Aiming to ensure a peaceful life forthe citizens and common interest of the community, the death penalty is necessary in Vietnam under current situation, said Vietnam's Deputy Foreign Minister Le Van Bang on a three-day seminar Wednesday opened in Hanoi.

Bang told the seminar on the death penalty held by Vietnam's Foreign Ministry and the European Union (EU) that Vietnam appreciated the opportunity to enhance dialogue and cooperation with the EU on human right issues on the basis of equality and mutual respect for the common goal of promoting and protecting human rights.

He said the death penalty is applicable to special criminal cases with the aim of preventing and admonishing crimes, but not for those criminals who are juveniles, pregnant women or women nurturing under-three children.

Participants discussed a law framework concerning death penalty,implementation of human rights, their experiences in the field and alternatives to capital punishments. Ambassadors and representatives from EU members and representatives of Vietnam's concerned ministries and agencies attended the seminar.

The Vietnamese government has assigned relevant agencies to research into a new way of conducting death penalty, local newspaper Youth reported. Under an instruction of Prime Minister Phan Van Khai, the ministries of Justice and Public Security are to look into the possibility of changing the current method of capital punishment.

Source: Xinhua