E/CN.4/1995/31/Add.4 page 8 dissenting opinion should be included in the file. The Working Group is, however, not in a position to determine whether this right is frequently exercised. The court may pronounce sentence, but it may also decide to acquit and discharge the accused. It must order his immediate release, provided that he is not being detained for another reason, when he is not guilty, when he has been sentenced to a penalty other than imprisonment, when his penalty is covered by pre-trial detention or when a penalty is not applicable to him or he benefits from grounds for exemption from criminal liability. The president reads out the ruling. He then gives explanations on the enforcement of the sentence and notifies the accused and the other parties concerned of their right of appeal. (iv) (a) Remedies Appeal 25. Within 15 days of the pronouncement of sentence, the court must issue a copy of the judgement to the accused, to the prosecutor’s office and to the defence counsel. When the accused has been tried in absentia, a copy of the judgement must be notified within the same period. The victim, the claimant for criminal indemnification and his counsel are entitled to request excerpts or a copy of the judgement from the court. Under article 204 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, an appeal is defined as the procedure by which a higher court may re-examine a decision taken in first instance which has not yet become res judicata and which has been appealed. The appellant must file an application for this purpose with the court which ruled in first instance or with the Appeal Court. The appeal may also be made by oral statement to the court which heard the case in first instance. In this case, it must be recorded in a report. The time-limit for an appeal is 15 days from the pronouncement of sentence. In the event of trial in absentia, the time-limit for the accused starts when he is notified of the sentence or it is posted outside his home, his place of work or his neighbourhood, village or town committee. The appeal has a suspensive effect. 26. With regard to the prosecutor’s office, the Vietnamese Code of Criminal Procedure refers not to "appeal", but to "protest". This is the procedure by which the Department of Public Prosecutions may challenge a ruling handed down in first instance. According to article 207, paragraph 2, the prosecutor’s office must do so in writing, clearly indicating why it does not agree with the ruling handed down. This "protest" may be made by the prosecutor’s office at the level corresponding to that of the court which handed down the ruling or by the prosecutor’s office at a higher level. In the former case, the time-limit is 15 days from the pronouncement of sentence and, in the latter, 30 days. 27. As far as "appeal" is concerned, it should be made clear that article 215 gives the provincial courts and the Appeal Court of the Supreme Court appellate jurisdiction. The Code does not provide for the equivalent of an application for judicial review. This explains why, as the President of the Supreme Court indicated, the Supreme Court, which is exclusively an appellate court (against decisions of provincial courts), may review the facts of the case, the characterization of the offence and the guilt of the accused. The time-limit for the appellate court to rule on the appeal is 60 days for