CHƯƠNG VI Luật đất đai 2003: Thanh tra, giải quyết tranh chấp, khiếu nại, Tố cáo và xử lý vi phạm pháp luật về đất đai

Chapter VI

INSPECTION, SETTLEMENT OF LAND DISPUTES, COMPLAINTS, DENUNCIATIONS AND HANDLING OF VIOLATIONS OF LAND LEGISLATION

Section 1.  LAND INSPECTION

Article 132.- Land inspection

1. Land inspection is the specialized land inspection.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment shall be responsible for directing and organizing the implementation of land inspection nationwide.

The land management agencies in localities shall be responsible for organizing the land inspection in the localities.

2. Land inspection contents shall cover:

a) Inspection of the State management over land by the People’s Committees at all levels;

b) Inspection of the observance of land legislation by land users, other organizations and individuals.

3. The land inspectorate shall have the following tasks:

a) To inspect the law observance by State agencies and land users in the management and use of land;

b) To detect, check and handle according to competence or propose competent State agencies to handle violations of land legislation.

4. The Government shall provide for the organization and operation of the specialized land inspectorate.

Article 133.- Powers and responsibilities of land inspection teams and land inspectors

1. Land inspection teams and inspectors, when conducting inspections, shall have the following powers:

a) To request State agencies, land users and other relevant subjects to supply documents and explain matters, which are necessary for the inspections;

b) To decide to temporarily suspend the illegal use of land portions and take responsibility before law for such decisions, and at the same time promptly report such to competent State bodies for handling decisions;

c) To handle according to competence or propose the competent State agencies to handle violations of land legislation;

d) Other powers prescribed by the legislation on inspection.

2. Land inspection teams and inspectors, when conducting inspections, shall have the following responsibilities:

a) To produce the inspection decisions, inspector’s cards to subjects being under inspection;

b) To perform the inspection functions, tasks, order and procedures according to law provisions;

c) To be accountable before law for their conclusions and decisions;

d) To perform other responsibilities prescribed by the legislation on inspection.

Article 134.- Rights and obligations of the subjects being under inspection

1. The inspected subjects shall have the following rights:

a) To request the inspection teams or inspectors performing the official duty to clearly explain the inspection requirements;

b) To give explanations in the inspection courses, to contribute opinions on inspection conclusions; in cases of disagreement with the inspection conclusions and/or law violation-handling decisions of land inspectors, to have the right to lodge complaints to competent agencies according to law provisions on complaints and denunciations;

c) To denounce to competent State agencies the inspection teams’ or inspectors’ infringements, if any, upon their legitimate interests, the interests of the State, the rights and legitimate interests of organizations or individuals;

d) Other rights as prescribed by the legislation on inspection.

2. The inspected subjects shall have the following obligations:

a) Not to obstruct, cause difficulties to, inspection teams or inspectors in the performance of their tasks;

b) To supply documents, explain necessary matters related to land inspection contents; to abide by decisions of inspection teams or inspectors in the course of inspection and competent State agencies after completion of the inspection;

c) To perform other obligations as prescribed by inspection legislation.

Section 2. SETTLEMENT OF LAND-RELATED DISPUTES, COMPLAINTS, DENUNCIATIONS

Article 135.- Conciliation of land disputes

1. The State encourages land-disputing parties to reconcile themselves or settle their land disputes through conciliation at the grassroots.

2. For land disputes which cannot be reconciled, the disputing parties shall file their written applications to the People’s Committees of communes, wards or townships where exists the land in dispute.

The commune/ward/township People’s Committees have the responsibility to coordinate with Vietnam Fatherland Front and its member organizations as well as other mass organizations in reconciling land disputes.

The reconciliation time limit shall be thirty working days as from the date the commune/ward/township People’s Committees receive the written applications.

The land dispute reconciliation results must be recorded in writing with the signatures of the disputing parties and the certification of the People’s Committees of communes, wards or townships where exists the land. Where the reconciliation outcomes are different from the present land use status, the commune/ward/township People’s Committees shall send the reconciliation results to competent State bodies for settlement according to regulations on land management.

Article 136.- Competence to settle land disputes

Land disputes, which were already reconciled at the commune/ward/township People’s Committees but are disagreed with by one or all parties, shall be settled as follows:

1. Disputes over land use rights and the involved parties have the land use right certificates or one of the papers prescribed in Clauses 1, 2 and 5, Article 50 of this Law, and disputes over assets affixed to land shall be settled by people’s courts;

2. Disputes on land use rights but the involved parties do not have the land use right certificates or any of the papers prescribed in Clauses 1, 2 and 5, Article 50 of this Law, shall be settled as follows:

a) Where the presidents of the People’s Committees of rural districts, urban districts, provincial capitals or towns have made the first-time settlement but one or all of the involved parties disagree with the settlement decisions, they are entitled to lodge complaints to the presidents of provincial/municipal People’s Committees for settlement; the settlement decisions of the provincial/municipal People’s Committee presidents shall be the final ones;

b) Where the provincial/municipal People’s Committee presidents make the first-time settlement but one or all of the involved parties disagree with the settlement decisions, they shall be entitled to lodge complaints to the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment; the settlement decisions of the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment shall be the final ones.

Article 137.- Settling land disputes related to administrative boundaries

1. Land disputes related to administrative boundaries between administrative units shall be settled jointly by the People’s Committees of such units. In cases where unanimity cannot be reached or the settlement alters the administrative boundaries, the settling competence shall be stipulated as follows:

a) Where disputes are related to the boundaries of provincial/municipal administrative units, they shall be decided by the National Assembly;

b) Where disputes are related to the boundaries of administrative units being rural districts, urban districts, provincial capitals, provincial towns, communes, wards or townships, they shall be decided by the Government.

2. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and the land management agencies of the provinces, centrally-run cities, rural districts, urban districts, provincial capitals or provincial towns have the responsibility to supply necessary documents and coordinate with competent State agencies in settling land disputes related to administrative boundaries.

Article 138.- Settlement of land-related complaints

1. Land users are entitled to complain about administrative decisions or administrative acts regarding land management.

2. The settlement of complaints shall be effected as follows:

a) Where complaints about administrative decisions or administrative acts regarding land management are settled for the first time by the presidents of the People’s Committees of rural districts, urban districts, provincial capitals or provincial towns, but the complainants disagree with the settlement decisions, they are entitled to initiate lawsuits at people’s courts or continue to complain with presidents of the provincial/municipal People’s Committees. In case of complaining with provincial/municipal People’s Committee presidents, the decisions of the provincial/municipal People’s Committee presidents shall be the final ones;

b) Where complaints about administrative decisions or administrative acts regarding land management are settled for the first time by provincial/municipal People’s Committee presidents but the complainants disagree with the settlement decisions, they are entitled to initiate lawsuits at people’s courts;

c) The statute of limitation for complaining about administrative decisions or administrative acts regarding land management shall be thirty days as from the date of receiving such administrative decisions or knowing about such administrative acts. Within forty five days as from the date of receiving the first-time complaint settlement decisions, the complainants, if disagreeing therewith, shall be entitled to complain to competent State agencies or initiate lawsuits at people’s courts.

3. The settlement of land-related complaints as provided for in Clause 2 of this Article shall not cover cases of complaint about decisions on settlement of land disputes prescribed in Clause 2, Article 136 of this Law.

Article 139.- Settlement of land-related denunciations

1. Individuals are entitled to denounce violations of legislation on land management and use.

2. The settlement of denunciations about violations of legislation on land management and use shall comply with the provisions of legislation on complaints and denunciations.

Section 3. HANDLING OF VIOLATIONS

Article 140.- Handling of violators of land legislation

Those who encroach upon or appropriate land, fail to use land or use land not for the right purposes, illegally change the land use purposes, destroy land, fail to perform or perform not in full the financial obligations, administrative procedures or the State’s decisions in land management, illegally transfer the land use rights or commit other acts of violating the land legislation, shall, depending on the nature and seriousness of their violations, be administratively handled or examined for penal liability according to law provisions.

Organizations, which are assigned land without the collection of land use levies or are currently using land with the land use right recognized by the State and do not have to shift to lease land or do not have to pay the land use levies but let the land be encroached upon, appropriated or lost, shall have to compensate therefor and be handled according to law provisions regarding the land use value of the land areas encroached upon, appropriated or lost.

The Government shall specify acts of violating the land legislation and administrative handling measures.

Article 141.- Handling of managers who violate land legislation

Those who abuse their position and powers and act against law provisions on land assignment, land lease, land recovery, land use purpose change, land use right transfer, land use planning and plan implementation, land-related financial obligation determination, cadastral dossier management, issuance of administrative decisions in land management; who show irresponsibility in management, thus leading to violations of land legislation or commit other acts which cause damage to land resources, rights and obligations of land users, shall, depending on the nature and seriousness of their violations, be disciplined or examined for penal liability according to law provisions.

Article 142.- Handling of land law violations which cause damage to the State and other persons

Those who commit acts of violating land legislation, causing damage to the State and/or other persons, shall, apart from being handled according to the provisions in Articles 140 and 141 of this Law, also have to compensate therefor according to extents of actual damage to the State or the persons suffering from the damage.

Article 143.- Responsibilities of the presidents of the People’s Committees of all levels in detecting, preventing, stopping and handling violations of legislation on land management and use

1. The presidents of the People’s Committees of all levels have the responsibilities to detect, prevent, stop and handle in time violations of legislation on land management and use in their respective localities.

2. The presidents of the People’s Committees of communes, wards or townships have the responsibilities to detect, prevent and stop in time illegal land use right transfers, illegal land use purpose changes; to detect and apply measures to stop in time the construction of works on encroached, appropriated land, the use of land not for the right purposes in their respective localities and force the violators to restore the pre-violation land status.

Article 144.- Handling of heads, officials and employees of land management agencies of all levels and commune/ward/ district township cadastral officials for their responsibility for violations of order of carrying out administrative procedures

1. Organizations and individuals, when detecting that officials and/or employees of land management agencies of all levels or commune/ward/township cadastral officials have violated the regulations on order, procedures and/or time limits for land assignment, land lease, permission of land use purpose changes, time limits for land recovery, carrying out procedures for exercise of land users’ rights, granting of land use right certificates, are entitled to send their written petitions to competent people according to the following regulations:

a) For violations committed by commune/ward/district township cadastral officials, the petitions shall be addressed to the presidents of the commune/ward/township People’s Committees;

b) For violations committed by officials and/or employees of land management agencies of any level, the petitions shall be sent to the heads of the land management agencies of such level;

c) For violations committed by heads of land management agencies, the petitions shall be filed to the presidents of the People’s Committees of the same level.

2. Within no more than fifteen working days as from the date of receiving the written petitions, the People’s Committee presidents or the heads of the land management agencies prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article shall have to consider and settle the petitions and notify the petitioners thereof.