The basis for human rights in Vietnam is to maintain a peaceful and stable environment

The view of the Vietnamese State on human rights is very clear, it is the result of a long and arduous struggle process of many generations of Vietnamese people, which is also a very beautiful goal that the Vietnamese State and the Vietnamese people have been striving to achieve, to make a solid basis for the sustainable development of the country. That is a fact that no one can deny.

In an important speech on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the International Day for Human Rights, Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Binh Minh affirmed: on the basis of the Party's and State's guidelines, with the participation of the people, Vietnam has step by step completed policies, laws and mechanisms to ensure human rights, creating important premises and conditions for achievements in all areas of human rights.

In particular, after more than 30 years of Doi Moi (renovation), thanks to the right policies and effective implementation tools, the Party, the State and people of Vietnam have obtained basic and historic achievements in the cause of human rights assurance and development.

The great and fundamental achievement for the realization of human rights in Vietnam is to maintain a peaceful and stable environment since the country's reunification in 1975. The practice of struggle of our nation clearly proves that the guarantee of human rights is inseparable from national independence, peace, democracy and development.

In addition, in the process of rebuilding and developing the country after decades of war devastation, the Party and the State considered economic development as an important premise for the exercise of democracy and human rights.

Significant progress has been made in areas such as poverty reduction, education, gender equality and child health in Vietnam.

Over the past years, Vietnam has successfully implemented many socio-economic development programs, with the economic growth reaching a continuous high level of over 7% per year. Significantly, after more than 20 years of renovation, the average income per capita rose by 5 times (from $200/person in 1990 to $1,024/person in 2008). The proportion of poor households under the national standards decreased 4 times (from 60% in 1990 to 13.8% in 2008).

Vietnam has been recognized by the United Nations and the international community as one of the countries with the most impressive poverty reduction achievements as it has achieved and exceeded many Millennium Development Goals on time.

In parallel with efforts to ensure human rights in the country, the Party and the State advocated expanding international cooperation on the basis of equality, respect and construction, for the common goal of ensuring and promoting the rights of humans.

On that basis, Vietnam has become a member of most of the major international conventions on human rights and 17 international conventions on labor. On October 22, 2007, Vietnam signed the International Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities and is seriously considering the signing of the Convention against Torture.

Vietnam has proactively participated in multilateral fora, including multilateral mechanisms on human rights, such as the 3rd Committee of the UN General Assembly and the UN Human Rights Council. Currently, Vietnam is actively participating in the discussion process to establish the ASEAN regional human rights mechanism. Vietnam also participates in many other international and regional human rights conferences.

In bilateral relations, with the policy of willingness for dialogue and cooperation on human rights, Vietnam has established a dialogue mechanism with many countries/partners such as the US, the EU, Australia, Norway and Switzerland, which has achieved positive results for many years.

Mr. Pham Binh Minh said that through the policy of associating economic growth with cultural development, implementing social progress and justice, the Party and the State have focused on job creation - a pressing socio-economic problem in Vietnam today - especially with the National Target Program on Employment for 2006-2010, the National Fund for Employment and supporting projects. These programs have contributed to creating jobs for Vietnamese workers. During the period of 2001-2008, the country had 12.44 million new jobs, of which nearly 9.3 million were created through economic development programs and more than 2.6 million jobs through the National Fund for Employment.

The basis for human rights in Vietnam is to maintain a peaceful and stable environment

Significantly, as of January 1, 2009, for the first time the Government implemented the unemployment insurance policy, which gives maximum support for employees in the job search process. This is a great effort of the Party and the State as the country is still facing many difficulties and this demonstrates Vietnam's strong commitment to ensuring the rights of workers.

On May 8, 2009, at the UN Headquarters in Geneva (Switzerland), Vietnam successfully presented and defended the National Review Report (UPR) on the guarantee of human rights in Vietnam at the UN Human Rights Council. Vietnam’s report was highly appreciated by member countries, for its elaborate preparation, diverse content, constructive and persuasive presentation and approach, thereby showing Vietnam's improved international position and the recognition of other countries to the country’s better implementation of human rights.

Vietnam welcomed special reporters on arbitrary detention and freedom of religion or belief in 1998 and it is carrying out procedures to invite three special observers on the right to education, the right to Healthcare, and extreme poverty to visit Vietnam.

Recognizing Vietnam's efforts, on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of Vietnam’s official joining of the United Nations, Ms. Pratibha Mehta, UN Resident Coordinator in Vietnam, commented: "As Vietnam enters the period of renovation, the UN has opened a door connecting Vietnam with international knowledge, experience and technical assistance, and supporting Vietnam to make progress in development, thereby improving the quality of life for millions of people.

In particular, significant progress has been made in areas such as poverty reduction, education, gender equality and child health in Vietnam. As a result of these substantive results, Vietnam is one of the 50 countries in the world that have been chosen to conduct large-scale referendums on new global development goals.

This is the foundation and a great opportunity for Vietnam to recognize the progress made in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals, as well as what to do both domestically and internationally to ensure that all people in every village and city enjoy a prosperous life."

It is the great achievements of historical significance of the renovation process, the cause of building and defending the country, that have raised Vietnam's position in the international arena.

Minh Van