Communist Review - Having promoted the fine revolutionary nature and glorious tradition for the past 60 years (July 20, 1962 - July 20, 2022), the People’s Police Forces have always been absolutely loyal to the Party and State, and devoted themselves to serving the Fatherland and the people, successfully completing assigned tasks, deserving to be “a sharp precious sword”, “a solid steel shield” and the core force in the fight against crime, ensuring social order, discipline and safety.

Worthy of being the core force to ensure social order and safety

Since its inception, led and trained by the Party, State and President Ho Chi Minh, the People’s Police forces have become growingly mature and strong⁽¹⁾. Having undergone the process of revolutionary struggle, reform, national construction and development, so far, the People’s Police Forces have been intensively and unitedly arranged and perfected from the ministry to the grassroots according to a 4-level model “streamlined ministry, strong provincial police, comprehensive district police, grassroots-attached communal police”, forming elite, compact and strong forces and units ⁽²⁾. The People’s Police Forces have made numerous outstanding feats, making substantial contributions to the People’s Public Security Forces in ensuring political stability, maintaining social order and safety, guaranteeing public interests, effectively serving national construction and defense cause with a host of impressive results:

Firstly, proactively and actively proposing to the Central Party Committee of Public Security, the Ministry of Public Security, the Party and State about promulgating a number of resolutions, directives, policies and laws on tackling crime, ensuring social order and safety⁽³⁾; thereby, mobilizing and boosting the synergy of the entire political system and the entire people in crime prevention and control; promptly detecting and remedying loopholes and shortcomings in socio-economic management - catalysts and breeding grounds for crime.

Secondly, fulfilling the function of state management regarding social order and safety; investigating, curbing crime, applying forensic science; executing criminal judgments and temporary detention; guaranteeing traffic order and safety and preserving public order; preventing and fighting fires and carrying out rescue operations. In particular, the People’s Police Forces have pioneered digital transformation, drastically, creatively and quickly constructing and putting into operation the two largest information technology projects ever, namely the National Population Database Project and Manufacturing, Issuing and Managing citizen identity cards with plenty of prominent imprints. Tens of thousands of people’s police officers successfully carried out campaigns to collect and issue more than 50 million chip-based identity cards to citizens in just a short time. This is an “precious national resource” to expedite digital transformation, develop e-government, digital government, digital economy, digital society, helping to deterring and cracking down on crime.

Thirdly, as the core force directly combating crime, protecting and enacting policies and laws properly and strictly, the People’s Police Forces have always considered crime prevention as fundamental, setting the yearly goal to decrease the number of penal cases concerning social order, fires, explosions, traffic accidents, and violent acts in society. Continuing to adopt the motto “detecting and solving a case to alert the entire region and field; convicting one person to save many others”, aiming to decrease the number of arrests, yet bring a high preventive efficiency. Dispatching thousands of policemen to the grassroots to work, proactively reaching out to the people, “when the people are in need, the police will be there”, directly handling the crime situation and social order at the grassroots. Noticeably, the People’s Police Forces have strictly followed the procedures in receiving and dealing with denunciations and reports on crime, filing petition for prosecution, investigating and sentencing offenders in large numbers in accordance with legal regulations. The forces have also executed peak plans to combat crime, settling complex problems engendered by crime in good time, triggering positive changes in social order and safety.

Fourthly, having upheld the role of “a trailblazer”, the People’s Police Forces have proactively cooperated with the police of other countries, multilateral organizations and forums through the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL), the Southeast Asian Police Association (ASEANAPOL); coordinated with their partners for efficacious legal assistance in criminal matters, extradition and transfer of convicts. To date, the forces have signed and participated in nearly 200 bilateral and multilateral international treaties. They work, fight, pay great attention to practical summation, scientific research, and technology application, step by step build, develop and perfect the theory of crime prevention and control, ensuring social order and safety, building comprehensive and specialized people’s police forces, thereby making effective contributions to the dynamic reality of fighting and working of the People’s Police Forces and the people’s armed forces.

Fifthly, together with the People’s Public Security Forces, the People’s Police Forces have made various significant contributions as being one of the frontline forces that truly become “a steel shield against the COVID-19 pandemic – a precious sword maintaining social security, order and safety”. Thousands of people’s police officers were undeterred by difficulties, participating in quarantine checkpoints, imposing lockdown and isolation measures with the motto “going every alley, knocking on every door, checking every person” to carry out contact-tracing, localize infected areas, and constrain the outbreak; simultaneously, flexibly combining outbreak prevention and control with helping the people, ensuring social security, suppressing crime, sustaining social order and safety, and not letting lawbreakers take advantage of the situation to run rampant, deserving to be “a peace shield” for every citizen, family and the whole society, driving back the pandemic gradually.

Sixthly, concerning party building and rectifying work, building the pioneering, exemplary, responsible People’s Police Forces, implementing the Resolution of the 4^th Plenum of the 11^th and 12^th Party Central Committee, Conclusion No. 21-KL /TW dated October 25, 2021, the 4^th Plenum of the 13^th Party Central Committee on fostering the building and rectification of the Party and the political system; resolutely preventing, repelling and strictly disciplining cadres and party members whose political ideology, morality, and lifestyle have deteriorated and shown signs of “self-evolution” and “self-transformation”. At the same time, regularly launching retraining programs, tightening disciplines and regulations, organizing numerous political and ideological activities, campaigns “Studying and following the moral example of Ho Chi Minh – the people’s Public Security Forces serving for the sake of the country and the people”, “The People’s Public Security Forces strictly abiding by orders; building a cultured lifestyle, serving the people”; the emulation movement “For the security of the Fatherland”, following 6 things Uncle Ho taught, building cultured codes of conduct, regulations and promoting democracy in the domains of operation. Directing the development and implementation of projects aiming to raise the capacity and efficiency of police investigation agencies, detention and judgment enforcement and forensic science ones in congruence with the road map for becoming regular, elite, modern in 2025 and 2030, especially building a contingent of cadres, party members, scouts, investigators with “a warm heart, a cold mind, firm feet, and clean hands and self-respect” since “honor is the most sacred and noble thing”. Many examples of police officers devotedly served and helped the people in epidemics, natural disasters and fires; hundreds of comrades lost their life, thousands were injured or exposed to HIV in the line of duty, which has become a noble token of courage and revolutionary heroism, embellishing the glorious tradition of the heroic Vietnamese people’s Police Forces.

Fostering the outstanding revolutionary nature and glorious tradition in the new era

In the coming time, peace, cooperation and development in the world and the region still remain a prevailing trend, nevertheless strategic competition is increasingly fierce; natural disasters, the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, environmental pollution, shortage of raw materials, food, energy, hikes in prices and inflation rates have been problems that need to be resolved in the process of national socio-economic recovery and development. Aside from resultant advantages and new opportunities, the four risks pointed out by the Party are still present and become increasingly complicated. The process of socio-economic recovery and development still encounters many difficulties, having direct impacts on employment, income and life of a part of the people, putting pressure on the crime situation, social order and security. Crime operates on a wider range, become diversified, more mobile and common, occurs faster under the influence of socio-economic growth, scientific and technological revolution and robust globalization. In addition to “conventional” elements, “non-conventional” features in criminal activities surface more religiously in terms of objects, scope, methods, tricks and nature.

Meanwhile, the occupational unique characteristics of the People’s Police Forces are closely tied to the law, directly related to the political life of legal entities and citizens; people’s property, health and life. They frequently contact and cope with organizations and citizens; especially are required to work in an intricate environment, being exposed to the dark side of society with scores of negative factors and temptations, crime and law violations occurring every day, every hour, therefore the requirements set for building really transparent and strong forces are higher and more regular than other sectors, fields and forces. The tasks posed to the People’s Public Security Forces in general and the People’s Police Forces in particular are onerous, entailing perpetual efforts to overcome difficulties and challenges, step up force consolidation and tackle crime, guaranteeing social order and safety.

Firstly, consolidating and reinforcing the absolute and direct leadership of the Party in all aspects, the centralized and unified management of the State over the People’s Police Forces and the cause of crime prevention and control, ensuring social order and security.

The People’s Police Forces continue to advise the Party committees at all levels to leading, directing and organizing the serious, effective and creative implementation of the Resolution of the 13^th Party Congress⁽⁴⁾, enforcing laws on crime prevention and control, maintaining social order and safety, adopting Resolution No. 96/2019/QH14, dated November 27, 2019, of the 14^th National Assembly, “On crime prevention and law violations, the operations of the People’s Procuracy, the People’s Court and the execution of judgments”; employing strategies and programs combating crime, drug, as well as human trafficking in the  2021 – 2025 period, with orientation to 2030.

Secondly, placing stress on building a truly transparent and strong People’s Police Forces in terms of politics, ideology, morality, organization and cadres.

Continuing to boost and maintain the nature of the working class and the profound characteristics of the Party, the class, and the people. Party organizations, cadres and party members of the People’s Police Forces actively research and study political theory, proactively and seriously observing regulations on what party members cannot do, adhering to Marxism - Leninism, Ho Chi Minh’s thought, applying them creatively in accordance with the reality of the struggle against crime, ensuring social order and safety. Raising the quality of criticism and self-criticism activities in party organizations in the People’s Police Forces, especially at the Party Committee and Standing Committee levels; upholding the responsibility of setting examples, self-criticism, self-correction, pioneering the implementation of Conclusion No. 21-KL/TW, dated October 25, 2021, of the 4^th Plenum of the 13^th Central Committee, associated with learning, following Ho Chi Minh’ s thought, morality and style, six things Uncle Ho taught the People’s Public Security Forces.

Continuously scrutinizing, studying, adjusting, and perfecting the functions, tasks and operational mechanisms of the People’s Police Forces; completing the internal organizational structure of the units of the People’s Police Forces towards being elite, compact and strong, meeting the requirements and assigned tasks. Concentrating on building a contingent of the People’s Police officers with revolutionary ideals, solid political steadfastness, pure professional ethics, integrity, honesty and courage to fight; firmly grasping the guidelines, policies, respecting the law, being ingenious, courageous, humane, competent in technology, foreign relations, international cooperation, and professional expertise, always setting examples in training and working.

Putting a great emphasis on building and disseminating the gorgeous images of the People’s Police Officers in the hearts of the people and international friends; raising the number of literary, artistic, theatrical, cinematographic works, research contests, campaigns... humanely and genuinely recreating police officers’ difficulties, hardships and silent sacrifices. Simultaneously, honoring and commending typical excellent collectives and individuals, examples of valor in the struggle against crime for a peaceful life.

Thirdly, sustaining and cementing the close relationship between the People’s Police Forces and the people, relying on the people to work and fight.

President Ho Chi Minh pointed out: “the more the people help us, the more success we gain - the less the people help us, the less success we obtain – the people help us wholeheartedly, we attain comprehensive success”⁽⁵⁾. In practice, the People’s Police Forces have always “taken the people as the root”, “considered security and safety as one of the leading factors in people’s lives”. Relying on the people, listening to their opinions and suggestions are cultural behavioral elements, regulations of the forces, the law, and also an honor and political responsibility of the People’s Police Forces in protecting and serving the people. The more difficult and complicated conditions become, the more we have to rely on the people, serve the people in order to be trusted and supported by the people.

The Central Party Committee of Public Security and the Ministry of Public Security continue to lead and direct the deployment of the People’s Police Forces to the grassroots, ensuring “streamlined ministry, strong provincial police, comprehensive district police, grassroots-attached communal police”; continuously finalizing the law on democracy in the operation of the people’s police officers; carrying out professional and legal decentralization for them at district and commune levels, establishing a necessary legal corridor to handle the security and order situation at the grassroots. The heads of the Party committees and police units closely monitor, supervise, urge the grassroots to settle affairs with the people; maintaining forms and forums for collecting the people’s opinions and aspirations; promptly receiving issues reported by the people, properly deal with them in compliance with the regulations on denunciations of crimes and conflicts within the people, not letting them build up into criminal cases. Constantly building and promoting effective models in the movement “All the people preventing and fighting against crime”. Resolutely combating and suppressing crime, ensuring social order and safety for the sake of the people. Encouraging the people to actively participate in crime prevention and denunciation and bring forward proposals on building the People’s Police Forces. People’s police cadres and party members need to learn the mass style, enhance their mass mobilization capability, endeavor to be close to, respect, understand, empathize with the people, intensify interaction with the people; absolutely avoiding tyranny, bureaucracy, being aloof from the people.

Fourthly, focusing on leading the implementation of synchronous, drastic and creative tasks and measures for crime prevention and control, ensuring social order and safety.

In pivotal areas and fields, taking prevention as the key, taking the grassroots as the center; combining proactively preventing with detecting crime, strictly condemning the right person with the right crime, without forbidden zones and exceptions. Bringing into play the synergy and the active participation of the political system and the whole society in crime prevention, building the movement “All the people preventing and fighting crime”; promptly spotting and redressing the causes of and conditions for crime emerging; creating fundamental and positive shifts in the implementation of strategies and programs on crime prevention and control for the period of 2021 - 2025, with a vision to 2030. Continuing to promote the enforcement of the 2021 Law on Drug Prevention and Control, options 02, 03, 06 of the People’s Police Forces to prevent and tackle crime, ensuring social order and safety, especially in the “post-COVID-19” period. Focusing on cracking down strongly on penal offences, organized crime, black credit crime, corruption crime, economic crime, smuggling crime, drug-related crime, environmental crime, resource and food safety crime, high-tech crime, cybercrime transnational crime, crime with foreign elements...

The People’s Police Forces actively participates in administrative and judicial reform and accelerates the initiation of the Prime Minister’s Project 06 on developing the population data application, identification and electronic authentication for national digital transformation during the 2022-2025 period, with a vision to 2030. Bolstering the application of the national database on population and scientific, technical and information technology advancements in crime prevention and control, guaranteeing social order and safety, containing epidemics, supporting social security and performing online public services in the police forces, creating domino effects to all sectors, levels, business communities, people of all classes and the whole society, considering this as one of the pillars of building a security structure, digital order, electronic social governance, satisfying the demands of the fourth industrial revolution, effectively serving the construction and defense  of the Fatherland in the new period.

Continuing to thoroughly grasp and perform well the task of preventing and controlling the COVID-19 pandemic is central; ensuring security and order and maintaining social stability are crucial and persistent; guaranteeing social security, serving socio-economic development, is regular and critical under the leadership of the Party, the State, the Party Committee of Central Public Security, the Ministry of Public Security. Proactively grasping the situation, giving appropriate consultation to the Party committees, authorities, steering committees on preventing and controlling crime and the pandemics at all levels to employ security measures, ensuring social security, tackling crime, bringing about advantageous changes in social order and safety.

Fifthly, paying heed to reviewing, researching, amending and supplementing legal documents on crime prevention and control, ensuring social order and safety and building the people’s police forces.

Ensuring a synchronous and highly effective system, creating a necessary and convenient legal corridor for the People’s Police Forces to perform their tasks, enforcing the law, and applying measures specifically tailored to serving, managing and fighting objects, acting as the essential legal basis for the people to supervise the performance of functions and tasks of the People’s Police Forces. First of all, prioritizing implementing the Conclusion No. 19-KL/TW, dated October 14, 2021, of the Politburo, “On the orientation of the law-making program for the 15^th tenure of the National Assembly”; Resolution No. 12-NQ/TW, dated March 16, 2022, of the Politburo, on “Building a truly transparent, strong, regular, elite and modern people’s police forces, meeting the requirements and tasks in the new situation”. Formulating and perfecting the law on crime prevention and control and building the people’s police forces, ensuring a complete, synchronous and solid legal premise for the organization, operation and protection mechanism of the forces in the struggle against crime, in association with boosting internal political protection. Continuously improving the operation mechanism, building a power control mechanism in the People’s Police Forces, especially in the investigation and conviction of crime, custody, temporary detention, criminal judgment execution, in the inspection and handling violations of traffic order, safety, public order, fire prevention and firefighting, armament, security, etc., ensuring the right procedure and law. Encouraging and protecting active and creative police cadres for shared interests pursuant to Conclusion No. 14-KL/TW, dated September 22, 2021, of the Politburo, “On the policy of encouraging and protecting active and creative cadres for shared interests”.

The Central Public Security Party Committee, the leaders of the Ministry of Public Security, and the heads of the police investigation agencies of the Ministry of Public Security concentrate on leading, promulgating and proposing legal provisions in the investigation and handling of crime, state management over social order and safety, administrative reform, anti-corruption, control of power, etc., ensuring synchronization and consistency between the Party regulations, the State policies and laws and the regulations of the forces. Party committees and heads of people’s police units direct the formation of procedures and regulations in the direction of assigning and individualizing responsibilities to carry out professional work and build the party, forces, paying close attention to operation fields prone to wrongdoing, negativity, regularly coming into contact with organizations and citizens.

Studying and developing a mechanism to protect people who coordinate with the people’s police forces, protect witnesses, whistleblowers; protection and self-protection mechanisms, coping skills of people’s police officers in combating crime in the context of tasks, pressures, and perils arising in the reality of working, fighting, carrying out missions.

Paying heed to basic scientific research, applying advanced technology, transforming thinking, adopting modern working methods, strengthening research capacity, strategic and scientific anticipation on crime situation, supplementing and developing the theory of crime prevention and control to a new level, establishing scientific arguments and identifying valuable practical applications, recommending them to the Party, State, Party Committee of the Central Public Security, the Ministry of Public Security to complete the guidelines, policies and laws on judicial reform, renewing the system of investigation agencies, criminal judgment enforcement ones, judicial expertise ones and judicial assistance ones in the People’s Public Security. Improving the efficiency of state management over social order and safety, fighting against crime, controlling power, protecting justice, human rights, and basic rights and obligations of citizens, contributing to building the Vietnamese socialist rule-of-law state of the people, by the people, for the people.

Sixthly, strengthening international cooperation to serve the cause of crime prevention and control.

For organized crimes, transnational crimes, crimes with foreign elements, drug-related crimes, human trafficking crimes, high-tech crimes, cybercrimes, etc. creating a proactive and interconnected posture, from early and afar, from the inside to the outside or vice versa, not letting foreign criminals take advantage of Viet Nam to hide and operate, stopping domestic criminals from fleeing abroad, compounding investigation and condemnation. Proposing, negotiating, signing and acceding to bilateral and multilateral international treaties on crime prevention and control, mutual legal assistance in criminal issues, extradition and transfer of sentenced offenders and incorporating international treaties into the law. Fulfilling international commitments in the field of crime prevention cooperation that Viet Nam has signed and participated in. Capitalizing on resources from international support and cooperation in finance, science, engineering and technology to improve capacity in a number of domains where the People’s Police Forces have edges, such as criminal science, ensuring traffic order and safety, preventing and fighting fire, combating crimes utilizing high technology.../.

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(1) On July 20, 1962, President Ho Chi Minh signed Order No. 34/LCT, promulgating the Ordinance regulating the tasks and powers of the People’s Police of the Democratic Republic of Viet Nam.

(2) Investigation police; Environmental police; Police of administrative management of social order; Police of fire prevention and fighting and rescue; Traffic police; Forensic science forces; Police of criminal judgment execution; Police of custody, temporary detention and criminal judgment execution; Mobile police

(3) typical examples are Directive No. 48-CT/TW, dated October 22, 2010, of the Politburo, “On strengthening the Party’s leadership in crime prevention and control in the new situation” ; Directive No. 36-CT/TW, dated August 16, 2019, of the Politburo, “On raising the effectiveness of drug prevention and control”; Directive No. 12/CT-TTg, dated April 25, 2019, of the Prime Minister, “On promoting prevention and fighting against crime and law violations related to “black credit” activities” ; Directive No. 21/CT-TTg, dated May 25, 2020, of the Prime Minister, “On strengthening prevention and handling of fraudulent activities to appropriate property”; Criminal Code; Criminal Procedure Code; Law on Organization of Criminal Investigation Agencies; Law on enforcement of custody and temporary detention; Law on Execution of Criminal Judgments; Law on Special Amnesty; Law on Drug Prevention and Control; Law on Prevention and Combat of Human Trafficking; Law on Management and Use of Weapons, Explosives and Supporting Tools; Immigration laws; Law on Citizen Identification; Road traffic Law; Fire Protection and Prevention Act; Mobile Police Law; Ordinance on Environmental Police...

(4) The focus is on Resolution No. 12-NQ/TW, dated March 16, 2022, of the Politburo, “On expediting the building of a truly transparent, strong, regular, elite, modern People’s Public Security Forces, to meet the requirements and tasks in the new situation”; Conclusion No. 13-KL/TW, dated August 16, 2021, of the Politburo, “On continuing to implement Directive No. 48-CT/TW, dated October 22, 2010, on intensifying the leadership of The Party towards crime prevention and control in the new situation”; Directive No. 36-CT/TW, dated August 16, 2019, of the Politburo “On improving the effectiveness of drug prevention, combat and control”; Conclusion No. 45-KL/TW, dated February 1, 2019, of the Secretariat, “On continuing to step up the effective implementation of Directive No. 18-CT/TW, of the 11^th Secretariat, “on cementing the Party’s leadership in ensuring roadway railway and waterway traffic order and safety and overcoming traffic congestion”; Conclusion No. 02-KL/TW, dated May 18, 2021, of the Secretariat, “On continuing to implement Directive No. 47-CT/TW, of the Secretariat, on strengthening the Party’s leadership over fire prevention and fighting”.

(5) Ho Chi Minh: Complete Works, Publishing House. National Politics Truth, Hanoi, 2011, t. 7, p. 270

This article was published in the Communist Review No. 994 (July 2022)