publications that oppose the government, divulge broadly defined "state secrets," or disseminate "reactionary" ideas. There are few privately owned media outlets; most publications are issued by the government, the Communist Party, or party-controlled mass organizations.

Journalists who cross the vague line set by the government are often punished harshly, Human Rights Watch said. For example, on October 15, 2008, the People's Court of Hanoi sentenced Nguyen Viet Chien, a reporter for the newspaper Thanh Nien (Youth), to two years in prison and Nguyen Van Hai, a reporter for the newspaper Tuoi Tre (Young Age), to a two-year suspended sentence for "abusing democratic rights" under penal code article 258. Both reporters were prosecuted for their coverage of the high-profile PMU 18 corruption case, which involved the Transportation Ministry's mishandling of official development assistance from Japan. Four other journalists were stripped of their press cards in connection with the case.

In 2009, two other reporters from Tuoi Tre, Phan Que and Vo Hong Quynh, were suspended for six months for covering a corruption case involving the construction of the Rusalka resort center in Nha Trang.

Despite such restrictions, reporters from the state media often manage to carry out innovative investigative journalism, particularly regarding corruption by government officials at the local level, Human Rights Watch said. For instance, Thanh Tra (Inspection) published an investigation in November 2010 of the Van Cao - Ho Tay road project in Hanoi, and Nha Bao & Cong Luan (Journalists and Public Opinion) reported on environmental pollution in Tu Liem district in Hanoi in December.

"The Vietnamese government should recognize that a prosperous economy also requires freedom of the press, and let reporters do their jobs, not obstruct them," Robertson said. "The new decree is a throwback to the past, aimed at punishing independent reporting and promoting the return of government propaganda."

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On the morning of June 13, the National Assembly Standing Committee gave a favorable assessment of the draft resolution concerning an extension of the reduction in the VAT rate, which was submitted to the National Assembly for consideration during its 7th session of the 15th term.

In late May 2024, the Vietnamese government approved a draft proposal aiming to extend the VAT reduction from 10 percent to 8 percent on selected goods and services from July 1 through the end of 2024. The government subsequently submitted the draft proposal to the National Assembly seeking approval to continue implementing this VAT reduction of 2 percent on specific categories of goods and services for the latter half of 2024.

Sectors excluded from the 2 percent VAT reduction are telecommunications, IT, finance, banking, insurance, real estate, metals, prefabricated metal products, refined petroleum, chemical products, and products and services subject to special consumption tax.

If a seller issues VAT invoices for eligible goods or services at the normal VAT rate without applying the 2 percent reduction, both the seller and the buyer are responsible for adhering to invoicing regulations and adjusting output VAT and input VAT accordingly.

Since its implementation on January 1, 2024, the 2 percent VAT cut has proven instrumental in alleviating input costs for businesses across various sectors in Vietnam. It has stimulated domestic consumption, bolstered economic growth, and supported macro-economic stability amid ongoing global uncertainties, including slow recovery in major trading partner economies and disruptions in global supply chains.

According to market watchers, the VAT reduction has directly contributed to stabilizing production and business activities, which in turn has led to job creation and improved living standards. By lowering production costs, businesses have been able to offer competitive prices, thereby further stimulating consumer spending. This policy has been particularly beneficial for sectors such as retail, automotive, and manufacturing.

For businesses in Vietnam, especially those in consumer-facing industries, the extended VAT reduction presents opportunities for strategic pricing and cost management. It is crucial to review pricing structures, supply chain dynamics, and financial planning strategies to maximize the benefits of this fiscal policy measure.

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Decree 53 retains most of the data localization requirements of the last accessible version of the draft decree dated August 21, 2019 (Draft Decree), clearly extends the scope of requirements to cover both domestic and foreign enterprises, adds regulations on force majeure events, and amends the timeline to implement data localization requirements for business facilitation.

While all domestic enterprises, without any exemptions, must store regulated data in Vietnam, a foreign enterprise is only required to store regulated data and establish a branch or representative office in Vietnam when:

The act of collecting, using, analyzing, and processing regulated data of enterprises is regulated in a separate clause (Article 26.4) in Decree 53. The wording in this clause is very obscurely drafted. However, it could be understood as follows:

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