Vietnamplus

The Party and State have always created optimal conditions for religious organisations and individuals to practice their religions and beliefs.

The 9th National Buddhist Congress, an important event held in accordance with the Charter of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha (VBS), is set to review Buddhist affairs during 2017 - 2022 and identify orientations for Buddhist activities and the VBS’s tasks for the 2022 - 2027 tenure.

The Party and State of Vietnam have been making continuous efforts to perfect policies and legal regulations on religion and belief.

The Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Committee of Ho Chi Minh City held a meeting with the representative committee of the local Muslim community on July 4 on the occasion of Raya Aidil Adha – a major holiday on the Islamic calendar.

Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the United Nations (UN), has emphasised Vietnam’s consistent policy of ensuring and promoting the right to freedom of belief and religion of all people, without any discrimination.

Throughout the “Doi moi” (Renewal) process, the belief and religious life in Vietnam has changed towards greater freedom and progress, with belief and religious activities taking place vibrantly, and the right to belief and religious freedom better protected, which has been recognised by the international community.

The Hanoi People’s Court is set to open a trial on November 4 for a 43-year-old woman charged with “conducting propaganda against the State of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam”.

The Government Committee for Religious Affairs held a meeting with foreign religious practitioners on April 27 to inform about legal regulations on beliefs and religions, and the realisation of the right to freedom of belief or religion of foreigners legally residing in Vietnam.

The management of religious and worshipping places is one of the issues of great interest of National Assembly deputies at the question-and-answer session in the June 6 morning.

Vice President and Secretary General of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee (VFFCC) Hau A Lenh offered Easter greetings to Protestants while visiting the Evangelical Church of Vietnam (North) in Hanoi on April 22.

The adoption of the Law on Belief and Religion in 2016 was an important legal reform in Vietnam, creating a firm legal framework to better ensure citizens’ rights to freedom of belief and religion.

Chairman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee Tran Thanh Man and other Party and State officials visited the Hanoi Archdiocese and the Evangelical Church of Vietnam (North) on December 12 on the occasion of the upcoming Christmas.

The US Department of State’s 2017 International Religious Freedom Report continued to give biased assessment and cited untrue information on Vietnam.

President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Central Committee Tran Thanh Man has congratulated Buddhists in the southern provinces of Soc Trang and Dong Nai on Lord Buddha’s 2,562nd birth anniversary (15th day of the fourth lunar month, or May 29 this year).

The Government Committee for Religious Affairs held a conference in Hanoi on May 11 to introduce the Law on Belief and Religion

People in temporary custody or detention are now allowed to read scriptures and express their religious beliefs, according to a decree recently issued by the Government.

President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee Tran Thanh Man hailed the constructive response of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha to patriotic movements and campaigns launched by the VFF.

The Evangelical Church of Vietnam (North) opened its 35th General Assembly on October 17 with the participation of representatives from the Vietnam Fatherland Front and the Government Committee for Religious Affairs and about 1,500 delegates.

Vietnam has adopted policies to enable ethnic minority groups to develop equally, helping to gradually bridge development gaps with the rest of the population, said National Assembly (NA) Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan.

The 2016 International Religious Freedom Annual Report of the US State Department still included some unobjective assessments and cited wrong information about Vietnam, according to Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang.