Viet Nam vows to promote human rights

The Deputy Foreign Minister made the point while presenting Viet Nam’s national report at the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC)’s fourth cycle of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) mechanism in Geneva on May 7.

Mr. Do expressed the pride in engaging in the dialogue with other countries on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Dien Bien Phu Victory, at the UN headquarters which witnessed the negotiation and signing of the 1954 Geneva Accords, and significant historical events in the national liberation struggle and anti-imperialist fight of the Vietnamese people and many other nations around the world.

He highlighted Viet Nam’s journey from a poor country to one of the fastest-growing economies being deeply integrated into the global community.

Since the third UPR in 2019, Viet Nam has perfected its legal system and policies regarding human rights, leading to tangible progress.

The rights to healthcare, education, social security, freedom of religion and belief, press freedom, and Internet access and gender equality have all made significant progress. Viet Nam's rankings in the UN's Human Development Index (HDI) and Gender Equality Index (GEI) have also improved.

Particularly, in the 1989-2023 period, Viet Nam’s GDP per capita increased 40 times. Since 1993, over 40 million people escaped from poverty. Over the past 15 years since 2005, the proportion of multidimensional poverty rate was halved. The rights to healthcare, education, social security, freedom of religion and belief, press freedom, and Internet access and gender equality have all made significant progress.

At the dialogue, Viet Nam received about 300 recommendations encompassing a wide range of human rights issues.

The dialogue drew significant international attention, with nearly 140 countries registering to make statements and pose questions to the Vietnamese delegation.

Viet Nam's national UPR report for the fourth cycle was meticulously prepared, with a serious and transparent approach, covering comprehensive content on all human rights. It collected feedback from various central and local agencies, through multiple rounds of consultations with partner countries, non-Governmental organisations, research institutes, and numerous individuals both at home and abroad.

Viet Nam is currently serving its second term as a UNHRC member for 2023-2025 and preparing for re-election for the 2026-2028 term.

On May 10, the UNHRC's UPR Working Group is expected to consider a report on Viet Nam's review, and then to submit it to the UNHRC for the official adoption at the council's 57th session in September-October./.