Vietnam will abolish the death penalty for embezzlement and seven other crimes starting next month, the country’s parliament announced on Wednesday. This move will spare the life of a high-profile tycoon involved in a $12 billion fraud case.
The National Assembly, Vietnam’s top lawmaking body, unanimously approved an amendment to the Criminal Code. The changes remove the death penalty for eight crimes, including embezzlement and acts aimed at overthrowing the government. The maximum punishment for these offenses will now be life imprisonment.
The amendment also affects those already sentenced to death for these crimes before July 1. If they have not yet been executed, their sentences will be changed to life in prison.
One notable figure impacted is Truong My Lan, the chairwoman of Van Thinh Phat Holdings Group, a major real estate developer. Lan was sentenced to death last year on embezzlement charges. Her legal team has not commented on the development. A lawyer not connected to Lan’s defense confirmed that her sentence will be automatically reduced to life imprisonment under the new law.
Vietnam’s decision reflects a shift in its criminal justice system. The changes also remove the death penalty for vandalizing state property, producing fake medicine, threatening peace, starting wars of aggression, spying, and drug carrying, according to official sources.
Despite this reform, the death penalty will remain for ten serious crimes. These include murder, treason, terrorism, child sexual abuse, and drug trafficking.
Vietnam keeps its use of capital punishment a state secret. It is unclear how many inmates are currently on death row. The country uses lethal injection for executions since it ended firing squads in 2011.
This legal change marks an important step in Vietnam’s criminal law reforms. It reduces the scope of capital punishment while maintaining it for the most serious offenses.
