E/CN.4/1995/31/Add.4 page 12 39. With regard to police custody in matters of urgency or flagrante delicto and the need to forward the case file to the prosecutor’s office for confirmation of the arrest warrant, it became clear from talks with the authorities that, while the 24-hour deadline could be observed in a town like Ho-Chi-Minh City, it was seldom possible in the provinces, because of transport problems. Moreover, with regard to the right to a defence, and the authorities’ obligation to appoint defence counsel for accused persons liable to the most severe penalties, detainees informed the experts that not only were they not informed of this right after being arrested or placed in detention, but that in some cases no counsel had been appointed, despite the fact that they were liable for the death penalty. With regard to pre-trial detention, no significant violations were reported regarding the time-limit of two or four months, depending on the seriousness of the offence. The only problem, as stated above, is the prohibition of family visits during this period. No such prohibition is provided for in the Code of Criminal Procedure. The position of the authorities is that the 1992 ordinance on prison regulations precludes any possibility of visits by relatives. However, as soon as the reason for prohibiting such visits, namely to prevent any interference with the investigation, no longer obtains, it should be possible to authorize them. In this connection, the President of the Supreme Court announced the intention of the Vietnamese authorities to amend the law. In the meantime, according to the Public Prosecutor for Ho-Chi-Minh City, steps had been taken by some prosecutors to permit such visits, particularly in flagrante delicto cases. III. A. FUTURE OF THE STATUS OF DETENTION Improvements as presented by the Government 40. According to the Government, decades of savage warfare and reconstruction difficulties have made it impossible to bring domestic legislation into line with the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in the period immediately following its ratification. 41. Many improvements are provided for in the liberalization process initiated by the new Constitution of 15 April 1992, which specifically provides for certain fundamental democratic rights in the political, economic, cultural and social spheres (art. 50), including the right of free enterprise (art. 57), the right to freedom of movement and of establishment anywhere in Viet Nam, to leave or return to the country (art. 68), the freedoms of speech, of the press, of information, of assembly, of association and of peaceful demonstration (art. 69) and of religion (art. 70). 42. The Government has also taken the following initiatives: Making the People’s Prosecutor accountable to the National Assembly in 1960, rather than to the Executive, a reform which is embodied in the 1992 Constitution; The progress made in criminal law - although some shortcomings still exist - including the introduction of penalties for crimes against peace and mankind, and for war crimes and the recruitment of mercenaries;