 Vietnam reaffirms strong commitment to promoting human rights |
The UPR, a mechanism unique to the UN Human Rights Council, enables all member states to review human rights policies, laws, and accomplishments in protecting and promoting human rights.
Earlier this year, Vietnam submitted its national report under the fourth cycle of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and engaged in a dialogue with the UPR Working Group in May, during which it received 320 recommendations from other countries.
Thorough preparation by Vietnam's government
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Do Hung Viet, Head of the Vietnamese delegation at the National Report adoption session in Switzerland from September 26-28, said the report’s approval by the UN Human Rights Council was the result of a comprehensive preparation process by the Vietnamese government. After the dialogue in May, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, working closely with various ministries and agencies, carefully reviewed all of the 320 recommendations before seeking the Prime Minister’s approval.
On September 27, Vietnam announced its decision to accept 271 of the 320 recommendations, making an approval rate of 84.7%.
“This is Vietnam’s highest acceptance rate across all four UPR cycles, reflecting Vietnam's strong commitment to the UPR process and its determination to advance human rights protections. 90 countries, international organizations, and non-governmental organizations participated in the session. Most of them praised Vietnam’s efforts and its open, direct, and informative presentation, which helped the international community better understand the situation in Vietnam,” said Viet.
The Vietnamese delegation presented detailed updates on fine-tuning its legal system and ensuring a socio-economic foundation to improve human rights protection. Additionally, they promptly refuted false allegations and unverified information presented by several NGOs during the session, underlining Vietnam’s ongoing work to create an enabling environment for citizens to actively engage in shaping legal policies.
Vietnam reiterated that human rights protections must be based on the rule of law and respect for individual rights and interests, while ensuring national stability and prosperity. Vietnam said it shows no mercy to the misuse of democratic freedoms to incite unrest.
Master plan to implement 271 recommendations
The UN Human Rights Council’s recent adoption of Vietnam’s national report marks the conclusion of the fourth cycle of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). Vietnam now enters the stage of implementing the recommendations from UN members. Deputy Minister Viet said specific actions will be taken.
Mr. Viet said: "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will continue to work closely with other ministries and agencies to draft and submit a Master Plan for the Prime Minister’s approval. This plan will assign specific responsibilities and tasks to each ministry and sector to implement the recommendations along with a monitoring and evaluation mechanism. Vietnam will conduct a mid-term review of the implementation process and identify areas that need to be accelerated. During this process, Vietnam will continue to work closely with the UN, international partners, and friends to mobilize resources to implement the recommendations."
Vietnam's acceptance of a large number of recommendations and its development of a Master Plan to implement the 271 accepted recommendations underscores its strong commitment to the UPR process and its dedication to advancing human rights.