On February 5, 2014, Vietnam presented its Universal Periodic Review Report in the  second cycle on human rights to the United Nation Human Rights Council. Vietnam’s national report was approved by UNHRC Working Group in the afternoon of February 7 with high consensus. Many countries, both developed and developing ones, have highly appreciated Vietnam’s effort and achievements in promoting human rights and its seriousness in the report.

Vietnamese delegation at the 18 session of the UNHRC. (Photo: To Uyen/ VNA)

However, like the case last year when Vietnam nominated itself to the UNHRC, close to Vietnam’s session at the UPR, there appeared a fuss campaign conducted with close coordination among some media, international organizations and betrayers of national interests to hinder Vietnam from protecting its Report. They gathered and got incorrect information from hostile forces against Vietnam to distort human rights situation in Vietnam through their writings; denied Vietnamese government’s effort in ensuring human rights to put pressure on the Working Group of UNHRC when this body examine Vietnam’s UPR. Unable to hinder Vietnam’s UPR, they tried to distort the results, exaggerating recommendations of member states during the dialogue of the presentation. Notably, on February 3, the VOA posted the open letter  titled “Hanoi let tear up the UPR cheating report to tell up the real status of human rights”  of Vo Van Ai – an anti-communism extremist; on February 6, it posted an article by Tra My with the title “Vietnam Human Rights criticized at UPR”; on February 7, it posted the interview with Benjamin Ismail – Head of Asia-Pacific Desk of RSF (Reporters without Borders) “ Vietnam stop cheating the world about human rights achievement”,…with content distorting the truth. But, truth is truth. The appreciation spared for Vietnam is not rational but based on serious assessment on Vietnam’s efforts, especially in implementing 96 out of 123 recommendations (account for 78%) of 60 member states in the UPR first cycle in May of 2009.

Vietnamese government and people implemented comprehensively, from perfecting its system of laws to carrying out policies, guidelines to ensure human rights for people; in the 2013 Constitution, the whole Chapter II with 36 articles is spared for constitutionalizing human rights, rights and obligations of citizens in which people’s rights and freedoms of civil, politics, socio-economics and culture are constitutionalized in full according to international treaties on human rights that Vietnam is a signatory. Since 2009 up to the present, Vietnam has supplemented and newly promulgated 25 other important bills to create full and solid legal base for respecting and implementing human rights. Vietnam has also been active in signing international treaties on human rights, among which Vietnam is the early adopter, such as Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC). On December 7, 2013, Vietnam officially joined the “United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment”, marking its accomplishment of adopting and signing international convention on human rights. Vietnam has achieved 5 out of 8 Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) beyond schedule, especially its achievement in hunger eradication and poverty alleviation (with the number of poverty household decreasing from 58,1% in 1993 to 7,8% in 2013).

Along with achievements in economic development, hunger eradication and poverty alleviation, improving people’s life, Vietnam has also attained many good results in implementing freedom of religion and belief. At present, 95% of its population follow a belief. The number of religions licensed by the State has doubled during the period of 2006 and 2012, from 6 religions and 15 religion institutions to 13 and 33 respectively. The number of religious followers has also increased from 15% to 30% of the population.

Regarding to the freedom of press, by the end of 2013 the country has 997 printed papers with 1.084 publications (compared to 676 and 700 respectively in 2009); it has licensed to some 17,000 journalists, 1 news agency, 67 radios and televisions, 101 TV channels, 78 radios channels, 74 online newspapers and magazines, 336 social networks and 1,174 information websites. Some 3 million Vietnamese are holding personal blogs. By the end of December, 2013 Vietnam has 30,8 million internet subscribers (in comparison with 26 million of 2010), accounting for 34% of the population, ranking third in ASEAN region and eighth in Asia (according to ITU’s list in 2012).

It should also be noted that human rights remain differences among international communities without any perfect “model”. Besides universal values, human rights are influenced by history and culture of each specific country. Therefore, criteria of human rights in a country can not be copied to another one. So, in the framework of UPR, it is normal that Vietnam got recommendations from other countries. Respecting and opening to the international friends, Vietnam took heed all of their opinions, though some of which are not familiar to Vietnam’s situation and its unique culture. However, taking advantage of those recommendations to distort results of Vietnam’s presentation in the UPR, denying its efforts in ensuring human rights for the past years is unacceptable. More importantly, any countries protecting their UPR report receive recommendations. The UPR report of the US in 2010 also faced many concerns from the UNHRC, such as: Recommendation 30: “The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) remained concerned about allegations of brutality and use of excessive or deadly force by law enforcement officials against, inter alia, Latino and African American persons and undocumented migrants”; Recommendation 34: “The Committee Against Torture (CAT) was concerned about acts of torture or ill-treatment committed by certain members of the State’s military or civilian personnel in Afghanistan and Iraq, and recommended that the State take immediate measures to eradicate all forms of torture and ill-treatment of detainees by military or civilian personnel, in any territory under its jurisdiction, and thoroughly investigate such acts”; Recommendation 54: “The HR Committee was concerned that the State had monitored and still monitors private communications of individuals both within and outside the country, without any judicial or other independent oversight,…”

Proud to be the most democratic country, but the US remains so many intense problems relating to this issue. Does it deserve the role of a preacher of democracy to other countries?

Nguyen Ngoc