Vietnam has reiterated its commitment to ensuring and promoting humanrights at the 25th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council(UN HCR) in Geneva, Switzerland.
Deputy PrimeMinister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh, who leads the Vietnamesedelegation, made the statement in his speech at the session’s high-levelsegment which opened on March 3. This is the first time Vietnam hasattended the event as a member of the UN HCR.
The following is the full text of the speech
“Mr. President,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
On behalf of the Vietnamese delegation, I would like to express my highappreciation for the leadership of Mr. President and members of theBureau. I am confident it will ensure the success of the High-LevelSegment and the 25th Session as well as the success of the Human RightsCouncil throughout 2014.
Mr. President,
Peace,stability and development continue to be the essential elements thatform a solid foundation for the protection and promotion of human rightsand freedoms. We are encouraged by the progress in the past years inthe enhancement of awareness on human rights, legal and actualdevelopment to further promote and protect fundamental rights andfreedoms. Yet, there remain challenges with far-reaching impacts onpeople’s life, safety and essential needs. Among them are poverty, foodshortage, water pollution, natural disasters, pandemics and climatechange, aggravated by the after-effect of the economic and financialdownturn, social turmoil and instabilities in some areas of the world.Particularly, religious and ethnic conflicts, serious human rightsviolations and prolonged humanitarian crisis in some regions not onlyaffect the guarantee of fundamental human rights and freedoms, but alsoregional peace and stability.
Such circumstances entailboth challenges and opportunities for the international community,including the United Nations and its bodies, to meet expectations in thefield of human rights. As the United Nations’ core body in humanrights, the Human Rights Council has been playing a central role inpromoting dialogue and cooperation among countries, and thus upholdinghuman rights in practice. With a balanced agenda covering all civil,social, economic, political, cultural rights and a large number ofresolutions adopted with consensus, the Human Rights Council hasrealized its political will in a growing effective manner. With suchmechanisms as UPR and Special Procedures, the Human Rights Council hasbeen able to adopt an objective and comprehensive approach, and findssuitable ways to support, promote and protect human rights in aconstructive manner.
The world today also presents theHuman Rights Council with a great opportunity to vindicate its uniqueposition, prestige and relevance in dealing with human rights-relatedchallenges. On the one hand, it is necessary for the Council to continueto promote new cross-regional initiatives. On the other hand, theCouncil needs to support countries’ national socio-economic developmentpolicies to better ensure the exercise of human rights in practice,especially in the basic domains of human life such as housing, cleanwater, education and health care. Special care should be given tochildren, women, the elderly and vulnerable groups. It is necessary todirect more support to the specific needs of developing countries, thelate runners in this field, who face many difficulties in protecting andpromoting human rights for their people. Technical cooperation andcapacity building can be very helpful in such situations. More than everbefore, the Human Rights Council is in a position to facilitateconstructive dialogue and cooperation among countries, on the basis ofrespect and understanding, especially when it comes directly to seriousviolations or crises of human rights. Dialogue and cooperation remainthe key for all Human Rights Council members, observers and otherstakeholders to build an even more active and efficient Council withoutbias, politicization and division. This is exactly the approach thatVietnam strongly supports and wishes to promote at the Human RightsCouncil.
As a new member of the Human Rights Council,Vietnam is committed to playing its role with the highest level ofresponsibility, and will substantively contribute to the work of theCouncil. Viet Nam is a reliable partner who is willing to discusscandidly and work constructively on all the matters related to humanrights, including those of high interest such as social security,sustainable development, social-economic-cultural rights, as well as therights of vulnerable groups. Vietnam will also try to attract moreattention from the Human Rights Council to the specific needs andcircumstances of developing countries who face new challenges such asclimate change, environmental degradation and the exhaustion of naturalresources in their cause of human rights protection and promotion.
Mr. President,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Vietnam pursues a consistent policy of protecting and promotinghuman rights, considering the well-being of each and every person as thegoal and driving force of the national development process. This policynot only reflects the long-cherished aspiration of the Vietnamesepeople, but also connotes the universality of human rights. With such apolicy, the State of Vietnam has been exerting considerable efforts inprotecting and promoting human rights, as demonstrated in laws, policiesand the actual accomplishments.
After nearly 30 years ofDoi Moi , Vietnam has recorded many positive and outstandingachievements. The annual economic growth rate of 6-7 percent has createdgood conditions for the implementation of various programmes, socialwelfare policies and the improvement of people’s living standards.Vietnam has completed five out of eight MDGs ahead of schedule andappeared likely to complete all goals by 2015. Also, the UNDP Report onHuman Development recognized Vietnam as a top ten performer in termsof income growth in the last 40 years. Vietnamese people arecontinuously updated on all aspects of the international life throughthe availability of nearly 1000 print newspapers, 1174 e-portals, 67broadcasting stations, the world’s key broadcasting companies, andmostly the Internet. According to the International TelecommunicationUnion’s report, Vietnam ranks third and eighth in Southeast Asiaand Asia , respectively, in terms of internet users. Anyone comes toVietnam can see the diverse and vivid development of religious andbelief activities. Almost all major religions of the world are presentand living together peacefully. The number of dignitaries, followers,places of worship, publications, etc increases gradually. It can be saidthat the people of Vietnam has never been enjoying such a high livingquality with all of their freedom thoroughly manifested in civil,cultural, economic, political and social domains.
Inrecent years, notwithstanding the domestic economic difficulties partlydue to the global economic and financial context, Vietnam has not cutdown any social security programmes but also enhances its social welfarepolicies in order to improve the life of the people, particularlywomen, children, ethnic minorities, people in remote and disadvantagedareas. In 2011-2012, over 1 billion USD was spent for health insurancesubsidies for the poor and the ethnic minorities, free healthcare tochildren under 6 years old and tuition free exemption and lunchsubsidies to the poor children and ethnic minority children. Especially,the adoption of the 2013 Constitution by the National Assembly onNovember 28th 2013 after receiving millions of public inputs, with 36provisions in the Chapter II exclusively dedicated to human rights andthe rights and obligations of Vietnamese citizens, is obviously a stepforward toward the rule-of-law state and institutionalized human rightsin conformity with the international norms and standards on humanrights. This is also a testimony to the consistency of Vietnam ’spolicy and the social consensus on human rights protection andpromotion.
Over the past years, Vietnam has signed andacceded to most of the core international conventions on human rights,seriously delivered on the treaty obligation to present nationalperiodic reports, conducted human rights dialogues with countries andpartners. We have actively participated in regional efforts on humanrights protection and promotion, including those of ASEAN. Inparticular, Vietnam attaches special importance to the work of theHuman Rights Council and always actively participates in its activities.We have worked closely with the mechanisms of the Human Rights Councilin the past seven years. In February 2014, Vietnam presented theNational Report under the 2nd cycle of the Universal Periodic Review andhad a productive dialogue at the UPR working group session on Vietnam. During the well-attended session, many constructive comments andrecommendations were made. Vietnam is now seriously examining allreceived recommendations.
Vietnam was delighted andencouraged by the acknowledgement and high appreciation of theinternational community for our efforts, achievements and commitments tothe promotion of human rights. Vietnam strongly believes its membershipin the Human Rights Council for the term 2014-2016 reflects not onlythe appreciation and confidence from the United Nations members forVietnam but this is also a precious opportunity for Vietnam to learngood practices and experience from the international community for thecause of Doi Moi and the promotion and protection of human rights in thecountry.
Mr. President,
All governments in thisworld share the common goal of better protecting and promoting humanrights. Differences may prevail here and there regarding the perceptionand assessment of human rights due to diverse historical, cultural anddevelopment backgrounds. Nevertheless, since the adoption of the commonunderstanding on the fundamental freedoms and human rights nearly 70years ago, the international community has made enormous efforts toensure freedoms, rights and other values of mankind. In this respect,the Human Rights Council has been entrusted with a vanguard mission inthe protection and promotion of human rights in the world. Given itsexperience, lessons learnt and resolve, Vietnam stands ready toshare and cooperate with all countries in contributing to this noblecause of the Human Rights Council.
I thank you.-VNA
Deputy PrimeMinister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh, who leads the Vietnamesedelegation, made the statement in his speech at the session’s high-levelsegment which opened on March 3. This is the first time Vietnam hasattended the event as a member of the UN HCR.
The following is the full text of the speech
“Mr. President,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
On behalf of the Vietnamese delegation, I would like to express my highappreciation for the leadership of Mr. President and members of theBureau. I am confident it will ensure the success of the High-LevelSegment and the 25th Session as well as the success of the Human RightsCouncil throughout 2014.
Mr. President,
Peace,stability and development continue to be the essential elements thatform a solid foundation for the protection and promotion of human rightsand freedoms. We are encouraged by the progress in the past years inthe enhancement of awareness on human rights, legal and actualdevelopment to further promote and protect fundamental rights andfreedoms. Yet, there remain challenges with far-reaching impacts onpeople’s life, safety and essential needs. Among them are poverty, foodshortage, water pollution, natural disasters, pandemics and climatechange, aggravated by the after-effect of the economic and financialdownturn, social turmoil and instabilities in some areas of the world.Particularly, religious and ethnic conflicts, serious human rightsviolations and prolonged humanitarian crisis in some regions not onlyaffect the guarantee of fundamental human rights and freedoms, but alsoregional peace and stability.
Such circumstances entailboth challenges and opportunities for the international community,including the United Nations and its bodies, to meet expectations in thefield of human rights. As the United Nations’ core body in humanrights, the Human Rights Council has been playing a central role inpromoting dialogue and cooperation among countries, and thus upholdinghuman rights in practice. With a balanced agenda covering all civil,social, economic, political, cultural rights and a large number ofresolutions adopted with consensus, the Human Rights Council hasrealized its political will in a growing effective manner. With suchmechanisms as UPR and Special Procedures, the Human Rights Council hasbeen able to adopt an objective and comprehensive approach, and findssuitable ways to support, promote and protect human rights in aconstructive manner.
The world today also presents theHuman Rights Council with a great opportunity to vindicate its uniqueposition, prestige and relevance in dealing with human rights-relatedchallenges. On the one hand, it is necessary for the Council to continueto promote new cross-regional initiatives. On the other hand, theCouncil needs to support countries’ national socio-economic developmentpolicies to better ensure the exercise of human rights in practice,especially in the basic domains of human life such as housing, cleanwater, education and health care. Special care should be given tochildren, women, the elderly and vulnerable groups. It is necessary todirect more support to the specific needs of developing countries, thelate runners in this field, who face many difficulties in protecting andpromoting human rights for their people. Technical cooperation andcapacity building can be very helpful in such situations. More than everbefore, the Human Rights Council is in a position to facilitateconstructive dialogue and cooperation among countries, on the basis ofrespect and understanding, especially when it comes directly to seriousviolations or crises of human rights. Dialogue and cooperation remainthe key for all Human Rights Council members, observers and otherstakeholders to build an even more active and efficient Council withoutbias, politicization and division. This is exactly the approach thatVietnam strongly supports and wishes to promote at the Human RightsCouncil.
As a new member of the Human Rights Council,Vietnam is committed to playing its role with the highest level ofresponsibility, and will substantively contribute to the work of theCouncil. Viet Nam is a reliable partner who is willing to discusscandidly and work constructively on all the matters related to humanrights, including those of high interest such as social security,sustainable development, social-economic-cultural rights, as well as therights of vulnerable groups. Vietnam will also try to attract moreattention from the Human Rights Council to the specific needs andcircumstances of developing countries who face new challenges such asclimate change, environmental degradation and the exhaustion of naturalresources in their cause of human rights protection and promotion.
Mr. President,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Vietnam pursues a consistent policy of protecting and promotinghuman rights, considering the well-being of each and every person as thegoal and driving force of the national development process. This policynot only reflects the long-cherished aspiration of the Vietnamesepeople, but also connotes the universality of human rights. With such apolicy, the State of Vietnam has been exerting considerable efforts inprotecting and promoting human rights, as demonstrated in laws, policiesand the actual accomplishments.
After nearly 30 years ofDoi Moi , Vietnam has recorded many positive and outstandingachievements. The annual economic growth rate of 6-7 percent has createdgood conditions for the implementation of various programmes, socialwelfare policies and the improvement of people’s living standards.Vietnam has completed five out of eight MDGs ahead of schedule andappeared likely to complete all goals by 2015. Also, the UNDP Report onHuman Development recognized Vietnam as a top ten performer in termsof income growth in the last 40 years. Vietnamese people arecontinuously updated on all aspects of the international life throughthe availability of nearly 1000 print newspapers, 1174 e-portals, 67broadcasting stations, the world’s key broadcasting companies, andmostly the Internet. According to the International TelecommunicationUnion’s report, Vietnam ranks third and eighth in Southeast Asiaand Asia , respectively, in terms of internet users. Anyone comes toVietnam can see the diverse and vivid development of religious andbelief activities. Almost all major religions of the world are presentand living together peacefully. The number of dignitaries, followers,places of worship, publications, etc increases gradually. It can be saidthat the people of Vietnam has never been enjoying such a high livingquality with all of their freedom thoroughly manifested in civil,cultural, economic, political and social domains.
Inrecent years, notwithstanding the domestic economic difficulties partlydue to the global economic and financial context, Vietnam has not cutdown any social security programmes but also enhances its social welfarepolicies in order to improve the life of the people, particularlywomen, children, ethnic minorities, people in remote and disadvantagedareas. In 2011-2012, over 1 billion USD was spent for health insurancesubsidies for the poor and the ethnic minorities, free healthcare tochildren under 6 years old and tuition free exemption and lunchsubsidies to the poor children and ethnic minority children. Especially,the adoption of the 2013 Constitution by the National Assembly onNovember 28th 2013 after receiving millions of public inputs, with 36provisions in the Chapter II exclusively dedicated to human rights andthe rights and obligations of Vietnamese citizens, is obviously a stepforward toward the rule-of-law state and institutionalized human rightsin conformity with the international norms and standards on humanrights. This is also a testimony to the consistency of Vietnam ’spolicy and the social consensus on human rights protection andpromotion.
Over the past years, Vietnam has signed andacceded to most of the core international conventions on human rights,seriously delivered on the treaty obligation to present nationalperiodic reports, conducted human rights dialogues with countries andpartners. We have actively participated in regional efforts on humanrights protection and promotion, including those of ASEAN. Inparticular, Vietnam attaches special importance to the work of theHuman Rights Council and always actively participates in its activities.We have worked closely with the mechanisms of the Human Rights Councilin the past seven years. In February 2014, Vietnam presented theNational Report under the 2nd cycle of the Universal Periodic Review andhad a productive dialogue at the UPR working group session on Vietnam. During the well-attended session, many constructive comments andrecommendations were made. Vietnam is now seriously examining allreceived recommendations.
Vietnam was delighted andencouraged by the acknowledgement and high appreciation of theinternational community for our efforts, achievements and commitments tothe promotion of human rights. Vietnam strongly believes its membershipin the Human Rights Council for the term 2014-2016 reflects not onlythe appreciation and confidence from the United Nations members forVietnam but this is also a precious opportunity for Vietnam to learngood practices and experience from the international community for thecause of Doi Moi and the promotion and protection of human rights in thecountry.
Mr. President,
All governments in thisworld share the common goal of better protecting and promoting humanrights. Differences may prevail here and there regarding the perceptionand assessment of human rights due to diverse historical, cultural anddevelopment backgrounds. Nevertheless, since the adoption of the commonunderstanding on the fundamental freedoms and human rights nearly 70years ago, the international community has made enormous efforts toensure freedoms, rights and other values of mankind. In this respect,the Human Rights Council has been entrusted with a vanguard mission inthe protection and promotion of human rights in the world. Given itsexperience, lessons learnt and resolve, Vietnam stands ready toshare and cooperate with all countries in contributing to this noblecause of the Human Rights Council.
I thank you.-VNA
