VN’s outstanding achievements in human rights protection

The Spokesperson made the announcement yesterday in Ha Noi at the ministry’s regular press conference. She also briefed the press about these outstanding achievements which were contained in the country's third-cycle UPR that was officially submitted to the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC).

The UPR is an inter-governmental mechanism of the UNHRC, aimed at reviewing issues related to the human rights of all UN member countries. It was made periodically every four or five years to the principle of dialogue, cooperation, equality, objectivity, transparency, and construction.  

“Viet Nam supports the UNHRC’s UPR and is always serious in making the review and implementing the recommendations it accepted in the first-cycle UPR in 2009 and the second-cycle UPR in 2014,” the Spokesperson said.

The third-cycle UPR deals comprehensively with the guarantee of human rights in Viet Nam since the second-cycle UPR, updates laws and policies pertaining to human rights, reports on the outcomes of ensuring human rights across the board, and screens the implementation of the recommendations Viet Nam accepted in the second-cycle UPR. The report also defines prioritized commitments of the country in the coming years.

As of October 10, 2018, Viet Nam implemented 175 out of the 182 recommendations it accepted in the second-cycle UPR, or 96.2%. The remaining seven recommendations are being implemented or are being considered for implementation at an appropriate time. 

The report lists a number of outstanding achievements of Viet Nam in ensuring human rights, including the adoption of the 2013 Constitution and the revision and issuance of over 90 legal documents relating to the guarantee of human rights.

Viet Nam’s income per capita has increased continuously and the income of poor households has risen from between 15-20%. Meanwhile, the multi-dimensional poverty rate decreased from 9.88% in 2015 to 7.69 % last year. Some 38% of ethnic minorities have moved to the group with higher economic conditions (the national level is 28%).

Universal kindergarten education for five-year-old children and universal primary education have been done in all 63 cities and provinces. The percentage of women owning enterprises hits 27.8% while the percentage of female National Assembly deputies in the 2016-2021 tenure is 26.71%.

There were achievements in ensuring civil and political rights, including the right to equality before the law, the freedom of the press and the Internet freedom./.