Chương III Nghị định 56/2017/NĐ-CP : hỗ trợ, can thiệp đối với trường hợp trẻ em bị xâm hại hoặc có nguy cơ bị bạo lực, bóc lột, bỏ rơi và trẻ em có hoàn cảnh đặc biệt

Chapter III

ASSISTANCE AND INTERVENTION FOR ABUSED CHILDREN OR CHILDREN AT RISK OF VIOLENCE, EXPLOITATION OR ABANDONMENT AND DISADVANTAGED CHILDREN

Section 1. THE NATIONAL TELEPHONE EXCHANGE FOR CHILD PROTECTION

Article 22. Tasks of the National Telephone Exchange for Child Protection

1. To provide child protection services via telephone numbers managed by the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs.

2. To receive via telephone information, reports and denunciations.

3. To contact related or competent persons, agencies and organizations; to seek information on risks and acts of child abuse in the mass media and Internet environment for initially verifying information, reports and denunciations.

4. To send and provide information, reports and denunciations relating to or refer children at risk of abuse, abused children, disadvantaged children, parents and child caregivers to agencies, organizations and persons with child protection competence and function.

5. To coordinate with agencies, organizations, individuals, child protection service providers, and persons with child protection competence and function nationwide in receiving, exchanging and verifying information, reports and denunciations on abused children or children at risk of violence, exploitation or abandonment.

6. To assist commune-level child protection officers in making and implementing assistance and intervention plans for each abused child or child at risk of violence, exploitation or abandonment; to monitor and assess the making and implementation of these plans.

7. To provide psychological and legal counseling for children and parents, family members and caregivers of children.

8. To store, analyze and synthesize information for provision of information, reports and denunciations at the request of competent agencies, organizations and persons, for cases of child abuse, and of child protection service providers; to send regular or extraordinary reports to state management agencies in charge of children and other agencies with child protection competence and responsibility.

Article 23. Conditions for ensuring operation of the National Telephone Exchange for Child Protection

1. The National Telephone Exchange for Child Protection shall operate round the clock and be provided by the State with resources for its operation.

2. The National Telephone Exchange for Child Protection may use 3-digit telephone numbers and does not collect telecommunications and counseling charges for incoming calls.

3. The National Telephone Exchange for Child Protection may receive financial and technical assistance from agencies, organizations and individuals; and advertise its telephone numbers and services in accordance with law.

Section 2. RECEIPT AND PROCESSING OF INFORMATION, REPORTS AND DENUNCIATIONS ON ACTS OF CHILD ABUSE

Article 24. Information confidentiality principles

1. All information, reports and denunciations in the course of receipt and verification shall be kept confidential in the interest and for the safety of information providers and in the best interests of related children.

2. Information serving child protection provided and exchanged between information recipients and agencies, organizations and persons with child protection competence and function shall be kept confidential.

3. Information and regular and extraordinary reports of agencies and organizations with child protection competence and function shall be classified in terms of confidentiality level and scope of provision.

Article 25. Receipt of information and coordination in information processing

1. When detecting or receiving information on acts of child abuse or children at risk of abuse, agencies, organizations, educational institutions, families and individuals shall promptly report it to the National Telephone Exchange for Child Protection or labor, war invalids and social affairs agencies or public security agencies of any level or commune- level People’s Committees of the localities where the cases occur (below referred to as information recipients). Information recipients shall fully record information on acts of child abuse, abused children or children at risk of abuse according to Form No. 01 in the Appendix to this Decree.

2. Agencies, organizations and persons with child protection, care and education tasks shall, upon request, provide information for and coordinate with labor, war invalids and social affairs agencies and public security agencies of any level, commune-level People’s Committees of the localities where the cases occur or of the places where the children reside in verifying acts of child abuse, the state of unsafety and the level of risk of harm to children.

3. The receipt and processing of information, reports and denunciations on child abuse crimes must comply with the criminal procedure code.

Article 26. Initial assessment of levels of harm to abused children, children at risk of violence, exploitation or abandonment and disadvantaged children

1. The National Telephone Exchange for Child Protection or labor, war invalids and social affairs agencies of all levels or public security agencies of all levels shall coordinate with one another in processing information, reports and denunciations on abused children and children at risk of violence, exploitation or abandonment, and immediately forward such information to commune-level People’s Committees of the localities where the cases occur for initially assessing the risk or level of harm to children.

2. Chairpersons of commune-level People’s Committees of the localities where the cases occur shall direct local child protection officers in initially assessing the risk or level of harm to children and preparing a report according to Form No. 02 in the Appendix to this Decree, serving as a basis for decision whether to apply urgent intervention measures.

3. In case it is confirmed that a child is at risk of or currently suffering a serious harm to his/her life, health or dignity, within 12 hours after receiving information on the case, the chairperson of the commune-level People’s Committee or competent agencies, organizations or persons shall apply urgent intervention measures or temporarily separate the child from the environment or person that is causing harm to the child as prescribed in Articles 31 and 32 of this Decree.

Section 3. ASSISTANCE AND INTERVENTION PLANS FOR ABUSED CHILDREN,

CHILDREN AT RISK OF VIOLENCE, EXPLOITATION OR ABANDONMENT AND DISADVANTAGED CHILDREN

Article 27. Identification of demand for assistance and intervention for abused children, children at risk of violence, exploitation or abandonment and disadvantaged children

1. After making an initial assessment of the risk and level of harm to a child, the commune-level child protection officer shall himself/herself or request the National Telephone Exchange for Child Protection and child protection service providers to help collect information and make detailed assessment of the risk, and prepare a report according to Form No. 03 in the Appendix to this Decree, stating:

a/ The physical, psychological and emotional state of the abused child, the child at risk of violence, exploitation or abandonment or disadvantaged child;

b/ Family circumstances and relationships of the child and child protection capacity of his/her parents and family members;

c/ Factors making the child abusable or further be abused or factors putting the child in an disadvantaged circumstance;

d/ Learning conditions and ability and self-protection ability of the child;

dd/ Safety level and assistance ability of the community where the child lives;

e/ The child’s needs for health care and treatment of physical and mental harms; demand for social relief, education, training and vocational education support, legal aid, counseling, psychological therapy and other child protection services;

g/ Opinions and aspiration of the child;

h/ Opinions and aspirations of the child’s parents or caregiver, unless they themselves cause harm to the child.

2. In case the child needs assistance or intervention, the chairperson of the commune- level People’s Committee shall hold a meeting with persons and organizations with child protection responsibility, a representative of residents in the place where the child lives or where the case occurs, and the child’s parents or relatives to determine measures to protect the child under Articles 47 thru 50 of the Law on Children.

Article 28. Making and approval of assistance and intervention plans

1. Based on the level of harm and demand for assistance and intervention for a child, within 5 working days, except in cases of emergency, the commune-level child protection officer shall make an assistance and intervention plan according to Form No. 04 in the Appendix to this Decree, and submit it to the commune-level People’s Committee chairperson for approval.

2. A dossier of an assistance and intervention plan submitted to the commune-level People’s Committee chairperson for approval must comprise:

a/ A report on the receipt of information about the child and initial assessment of the state of the abused child or the child at risk of violence, exploitation or abandonment or the disadvantaged child;

b/ A report on the collection of information and assessment specific risks of harm to the child, the minutes of the meeting to identify the demand for assistance and intervention for the child which is held under Clause 2, Article 27 of this Decree, and other relevant documents (if any);

c/ An assistance and intervention plan and a draft decision on approval of the plan, made according to Form No. 05 in the Appendix to this Decree.

3. A plan on assistance and intervention for an abused child or a child at risk of violence, exploitation or abandonment or a disadvantaged child must have the following contents:

a/ Services to be provided and work to be performed, and their expected starting and finishing dates;

b/ Assigned responsibilities of agencies, organizations and individuals in the commune to implement assistance and intervention measures;

c/ Child protection service provider to be mobilized to provide specific services;

d/ Estimated funding for each service and work.

4. The commune-level People’s Committee chairperson shall consider and issue a decision approving the plan within 2 working days, except in cases of emergency.

5. The approval decision and the assistance and intervention plan shall be sent to agencies, organizations and individuals responsible for implementation and to the parents or caregiver of the child.

Article 29. Implementation of assistance and intervention plans

1. The commune-level child protection officer shall personally carry out certain assistance and intervention activities and take charge of implementing an assistance and intervention plan as follows:

a/ Monitoring and urging the implementation of assistance and intervention services and activities; proposing the commune-level People’s Committee chairperson to timely adjust the plan to suit personal changes of the child and the safety level of the environment where he/she lives;

b/ Connecting services and activities in the commune and asking for support of all-level agencies with child protection responsibility and child protection service providers outside the commune;

c/ Mobilizing agencies, organizations, individuals and the community to provide assistance.

2. Health establishments, educational institutions, legal aid service providers, public security agencies, child protection service providers of all levels and agencies, organizations and persons with child protection responsibility shall participate in and support the implementation of the assistance and intervention plan.

3. Parents or caregiver of the child shall implement the assistance and intervention plan according to the decision of the commune-level People’s Committee chairperson.

4. The National Telephone Exchange for Child Protection shall introduce and connect necessary assistance and intervention services in case such services are not available in the province or at the request of the commune-level child protection officer.

Article 30. Review and evaluation of implementation of assistance and intervention plans

1. The commune-level child protection officer shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with related agencies, organizations and individuals and child protection service providers engaged in implementing an assistance and intervention plan in, reviewing and assessing the implementation of the plan, specifically as follows:

a/ Assessing the state of the child and safety level of the environment where the child lives after assistance and intervention measures are implemented;

b/ Proposing the commune-level People’s Committee chairperson to complete the assistance and intervention plan if the child is no longer at risk of abuse and his/her physical, psychological, cognitive and emotional conditions have become stable;

c/ Proposing the commune-level People’s Committee chairperson to permit the repetition of the process of making and approving another assistance and intervention plan if the child is still at risk of abuse or his/her physical, psychological, cognitive and emotional conditions have not been stabilized.

2. Review and assessment of the state of the child after implementation of the assistance and intervention plan shall be conducted and reported according to Form No. 06 in the Appendix to this Decree.

3. Dossiers of assistance and intervention plans shall be archived at commune-level People’s Committees and the data contained therein shall be input into the national children database.

Article 31. Intervention for children in need of emergency protection

1. Children in need of emergency protection are those who are under threat of or suffering serious harm to their life, health or dignity or those who are harmed by their own parents or caregivers.

2. Intervention for a child in need of emergency protection shall be provided as soon as possible and within 12 hours after being informed of the case.

3. Responsibilities of the commune-level child protection officer:

a/ To receive information and contact the Public Security agency to prevent the acts threatening to cause or causing serious harms to the life, health or dignity of the child, which are committed in the commune; to coordinate with the health establishment in providing first aid to the child who needs emergency protection and retain objects and documents related to the harms caused to the child to serve investigation, violation handling and child protection activities;

b/ To further assess the level of harm to the child and safety level of his/her living environment; to make an assistance and intervention plan and submit it to the provincial- level People’s Committee chairperson for approval, and implement the plan;

c/ When necessary, to coordinate with the National Telephone Exchange for Child Protection in order to receive guidance and support for urgent intervention, and formulate and implement assistance and intervention plans.

4. Responsibilities of the public security agency

a/ To receive information and stop the acts threatening to cause or causing serious harms to the life, health or dignity of the child;

b/ To coordinate with the commune-level child protection officer of the locality where the case occurs in providing emergency protection for the child, ensuring safety for the life, health and dignity and in the best interests of the child;

c/ When necessary, to coordinate with the National Telephone Exchange for Child Protection in order to support urgent intervention.

5. Responsibilities of the health establishment

a/ To provide medical examination and treatment for the abused child or child for whom an assistance and intervention plan is implemented as prescribed in Clause 1, Article 52 of the Law on Children;

b/ To instruct the collection and storage of proof of the harms to the abused child to serve medical assessment under the Ministry of Health’s guidance;

c/ To archive health records in accordance with law.

Article 32. Temporary separation of children from their parents or caregivers and application of alternative care

1. Temporary separation of a child from his/her parents or caregiver and application of alternative care as prescribed at Points b and c, Clause 2, Article 50 of the Law on Children shall apply to an abused child or a child at risk of violence, exploitation or abandonment by his/her parents or caregiver; an abused child whose parents or caregiver refuse(s) to implement an assistance and intervention plan or who is at risk of being further abused by his/her parents or caregiver.

2. The chairperson of the commune-level People’s Committee of the locality where the child lives or of the place where the case referred to in Clause 1 of this Article occurs has the competence to issue a decision to temporarily separate the child from his/her parents or caregivers, made according to Form No. 07 in the Appendix to this Decree, and arrange safe accommodation under Point b, Clause 2, Article 50 of the Law on Children and alternative care under Clause 3, Article 52 of the Law on Children within 12 hours after being informed of the case.

3. The period of temporary separation of a child shall be determined based on the assessment of the demand and safety of the environment for the child and may be extended but must not exceed 15 days, unless a longer period is required by a competent agency. When the assessment report, made according to Form No. 03 in the Appendix to this Decree, concludes that the parents or caregivers of a child have fully satisfied the conditions on safety for their child, the commune-level People’s Committee chairperson shall terminate the decision on temporary separation.

4. A child who is urgently separated from his/her parents or caregiver should be immediately provided with alternative care even before the alternative care provision procedures are carried out.