Non-State bodies will for the first time be eligible for legal
assistance ODA if they submit successful applications to the Justice
Initiative Facilitation Fund (JIFF).
JIFF, which
has a budget of 1.7 million EURO (2.2 million USD) up until June 2015,
is a joint programme organised by the Ministry of Justice, the European
Union and the embassies of Sweden and Denmark.
"This is the first time the Government has used ODA to fund non-State
projects in the judicial field, which reflects well on its great effort
and open attitude to legal reforms," said Nguyen Thi Bich Diep, JIFF's
justice initiative advisor.
All funding to non-State
bodies will be in four key areas – popularising the rights and
opportunities of individuals under the law, improving access to
independent legal advice, increasing the public's understanding of
judicial reforms that have taken place and dialogue and information
sharing on matters that have arisen following judicial reform.
Dao Soat, president of the Vietnam Blind Association, which was
founded in 1969 and has more than a million members in the country, said
his association was preparing to submit an application for funding.
"Many blind people have limited access to education and are unfamiliar with the legal system and their rights," he said.
In the last few months, JIFF has conducted research into the needs of
the non-State sector. "Many organisations have carried out judicial
projects, but most of them have only focused on improving popular
awareness of the legal system," Diep said.
"They have not been able to provide people with legal advice when they actually encounter difficulties."
Lam Thi Thu Suu, president of the Centre for Social Research and
Development based in Hue , said JIFF had been a boon for small and
recently established organisations such as hers.
"Up
to now, this kind of funding has only gone to large well-known
organisations. JIFF has opened new doors for us," she said.
Suu has proposed using the fund to provide legal assistance to local
women in central Quang Tri and Thua Thien-Hue provinces.
"There is a big population of migrant workers working on construction projects in these areas," she said.
"These workers are usually men who left their families and therefore
lack emotional support. They fell in love with local women, many of whom
are from minority groups, had kids, then left."
She
said her organisation wanted to provide legal advice to those women so
they fully understood their rights and opportunities.
First applications for JIFF funding must be made by October 29.
The organisation will accept new applications every six months./.
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