Etymology Corner: "Discipline" & Education
The word "discipline" comes from the Latin "disciplina," meaning "instruction" or "knowledge," which itself derives from "discipulus," meaning "pupil" or "student." Interestingly, this shared root reveals that education and discipline were historically viewed as two sides of the same coin – learning requires structure, and structure requires consequences. When Vietnamese students face disciplinary action, they're experiencing a tradition of educational correction that dates back millennia! 📚
In a Nutshell: The Vietnam Veterans Incident 🥜
Recently, social media in Vietnam erupted with outrage over a viral video showing university students disrespecting war veterans during the 50th anniversary celebration of the Liberation of South Vietnam and National Reunification Day on April 30, 2025. The incident, which took place in the early morning hours as crowds gathered to watch the military parade, showed young students refusing to give up their spots to elderly veterans and engaging in disrespectful behavior. 👴🏻 🧒
But what exactly should happen to these students? Is this simply a matter for their universities to handle, or something more? Will these students face expulsion just because "the internet demands it", or are there established procedures? Let's examine this issue from both humanitarian and legal perspectives! 🔍
The Incident: What Actually Happened? 📹
In the viral video, two university students were recorded refusing to give up their spots to war veterans who had arrived to watch the parade commemorating the 50th anniversary of Vietnam's reunification. The students reportedly spoke rudely to the veterans, causing significant distress.
After the video circulated widely on social media, the universities involved quickly identified their students who participated in the incident. The students have since issued apologies, expressing remorse for their inappropriate behavior.
The Legal Framework: University Discipline in Vietnam ⚖️
According to Vietnam's Higher Education Law of 2012 and the Ministry of Education and Training's Circular 10/2016/TT-BGDDT on student affairs regulations, universities have clear guidelines for handling student misconduct.
Article 6 of Circular 10/2016 specifically prohibits students from:
"Insulting the dignity, honor, or violating the physical integrity of teachers, management staff, officials, employees, students of higher education institutions, and others."When students violate these regulations, Article 9 of the same Circular outlines a progressive disciplinary system:
- Reprimand: For first-time minor violations
- Warning: For repeated minor violations or first-time moderately serious violations
- Temporary Suspension: For students already on warning who commit further violations or for serious violations
- Expulsion: For extreme violations or continued misconduct during suspension
The key point here: The universities are following established legal procedures, not simply reacting to social media pressure! 📝
From Ethical Perspectives 💭
From a humanitarian perspective, several important considerations emerge:
- Educational Purpose: Discipline should educate, not just punish. The goal is to help students recognize their mistakes and grow from them.
- Proportionality: The punishment should match the offense. While disrespecting veterans is serious, the response should consider the students' age, maturity, and willingness to make amends.
- Long-term Impact: Decisions like expulsion can have life-altering consequences for young people. Is permanently derailing a student's education proportionate to a moment of disrespect?
As one university administrator noted in a public statement, their institution aims to "apply appropriate educational measures to give students the opportunity to correct mistakes, mature, and become more responsible people for the community and country."
What Are Universities Doing About It? 🏫
The universities involved have taken immediate action:
- They've identified and confirmed the students involved
- They've held emergency meetings to discuss appropriate responses
- They've announced plans to apply disciplinary measures according to Ministry of Education regulations
- They're using this as a teaching moment for their broader student body
These institutions have emphasized that while they don't condone the disrespectful behavior, they also believe in the educational value of allowing students to learn from their mistakes.
The Role of Social Media and Public Opinion 📱
One particularly concerning aspect of this case has been how quickly the online community moved from criticizing the behavior to identifying, doxing, and harassing the students involved. Legal experts warn that:
"Publishing private information of students online violates Vietnamese law on both civil and administrative levels, and could potentially constitute criminal violations depending on severity."
As a personal observation, I would like to emphasize that online harassment itself can constitute a violation under the same student discipline regulations. According to the appendix of Circular 10/2016/TT-BGDDT, "posting, commenting on, sharing articles or images with indecent, violent, or offensive content, violating national security, opposing the Party and State, slandering or harming the reputation of organizations and the honor and dignity of individuals on the Internet" is listed as prohibited student behavior subject to disciplinary action.
The case touches on several societal values:
- Respect for those who served the country
- Youth behavior and culture
- The role of social media in shaping public opinion
However, excessive public attacks could have serious consequences for the students' mental health, education, and future, while the true goal of education should be to help young people recognize and correct their mistakes.
Individual Responsibility: Don't Blame the Universities 🎯
I'd like to address an important point that many overlook when incidents like this occur: this is fundamentally an issue of individual ethical failure, not institutional shortcoming. Let me explain why this distinction matters.
Ethics Begin at Home, Not University 🏠
When we witness young adults behaving disrespectfully toward veterans, our first instinct might be to ask: "What are these universities teaching them?"
However, this perspective misplaces responsibility. Ethical education begins long before university:
- Family is the primary source of moral education - Parents and grandparents are a child's first teachers of respect, especially in Vietnamese culture where filial piety and respect for elders are core values
- 12 years of prior education - Before entering university, students have already completed elementary, middle, and high school, all of which include ethics, civic education, and history in their curriculum
- Personal agency - By university age (18+), individuals have developed sufficient moral reasoning to understand basic societal expectations
Universities build upon this foundation - they don't create it from scratch. When a university student lacks fundamental respect for veterans, this reflects a personal ethical gap that developed over many years, not a four-month university course deficiency.
Fairness in Accountability 🔍
If we're going to assign blame for individual ethical failures, we need to ask:
- Why target only universities and not families, primary schools, middle schools, and high schools?
- Why should an entire educational institution be held responsible for the actions of individual students outside of academic contexts?
- Why do we expect universities to be more accountable for students' personal behavior than any other institution in society?
The answer is simple: we shouldn't. When adult students behave poorly in public settings, the primary responsibility lies with those individuals. While universities have a role in addressing misconduct through appropriate disciplinary channels, they cannot be expected to prevent every possible ethical failure of their students.
A Dangerous Pattern to Recognize 🚩
I have observed a concerning pattern in some of these viral controversies. Sometimes, competing institutions or entities with vested interests strategically amplify such incidents to damage a university's reputation. Before joining social media pile-ons against particular universities, consider:
- Who benefits from damaging this institution's reputation?
- Is the criticism proportionate to the actual incident?
- Are people condemning behavior they would overlook if it occurred at another institution?
This isn't to excuse poor behavior, but rather to recognize that some actors exploit these situations opportunistically, manipulating public sentiment to harm educational institutions for competitive advantage.
The Path Forward: Forgiveness and Growth 🌱
Rather than participating in collective blame directed at educational institutions, I believe we should:
- Hold individuals accountable for their specific actions
- Show compassion by allowing people to learn from mistakes
- Recognize the complexity of ethical development across multiple influences
- Resist manipulation by those who would exploit incidents for institutional sabotage
The Vietnamese tradition of forgiveness and reconciliation offers wisdom here. We should create space for those who err to acknowledge their mistakes, make amends, and grow into better citizens. This approach serves both justice and education far better than permanent condemnation or misplaced institutional blame.
University Disciplinary Process in Vietnam 📊
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Real-Life Example: The Balance of Justice and Compassion 🏠
Consider the case of Minh (name changed), a third-year engineering student at a university in Hanoi who was caught cheating on an exam in 2023. Following the disciplinary process:
- Minh wrote a self-criticism report acknowledging his wrongdoing
- His class held a meeting where classmates expressed disappointment but also support
- The faculty recommended a one-semester suspension rather than expulsion
- During his suspension, Minh volunteered with an educational charity
- Upon return, he became an advocate for academic integrity
This balanced approach allowed for accountability while preserving Minh's educational future. Today, he has graduated and works as an engineer, often sharing his story with younger students as a cautionary tale.
Similarly, I have witnessed cases where students who made public mistakes were given opportunities for redemption rather than facing permanent exclusion. In most instances, these students went on to become more conscientious citizens, precisely because they were held accountable in a way that educated rather than merely punished.
Comparing with "Laws" in Nature 🌿
In nature, we see interesting parallels to human disciplinary systems. Consider how animal groups maintain social order:
- Wolf packs use temporary isolation rather than permanent expulsion for young wolves who challenge authority inappropriately
- Elephant herds employ progressive discipline, with elder elephants first warning, then physically correcting, and only as a last resort excluding disruptive juveniles
- Primate groups typically reintegrate offenders after a demonstrable show of submission and behavior change
Nature seems to recognize that the goal is to correct behavior while preserving the group's strength—permanent exclusion is a last resort when rehabilitation fails.
Did You Know? 🤔
- Vietnam's university discipline regulations are updated approximately every 10 years, with the current framework dating from 2016
- Before formal disciplinary actions, many Vietnamese universities employ a traditional practice of public self-criticism ("kiểm điểm") where students reflect on their mistakes
- Disciplinary actions from warning level upward are recorded in a student's permanent file, which may affect future job prospects
- Students facing disciplinary actions have the right to appeal decisions they feel are unfair
- Vietnam has one of Asia's highest rates of veteran respect programming in educational institutions
Tips for Understanding Student Discipline in Vietnam 💡
- Know the progressive nature: Vietnam's university discipline system is designed to be educational first, punitive second
- Understand cultural context: Respect for elders and veterans is deeply embedded in Vietnamese culture
- Consider legal parameters: Universities must follow Ministry of Education guidelines, not social media opinion
- Recognize rehabilitation focus: The system aims to correct behavior, not merely punish
- Balance public interest with privacy rights: While public criticism has a role, doxing students crosses legal boundaries
- Value proportionality: The punishment should fit the offense and consider the student's willingness to learn
- Remember the educational mission: Universities exist to develop students, including teaching them to learn from mistakes
Test Your Knowledge! 📝
- What law and circular govern student discipline in Vietnamese universities? a) Civil Code 2015 and Circular 5/2012 b) Higher Education Law 2012 and Circular 10/2016 c) Student Affairs Law 2018 and Resolution 42/2019 d) Education Law 2009 and Decision 23/2014
- How long does a warning disciplinary measure remain in effect? a) 1 month b) 3 months c) 6 months d) 12 months
- Which of these actions is NOT within a university's legal authority? a) Temporary suspension of a student b) Requiring a student to write a self-criticism report c) Expulsion of a student for serious violations d) Publishing a student's personal details online as punishment
- What is the primary purpose of student discipline according to Vietnamese educational philosophy? a) Punishment for wrongdoing b) Deterrence for other students c) Education and behavioral correction d) Public satisfaction
(Answers: 1-b, 2-c, 3-d, 4-c)
Conclusion: Beyond Social Media Justice 🧠
The incident with the students disrespecting veterans touches a raw nerve in Vietnamese society, where reverence for those who sacrificed for the country runs deep. However, as we've explored, the appropriate response isn't determined by social media outrage but by established educational and legal frameworks that balance accountability with educational opportunity.
A Personal Appeal from Ngọc Prinny
As someone who has studied educational policies and student affairs, I urge the online community to exercise greater empathy and restraint. The actions of a few individuals don't represent an entire student body or institution. By engaging in cyberbullying or online harassment, we risk committing the same type of violations we're condemning.
Remember that online attacks targeting specific individuals or institutions may themselves violate laws and regulations against defamation and cyber harassment. We should be careful not to let malicious actors manipulate our emotions to attack entire groups based on the actions of a few individuals. These students, despite their mistake, don't deserve to have their futures destroyed by disproportionate public shaming.
Universities are tasked with a dual responsibility: upholding standards of behavior while developing young people into responsible citizens. The disciplinary process should be fair, proportional, and educational - not a knee-jerk reaction to public pressure.
This incident should serve as a reminder about awareness of public conduct, especially in spaces and moments associated with national traditions. Perhaps the greatest lesson for all students is that in the digital age, personal behavior can have very public consequences, making respect not just a virtue but a necessity - both offline AND online.
Call to Action 🗣️
What's your take on this situation? Do you believe universities should prioritize strict punishment or educational redemption in cases like this? How can we better balance online accountability with empathy and restraint? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
🎓 Campus Caution: A Student Discipline Disclaimer 🎓
Hey there, academic adventurer! 🎒 Before you navigate your university journey...
- This article is like a syllabus, not the final exam 📝 It outlines the rules, but every case has its unique factors!
- Each disciplinary situation follows its own path 🛣️ Results may vary based on circumstances!
- For real academic challenges, consult your university's official student affairs office 👨⚖️ (May we suggest reviewing your institution's student handbook?)
Remember: Reading about student discipline doesn't make you a disciplinary expert, just like watching "Law & Order" doesn't make you a lawyer! 👨⚖️😉
#StudentDiscipline #NotLegalAdvice #ConsultYourUniversity
If you're reading this in the evening, may your dreams be filled with academic success and your understanding of university regulations be as comfortable as your favorite study chair! 🌙✨ If you're reading this in the morning, may your day be as bright as your academic future and may all your educational questions find thoughtful answers! ☀️ And if you're reading this during lunch break, may your knowledge grow as nourishing as your meal! 🍜
Wherever you are in your educational journey, remember: while disciplinary measures may be temporary, respect and understanding create permanent positive impacts! 💖
#VietnamEducation #StudentDiscipline #VeteranRespect #HigherEducationLaw #StudentEthics #UniversityRegulations #SocialMediaConsequences #EducationalEthics #AcademicIntegrity #GenerationalRespect
