Ministry of Health intervenes in case of 7 children being sexually abused

On April 12, Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Tri Thuc signed Official Dispatch No. 2148/BYT-BMTE to the People's Committees of provinces and centrally run cities on strengthening child protection and prevention of child abuse.

The document stated that in recent days, the press has reported on the case of Nguyen Dat Vu, born in 1987, Buddhist name Thich Van Chanh, residing in Ward 8, Da Lat city, Lam Dong province, who repeatedly sexually abused 7 children at Thap Thien facility, causing public outrage.

In order to ensure children's rights, strengthen the work of preventing and combating child abuse, and minimize harm to children, the Ministry of Health requests the People's Committees of provinces and centrally run cities to focus on directing and implementing synchronously, drastically, and effectively tasks and solutions on child protection and prevention and combating child abuse.

In particular, the Ministry of Health emphasized the continued strict implementation of Directive No. 28-CT/TW dated December 25, 2023 of the Politburo on strengthening the care, education and protection of children to meet the requirements of developing a prosperous and happy country, the Law on Children and Resolution No. 121/2020/QH14 dated June 19, 2020 of the National Assembly on continuing to strengthen the effectiveness and efficiency of implementing policies and laws on preventing and combating child abuse.

Strengthen communication work, raise awareness and responsibility of people, all levels and sectors in detecting, reporting and handling cases of violations of children's rights; guide parents and those directly caring for children on knowledge and skills to protect children, prevent and combat child abuse; educate children on knowledge and skills to protect themselves and prevent abuse. Continue to promote the National Child Protection Hotline (number 111) to encourage early detection, speaking up, reporting and denouncing acts of child abuse.

In addition, the Ministry of Health also requested the People's Committees of provinces and cities to promptly and effectively receive and process information, notifications, and denunciations of risks and acts of child abuse and ensure resources to intervene and support children when they are abused; resolve and strictly handle cases of child abuse in localities, agencies, organizations, and individuals that conceal, fail to report, or denounce acts of violence and child abuse or are irresponsible in handling cases of violence and child abuse.

Notably, the Ministry of Health requested to organize inspections and examinations of all facilities that carry out child care and nurturing activities in the area (especially religious and belief facilities) to ensure compliance with the provisions of the Law on Children and relevant legal provisions; promptly handle facilities that operate unregistered, spontaneously, without a license or do not ensure conditions for child care and nurturing according to the provisions of law and report the implementation results to the Ministry of Health before May 15, 2025.

Previously, on April 7, the Investigation Police Agency of Lam Dong Province Police announced that it had initiated a case, prosecuted the accused, and temporarily detained Nguyen Dat Vu to investigate the act of "rape of a person under 16 years old".

From 2023 to March 2025, Vu sexually abused 7 novice monks from 9 to 16 years old. These novice monks were sent by their families to practice. One of the novice monks abused by Nguyen Dat Vu and his relatives denounced his actions at the end of March. The case is currently being investigated and clarified by the authorities.

Source: https://nhandan.vn/bo-y-te-vao-cuoc-vu-7-tre-bi-xam-hai-tinh-duc-post871975.html