>> Vietnam teen claims he killed for games
The seeds of criminal behaviour needed to be addressed early in order to avoid more serious criminality later, a former National Assembly member has stressed.
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| Professor Nguyen Minh Thuyet |
Former Deputy Head of the National Assembly\'s Committee for Culture, Education, Youth and Children Professor Nguyen Minh Thuyet made the comments in an interview with DTiNews following the horrific murder of three people in a gold shop robbery by 17-year old Le Van Luyen in Bac Giang Province.
According to the former official, family socialisation is a very important element in forming young people’s behaviour.
Parents should set good examples for their children and pay attention to their children’s behaviour.
He said in Luyen’s case, his parents hid his crime, helping hide the stolen gold and washing the bloodstained clothes of their son.
In some foreign countries, strict punishments are doled out for insulting or threatening behaviour, Thuyet said, citing an example that, “A Vietnamese student abroad was arrested as soon as he used a knife to threaten his friend.”
He said, Vietnam’s Civil Code sanctions threats or violent behaviour which are offensive to other people’s honour, however, they are not strict enough.
Several cases of violence among school girls have been published online, but then been ignored, Thuyet said, noting that, “I am afraid that this type of behaviour will lead to future criminal behaviour. Stern discipline should be applied to deal with these cases.”
Violent games and films blamed
“Many films shown on TV and in cinemas, particularly on foreign channels, are full of violence. It is quite common to watch scenes with fights in which two sides rush at each other screaming “Kill! Kill!. Young people also play violent games. All of these gradually affect their behaviour,” Thuyet said.
Le Van Luyen was arrested last month for the murder of a man, his wife and 19-month-old daughter at the couple\'s gold shop in Bac Giang Province. Luyen allegedly claimed he had needed the money to play Kiem, one of the country’s most popular video games. Luyen stole 50 taels of gold worth VND2.35 billion (USD112,980). The suspect is also accused of cutting the hand off of the couple\'s 9-year-old daughter during the robbery. The police later arrested Le Van Luyen’s parents Le Van Mien, 42, and Truong Thi Thom, 38 for harbouring a criminal, while Truong Van Hop, 47, the father of Truong Thanh Hong, 19, Luyen’s cousin, was taken in for obstructing justice. Police said Luyen will stand trial in October, but could only be jailed for up to 18 years due to his age. |
Le Van Luyen arrested