Vietnam.
Vietnam's Criminal Code creates a specific offense for failing to assist a person in peril when the failure results in that person's death. Statute texts reviewed also set out state policies on youth volunteering, state encouragement of Red Cross humanitarian activities, and rules for raising voluntary contributions for people affected by disasters and serious illness. The English texts used are translations from legal databases and WIPO Lex.
Is there a legal duty to help a stranger?
LimitedArticle 132 of the Criminal Code (Law No. 100/2015/QH13), titled "Failure to assist a person in peril" in the English text, applies to a person who is capable of assisting but fails to do so, where that failure results in the death of the person in peril. The listed penalties are up to 2 years of community sentence or 3 to 24 months of imprisonment, with higher penalties where the offender caused the peril or has a legal or professional-ethics duty to rescue, or where two or more people die. The text reviewed does not define "capable"; this guide did not check later amendments or court practice.
Are people who help protected?
LimitedNo general good-faith protection statute for bystanders was found in the texts reviewed. The Law on Red Cross Activities (No. 11/2008/QH12), Article 4, states that organizations or individuals who suffer material damage while participating in Red Cross activities will be compensated according to law, and individuals who suffer health damage or loss of life are entitled to regimes and policies prescribed by law. This concerns harm to participants, not legal immunity for rescuers.
How the government promotes giving and service
One thing worth knowing
Article 132 is written as a result-based omission offense: the English text ties liability to the death of the person in peril, and raises the penalty where the offender created the peril or had a legal or professional-ethics duty to rescue.
What this does not mean
This guide relies on English translations (WIPO Lex and commercial legal databases), not the Vietnamese originals, and did not verify amendments or how Article 132 is applied in courts. The Youth Volunteer Movement named in the research brief was not verified from a primary source and is not described. Nothing here is legal advice. This is a plain-language summary of public sources, not legal advice, and it does not rank countries. No government named here has endorsed this site.