At the end of May 2024, Huy Duc posted on his personal page an article titled “A nation cannot develop based on fear”. I completely agree with this title without needing him to prove anything further because more than 75 years ago, all progressive humanity agreed that building a world in which people no longer have to suffer from fear is one of the highest aspirations of mankind (excerpt from Section 2, Preamble, Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948). However, contrary to that emotional title, the article criticized the regulation on the management of highly lethal knives in the Draft Amendment to the Law on Management and Use of Weapons, Explosives and Support Tools 2017.
Whether due to misunderstanding or intentional wording, Huy Duc has turned a draft law aimed at enhancing the effectiveness of protecting national security, order, social safety and personal security into a law restricting personal freedom. If his interpretation is implemented, perhaps every day the Vietnamese people will truly have to live in a country terrified by the risk of violence with highly lethal weapons.
Due to the complicated developments of crimes using knives and knife-like means to commit crimes, the Draft Amendment to the Law on Management and Use of Weapons, Explosives and Supporting Tools 2017 has included highly lethal knives in the list of rudimentary weapons that need to be managed.
Similar regulatory regimes are in place in many countries around the world. For example, Article 3 of the Belgian Weapons Act 2006 lists automatic knives, butterfly knives, throwing knives, dart stars or blades embedded in other objects as prohibited weapons. In addition to the knives on the prohibited list, the authorities have the authority to prohibit the carrying or possession of other knives, including transporting them inside a vehicle, if the owner cannot provide a sufficient legal reason for transporting them, especially in urban areas or at public events.
In China, before the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the government required buyers to register when purchasing dangerous knives such as knives with “blood grooves”, knives with locking blades, knives with blades longer than 22 cm, etc. In France, it is not illegal to buy knives legally when an individual is over 18 years old, but they are not allowed to carry knives on their person, except in the case of professional tools. If the knife is transported in a vehicle, it must be placed in a safe, locked compartment that is inaccessible to the occupants of the vehicle.
In his article, Huy Duc quoted the definition of “highly lethal knife” in Point b, Clause 4, Article 3 of the Draft Law, but did not fully quote the drafted legal definition. Based on that incomplete definition, he concluded that according to the draft law, labor tools such as the pho seller's slicing knife and the farmer's weed-cutting knife are also strictly controlled and must be registered as highly lethal weapons.
The full definition of a high-damage knife is given in Point b, Clause 4, Article 3 of the Draft Law on Management and Use of Weapons, Explosives and Supporting Tools (amended) as follows: “A high-damage knife is a sharp knife, a pointed knife and a sharp knife with a blade length of 20cm or more or a blade length of less than 20cm but converted or assembled to have the same function and effect as a high-damage knife in the list of rudimentary weapons issued by the Minister of Public Security . The use of a high-damage knife for labor, production and daily life purposes is not within the scope of this Law”.
When quoting, Huy Duc also “dropped” the sentence “The use of highly lethal knives for labor, production, and daily life purposes is not within the scope of this Law”. With his quoting and analysis, it is certain that when cutting pho or cutting grass, people must wear a knife license hanging around their necks. He also accidentally or intentionally forgot Clause 1, Article 5 of the Draft Law, which clearly states that individuals are not prohibited from owning primitive weapons that are objects for display, exhibition, family heirlooms, and highly lethal knives used for labor, production, and daily life.
Could a seasoned writer like Huy Duc make a mistake or not study the text carefully? If he did not misunderstand, then is he asking for permission to freely own highly lethal weapons? As he said, “a nation cannot develop based on fear” - in fear, no one can comfortably study, work, create, or even sleep well. Does he want the country that is trusted to host important international meetings to become a place where people can at any time become victims of violence using guns, knives, or other highly lethal weapons?
Source: https://cand.com.vn/Chong-dien-bien-hoa-binh/huy-duc-nham-lan-hay-co-y-dat-mui-du-luan-qua-bai-viet-mot-quoc-gia-khong-the-phat-trien-dua-tren-su-so-hai--i735469/
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