Tây Ninh Province offers clemency and job support to rehabilitate prisoners

Provincial authorities in Tây Ninh, a province in Vietnam near the Cambodian border, are implementing a rehabilitation program to help prisoners reintegrate into society.

The local police agency recommended reduced prison terms for 38 inmates and shorter sentences for 219 people serving community sentences to mark National Day. This initiative follows a philosophy of showing mercy to those who turn away from wrongdoing.

The People's Procuracy of Tây Ninh manages the legal side of the process by ensuring that only those who earn clemency through self-improvement receive it. Inmates at Cây Cầy Prison, which houses about 3,000 people, participate in literacy classes to learn how to read and write. The prison management also provides medical care and budgeted more than VNĐ20 billion to provide food for the inmates this year.

Once released, former prisoners receive support from the Youth Union and local authorities to overcome psychological barriers and social prejudice. The province provides vocational training, job referrals, and access to loans through the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies. The local government also assists with administrative tasks like residence registration and identity cards. Between 2026 and 2030, the province aims to keep the reoffending rate for those in the reintegration program at 1.5 per cent or below.