The rule of law on religion in Vietnam: Consistency and Reality
Chapter 3: The rule of law on religion in Vietnam: The development of the legal system on religion
3.1, Ho Chi Minh and Foundation of Law on Religion
3.2, The process of perfecting the Law on Religion
3.3, Rule of law on religion - A success of political reform in Vietnam
THE RULE OF LAW ON RELIGION IN VIETNAM: THE
Ho Chi Minh and Foundation of Law on RelIg1on s5ss<s++s<+2 46 3.2 The process of perfecting the Law on ReÌig1on -. - ô ô<< x+<e<+ssx+ 51 3.3 The rule of law on religion - A success of political reform in Vietnam
3.2, The process of perfecting the Law on Religion
3.3, Rule of law on religion - A success of political reform in Vietnam
CHAPTER 1 RELIGIOUS LIFE IN VIETNAM AND THE NEED TO BUILD A RULE
OF LAW STATE 1.1 Religious life in Vietnam in the period 2004 to 2016
Vietnam, which is situated in southeast Asia, has a rich cultural heritage and a history of several thousand years of building and defending the nation. There are 54 ethnic groups living in Vietnam These groups have different traditional cultures, religions, and beliefs imbued with their respective ethnic characteristics Each group has its own culture within Vietnam's community of ethnic groups, yet all these ethnic groups share a common practice of polytheistic worship.
Whether following exogenous or native religions, Vietnamese believers, in general, are influenced by polytheism, a spirit of religious tolerance, and nationalism Patriotism is a valued tradition of religious followers and the vast majority of religious leaders in Vietnam More than anyone else, Vietnamese religious believers understand that religious freedom can exist only when the homeland is independent.
As residents of a multi-religion country, Vietnamese religious followers are devoted to the nation while at the same time taking an active part in social and cultural life, thus contributing to Vietnam's rich, diverse, and distinctive culture Vietnam is a tolerant and moderate country in terms of inter-religious relations and has a tradition of religious unity and national unity in the defense and building up of the nation The peaceful co-existence and tolerance among different religions, together with the compassionate and human nature of the Vietnamese people and their society, create a lively picture of beliefs and religions living together in Vietnam: singular yet various, intermingling yet without discord In Vietnam today, the harmony between religions and the state is quite apparent Thus, conflicts between religions have not occurred in Vietnam Overall national unity, including unity among religions, is the country's
10 source of strength and the decisive factor that ensures victory in the cause of defending and building the homeland.
Vietnam’s weakness is, up to now, yet to have any genuine religious demography However, with the available data (officially from state and actuality), we still can give the followings:
- First, although Vietnam is truly a multi-religious society, so far, Vietnam still is a majority “non-religious” society (about 70%).
- Second, Protestantism is a religion with sudden growth.
- Third, religious reconfiguration: in social and legal aspects, the word
“religion” denotes inherently only six recognized religions before 2005, and until the end of 2012 are 13 (corresponding to 32 their organizations)’.
- Fourth, the census of Religion in Vietnam has not reflected the diversity of religious life in the family and interrelationship among religions in the religious geography aspect
- Fifth, in the religious geography aspect: at present, (1) southern Vietnam is the central point of religious issues, at least in terms of demography; (2) with three main religions: Buddhism, Catholicism, and Protestantism, the Southern region remain the center of these religions.
When embarking on building a rule of law state on religion, the Vietnamese immediately turned to China's experiences to apply The book
“Religions and Religious life in China” states that:
Here is a summary of the Chinese government policy towards religions:
One Citizens have the right to believe or not to believe in a religion It is all up to the individual citizen to decide whether to believe in a religion and what religion he or she chooses Decisions on such matters are regarded as private affairs.
? Source: Government religious committee in 2022, the number of recognized religionsn is 16, while the number of religious organizations is 43
The People's Republic of China Constitution provides citizens with full freedom to believe in regions or not to believe in religions A religious believer must give up his or her religious belief in order to join the Party In China, whether to join the Party or convert to a religion depends on the free will of the individual citizen.
Two The Chinese government policy towards religions calls for the separation of religions from the government Religions are not allowed to interpose in administrative, judicial, and educational affairs that should be handled by the government, and neither are religions allowed to interfere in believers' marriages Meanwhile, the government is not allowed to interfere in the internal affairs of the religious circles, and the state does not promote religion in its favor or ban a religion it dislikes.
Third Religious activities must be undertaken within limits prescribed by the Constitution and the relevant laws and government policies While exercising the right to freedom of religious belief, citizens must on no account abuse the right to engage in any illegal activity or activity detrimental to the interests of the state, society, and other citizens.
Four All religions are equal China does not have a "dominating" religion. All religions, large or small in terms of the number of followers and influence, are treated as equals and given the same political status and legal rights.
Five The government policy calls for mutual respect between theism and atheism, between those who are religious and those who stand for atheism To properly handle the relationship between theists and atheists and between citizens believing in different religions, the government holds that religious activities, in general, should be undertaken at religious sites In other words, no one is allowed to propagate atheism at religious sites or start a debate on atheism vs theism with religious people Likewise, religious organizations and followers should not do preaching and propagate doctrine outside religious sites.
Six The various religions are required to operate under the principle of independence and run religious affairs on their own That means that Chinese religions brook no interference by foreign forces in their internal affairs and that
China does not allow the use of religions by such forces to interfere in its internal affairs.!°
Regarding state management of religious organizations in China, Song Ji also said,
All the five major religions practiced in China have their own organizations Included are seven national organizations, namely: the Buddhist Association of China, China Taoist Association, China Islamic Association, Three-Self Patriotic Movement Committee of the Protestant Churches of China, China Christian Council, Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association, and Chinese Catholic Bishop College There are also 3,000 religious organizations operating at different local levels.
Under China's legal system, all social organizations must register with the competent government authorities for legitimacy, and, as a matter of course, religious organizations are no exceptions According to the Methods for Administering Registration of Religious Organizations published in 1991 by the Religious Affairs Bureau of the State Council, a religious organization must meet the following conditions for registration:
1 The said organization shall have a name, a permanent address, and a responsible person.
2 The said organization's articles of association shall not go against the People's Republic of China Constitution and the relevant laws and government statutes.
3 The said organization shall have a legitimate source of financing. © Sang Ji, Religions and religious life in China, Governement Policy towards Religions and Religious
4 The religious classics used by the said organization and the teachings and commandments that it follows should be good enough to stand verification through textual research, fall in line with the development of an existing religion in China, and in no way go against provisions of its own articles of association.
5 Members of the said organization's leading bodies should be widely representative !!
1.2 The international context and issues raised in the construction of the rule of law state on religion in Vietnam
The process of reforming religious policy in Vietnam is also associated with the international context of globalization, opening for integration, and especially creating common ground with the religious freedom policy and human rights of America and Western countries The article of J Daugherty, Hien Vu "Engaging communist East Asia: Recommendations for religious freedom", partly reflects that situation when the authors argue that: “Due to their divergence in histories and governing ideologies, it is easy to be skeptical about the possibility of finding common ground between the U.S and Communist East
Asia (CEA) regarding religious freedom” !”
ãa 75 REFERENCES Án HH HH HH HH TH ng 78
The term the Socialist rule of law state of Vietnam first appeared in the document of the Communist Party of Vietnam - PCV (January 1994) Since then, in many Party’s congresses, especially in recent years (the 10th to the 13rd Congresses), new phrases in our country's socio-political language such as
"implementing religious policy, religious laws", and particularly "building a rule of law state on religion" has emphasized more and more.
This implicitly opened up a new research direction for researchers in the social sciences, law, and religion Even though the concept of the Rule of Law State, which is understood as the management of society by law It covers the government to protect citizens from the arbitrary behavior of the state and society in general while regulating the relationship between interests This principle ensures that citizens are treated fairly and subject to the law, not merely those of power Since the late 1990s, the view of PCV has always affirmed that the socialist rule of law state in Vietnam is a state of the people, by the people, and for the people In which the fundamentality is that the state must be associated with the democratization of society.
Thus, through the experience of building the rule of law and religious state from 2004 to now, the following observations can be drawn:
Firstly, the religious freedom policy in Vietnam was acknowledged early and consistently Until now, this policy has been carried out in two directions.
On the one hand, it is being legitimised in the direction of international conventions and in line with the basic requirements of socialism and sovereign of the country On the other hand, the implementation of the religious freedom policy in Vietnam must be side by side with national solidarity, independence, and socialism building Not only the religion considered close to the national practices like Buddhism but also other religions that had participated in the anti-
75 revolutionary schemes like Catholicism, Caodaism, Hoa Hao, and Buddhism were given opportunities to return to the country.
Secondly, in dealing with religion, it is necessary to define subjects, religions—the governing subjects of state management This standpoint is proven right until now, but the face of the country has changed a lot now Given the promulgation of Law on Beliefs and Religion and the instruction recently has offered favorable condition, dealing with this new face In the current context, when religious life is being globalized, the question of the legal personality/status of religions is quite critical and pressing Therefore, it is essential to reform the state administration over this matter.
The religious policy and rule of law state are new sentences in the social- political dictionary in Viet Nam Understanding them are for most condition for continuing renovation and improving religious policy and religious law today.
Surely that, understanding reasoning on religious policy and rule of law state on religion which are closely associated realities This dominates not only academics but also attracts more and more political, authority world, including state administrative institutions on religion in all three areas legislature, law and juristice.
The bottom line is, to achieve freedom of religion and belief, in Vietnam as well as in the world, it is still an arduous journey, depending on the historical conditions and religious policies of each country and region In Vietnam, since the Communist Party of Vietnam decided to renew its religious policy since the late 1990s, Vietnam has made positive changes in its awareness of religion and belief to the innovation of guidelines, policies, and behavior with religions in the direction of a socialist rule of law state on religion In addition, Vietnam also focused on building and forming the secular state model and promoting the construction of a legal system on religion, especially in the 2004-2016 period.
As a result, religious life in Vietnam is stable and there are bright spots on the path of great national and religious unity; religions increasingly clearly show their role as social resources, accompanying the nation in the cause of building socialism This is considered one of the most crucial achievements of the innovation career over the past 30 years.
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