Tiếng Việt| THE STANDING COMMITTEE OF NATIONAL ASSEMBLY | SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIET NAM |
| No: 31/2000/PL-UBTVQH10 | Hanoi, December 28, 2000 |
(No. 31/2000/PL-UBTVQH10 of December 28, 2000)
In order to build, preserve, exploit and use library documentary stocks ; to meet the people’s study, research, information and recreation demands and to enhance the effectiveness of the State management over libraries;
Pursuant to the 1992 Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam;
Pursuant to the Resolution of the Xth National Assembly at its 4th session on the law and ordinance making program of the Xth Legislature of the National Assembly;
This Ordinance provides for libraries,
Article 2.- In this Ordinance, the following terms shall be construed as follows:
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2. Documents are matters in a material form already recorded with information in written form, sounds or images, for the purposes of preservation and use.
3. Library documentary stocks are documents collected and gathered according to various topics and given contents, processed according to scientific rules and processes of the library operation in order to organize the service of readers with high efficiency, and the preservation thereof.
Article 3.- This Ordinance governs:
1. The organization and operation of libraries; the rights and responsibilities of the State bodies, political organizations, socio-political organizations, social organizations, socio-professional organizations, economic organizations, public-service units and people’s armed force units (hereinafter referred to as organizations) in library activities;
2. The rights and responsibilities of domestic organizations and individuals that use the library documentary stocks and participate in activities organized by libraries;
3. The rights and responsibilities of overseas Vietnamese and foreign organizations as well as individuals living and working in Vietnam that use the library documentary stocks and participate in activities organized by libraries.
Article 5.- The following acts are strictly prohibited:
1. Illegally storing documents with contents:
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b/ Propagating violence, aggressive wars, sowing hatred among nations and peoples; spreading reactionary ideologies and cultural products, obscene and depraved life style, criminal acts, social evils, superstition; undermining the nation’s fine traditions and customs;
c/ Distorting history, negating the revolutionary gains, offending dignitaries and national heroes; slandering and offending organizations’ prestige and citizens’ honor and dignity.
2. Disclosing the State secrets and citizens’ privacy secrets;
3. Fraudulently substituting or destroying documents of libraries;
4. Taking advantage of professional library activities to illegally spread contents prescribed in this Article.
RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF ORGANIZATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS IN LIBRARY ACTIVITIES
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a/ Using library documents on the spot or borrowing them home;
b/ Receiving information on library documents through the bibliographical system and other forms of information and reference;
c/ Receiving the assistance and consultancy for the search for and selection of information sources;
d/ Being served with documents at home in form of itinerant libraries or by mail upon requests of aged or disabled people who are unable to go to libraries.
3. Ethnic minority people shall be given conditions to use library documents in their own languages.
4. Blind people shall be given conditions to use library documents in Braille or special information carriers.
5. Children shall be given conditions to use library documents suitable to their age groups.
6. Persons who are serving imprisonment sentences and those who are temporarily detained shall be given conditions to use documents of libraries at detention centers or remand homes.
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2. Domestic organizations and individuals, overseas Vietnamese, foreign organizations and individuals living and working in Vietnam may participate in activities organized by the libraries.
Article 8.- Users of library documentation shall have to:
1. Abide by the libraries’ internal regulations;
2. Preserve the libraries’ documentary stocks and assets;
3. Take part in the building and development of libraries;
4. Be held responsible before law for violation acts committed in the use of library documentary stocks.
ORGANIZATION AND OPERATION OF LIBRARIES
Article 9.- A library shall be established when the following conditions exist:
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2. Head office and special-use facilities and equipment;
3. Personnel having professional qualifications for library operations;
4. Funds to secure its stable operation and development.
The Ministry of Culture and Information shall guide in detail the implementation of the provisions in this Article for each type of library.
2. Within 30 days after the date of establishment, the library-establishing organizations shall have to register operation with the competent State bodies defined in Article 11 of this Ordinance.
3. Library-establishing organizations shall promulgate the library operation regulations.
The Ministry of Culture and Information shall specify the procedures for operation registration and guide the promulgation of library regulations.
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2. Libraries of the provincial-level organizations shall register their operation with the provincial/municipal Culture and Information Services.
3. Libraries of the district- and commune-level organizations with their head offices located on the concerned localities shall register their operation with the Culture and Information Sections of rural districts, urban districts, provincial capitals and provincial towns.
2. Upon the division, separation or merger of a library, the library-establishing organization shall have to refill in the procedures for operation registration.
3. Upon the change of the name, address, operation regulation or contents or dissolution of a library, the library-establishing organization shall have to notify such in writing to the competent State body.
Article 13.- Libraries have the following tasks:
1. To satisfy demands of and create favorable conditions for readers to use the documentary stocks and to participate in activities organized by libraries;
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3. To organize the information, propagation and introduction of the library documentary stocks, take part in building and forming the reading habit among the population;
4. To process scientific information and compile the scientific information publications;
5. To effect the interrelationship among domestic libraries; to promote cooperation and exchange of documents with foreign libraries in compliance with the Government’s regulations;
6. To research into and apply advanced scientific and technological achievements to the library work, thus step by step modernizing libraries;
7. To organize the professional fostering courses for librarians;
8. To preserve the material and technical foundations as well as other assets of libraries.
Article 14.- Libraries have the following rights:
1. To exchange documents and join domestic information-library networks; to exchange documents and join foreign information-library networks according to the Government’s regulations;
2. To refuse the readers’ requests if such requests run counter to their regulations;
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4. To receive financial assistance and support from domestic and foreign organizations and individuals;
5. To participate in domestic and international professional library associations;
6. To keep documents with contents specified in Clause 1, Article 5 of this Ordinance according to the Government’s regulations.
1. Librarians have the following rights:
a/ To be given conditions to study and raise their educational and professional level for library operation; to take part in scientific research, professional activities and join socio-professional organizations according to law provisions;
b/ To enjoy preferential regimes and policies applicable to their profession, and other regimes and policies of the State.
2. Librarians are obliged to comply with the law provisions on library, regulations on librarianship and their respective libraries’ regulations.
Article 16.- Types of libraries include:
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a/ The National Library of Vietnam;
b/ Libraries established by the People’s Committees of all levels.
2. Specialized and multi-discipline libraries:
a/ Libraries of scientific research institutes and centers;
b/ Libraries of schools and other educational institutions;
c/ Libraries of the State bodies;
d/ Libraries of the people’s armed force units;
e/ Libraries of political organizations, socio-political organizations, social organizations, socio-professional organizations, economic organizations and public-service units.
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2. Besides the tasks and rights prescribed in Articles 13 and 14 of this Ordinance, the National Library of Vietnam also has the following tasks and rights:
a/ To exploit documentary sources at home and abroad in order to meet the readers’ demands;
b/ To receive copyright deposit publications at home according to the regulations; to build and preserve for a long term the stocks of ethnic minority publications; to compile and publish the national bibliography and the general bibliography of Vietnam;
c/ To organize the service of readers of all kinds according to its regulations;
d/ To undertake the cooperation and exchange of documents with libraries at home and abroad;
e/ To conduct scientific and technological researches in the field of information-library;
f/ To organize professional fostering courses for librarians; to give librarianship instructions according to the assignment by the Ministry of Culture and Information.
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a/ To build and preserve the documentary stocks of their localities and about their localities;
b/ To take part in building grassroots libraries and/or bookcases; to organize the circulation and distribution of books and newspapers to such grassroots libraries and/or bookcases.
2. Libraries of schools and other educational institutions are established to serve the demands of officials, teachers and learners within such schools and educational institutions, and may serve other subjects according to such libraries’ regulations.
3. Libraries of the State bodies are established to serve the demands of officials and public employees within such bodies, and may serve other subjects according to such libraries regulations.
4. Libraries of the people’s armed force units are established to serve the demands of officers and men within such units, and may serve other subjects according to such libraries’ regulations.
5. Libraries of political organizations, socio-political organizations, social organizations, socio-professional organizations, economic organizations and public-service units are established principally to serve members of such organizations and units, and may serve other subjects according to such libraries’ regulations.
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Article 20.- Libraries’ financial sources include:
1. The State budget’s allocations or supports;
2. Funds of organizations;
3. Collected amounts being library service charges;
4. Financial aids from organizations and individuals at home and abroad.
Article 21.- The State shall adopt the investment policies toward libraries as follows:
1. Making investment to ensure that the libraries funded by the State budget operate, develop and step by step modernize their techno-material foundations, electronize and automatize such libraries; training and fostering a contingent of librarians;
2. Making intensive investments in a number of libraries with a particularly important role; making priority investment in the building of libraries in districts with difficult socio-economic conditions or particularly difficult socio-economic conditions;
3. Encouraging domestic organizations and individuals, overseas Vietnamese, foreign organizations and individuals to contribute to the cause of building and developing Vietnamese libraries;
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5. Prioritizing the assignment of land for building libraries;
6. Rendering support and assistance for the preservation of individuals’ or families’ collections of documents with special historic, cultural and/or scientific value.
Article 22.- The State shall adopt the preferential policies toward library activities as follows:
1. Giving import tax exemption or reduction for library documents, special-use facilities, equipment and machines according to the provisions of law;
2. Providing support funds for the exploitation of information-library networks at home and abroad, and the lending of documents by libraries to readers.
2. Libraries of social organizations, socio-professional organizations and economic organizations operating without the State budget’s funds may collect charges for activities specified in Clause 2, Article 6 of this Ordinance.
The list of specific services for which charges are collected, the charge rates and the use of charges shall be prescribed by the Government.
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THE STATE MANAGEMENT OVER LIBRARIES
Article 24.-The contents of State management over libraries shall include:
1. Elaborating and directing the implementation of strategies, planning and plans for development of libraries of all types;
2. Promulgating and directing the implementation of legal documents on libraries;
3. Training and fostering the contingent of librarians in order to raise their political, educational and professional level;
4. Organizing and managing the scientific and technological research activities and the application of scientific and technological achievements in the field of library;
5. Organizing the registration of library activities;
6. Undertaking international cooperation in library;
7. Organizing and directing the emulation and commendation work in library activities;
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1. The Government shall exercise the uniform State management over libraries.
2. The Ministry of Culture and Information shall be answerable to the Government for the performance of State management over libraries.
3. The ministries, the ministerial-level agencies, the agencies attached to the Government and other State agencies shall, within the ambit of their tasks and powers, have to perform the State management over libraries.
The Government shall specify the responsibilities of the ministries, the ministerial-level agencies, the agencies attached to the Government and other State agencies for coordinating with the Ministry of Culture and Information in uniformly exercising the State management over libraries.
4. The People’s Committees of all levels shall exercise the State management over libraries within their respective localities according to the Government’s responsibility assignment.
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COMMENDATION, REWARDS AND HANDLING OF VIOLATIONS
Article 30.- This Ordinance takes effect as from April 1, 2001.
The previous stipulations which are contrary to this Ordinance are now all annulled.
Article 31.- The Government shall detail and guide the implementation of this Ordinance.
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ON BEHALF OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY STANDING COMMITTEE
CHAIRMAN
Nong Duc Manh
- 1 Decision No. 01/2003/QD-BGDDT dated January 2, 2003, promulgating the regulation on the standard of libraries in schools that belong to the basic education system
- 2 Decree of Government No. 72/2002/ND-CP of August 06, 2002 detailing the implementation of The Ordinance on library
- 3 1992 Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam