Hanoi (VNA)

- Although Vietnam has performed well the religious work, ensured human rights, contributing t꧙o the cause of renewal, national building and safeguarding, negative impacts stemming from allegations distorting the human rights situation along with wrongful information are still mushrooming on the Internet. So, it is necessary to raise awareness of human rights at the grassroots levels and, at the same time, it is necessary to strengthen a drastic and effective coordination mechanism among ministries, sectors and localities in identifying, explaining, clarifying, and fighting misinformation, protecting the country's image, enhancing the prestige and position of Vietnam in the region and at the international arena.

Staying vigilant against allegations distorting human rights

Human rights are becoming an increasingly important issue in the global political life and one of the three pillars of the United Nations' activities along with peace and security-development. For Vietnam, the Party and State always determine that ensuring and promoting human rights is an across-the-board policy, reflected in a series of documents of the Party, the Government, and the 2013 Constitution, Major General Nguyen Van Ky, Deputy Chief of the standing office of the Government's Steering Committee for Human Rights, told VietnamPlus. The 13th National Party Congress's Resolution emphasises the task of ensuring human rights by affirming: "The people are the centre, the subject of the work of innovation, construction and defence of the Fatherland; all policies must come from the people's life, aspirations, rights and legitimate interests, and take the people's happiness and well-being as a goal." Ky, however, said that hostile forces at home and abroad have often taken advantage of human rights issues to incite activities against the country. In particular, issues related to ethnic minority groups, freedom of religion and belief, freedom of speech, the Internet and human trafficking are being thoroughly exploited to distort, slander, and discredit Vietnam. Several western countries regularly use annual reports to distort and slander the human rights situation in Vietnam, especially those on human rights, religious freedom, and human trafficking. On July 20, 2022, the US Department of State released the 2022 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report. After three consecutive years, from 2019-2021, of being ranked in "Group 2", for the first time Vietnam was downgraded to "Group 3", meaning the country could be subject to US government sanctions. The move, along with some United Nations human rights mechanisms raising concerns related to Vietnamese workers abroad, will significantly affect Vietnam's prestige in the international arena, especially in the context that Vietnam is running for a seat at the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) for the 2023-2025 tenure. Besides, in the country, hostile forces have often distorted guidelines and policies of the Party and State to smear Vietnam’s image and prestige. For the human rights situation in Lai Chau, Standing Vice Chairman of the provincial People's Committee and head of the Steering Committee for Human Rights of Lai Chau Tong Thanh Hai said the authorities have paid special attention to ensuring human rights, and well implemented socio-economic development, ethnicity and religious policies and social security ones to ensure human rights of people from all ethnic groups in the locality. Thanks to these efforts, the security and order situation in Lai Chau is stable, contributing to firmly safeguarding the national border sovereignty and maintaining social order and safety in all situations; keeping complicated problems from arising; and preventing hostile forces from taking advantage of human rights issues to oppose the Party and State, he said. However, the awareness of human rights issues and relevant works of several cadres, civil servants and public employees in some local agencies remain incomplete, Hai said, adding that their basic knowledge of human rights is limited.

Improving awareness, leaving no one behind

To raise awareness and responsibility of all involved in the human rights issues at the grassroots level, a conference on the matter was held in late August by the standing office of the Government's Steering Committee for Human Rights and the committee in Lai Chau province. The hybrid event drew more than 3,100 officials across the province and was connected to 14 localities. This was the first time that the Steering Committee for Human Rights of Lai Chau province has organised a large-scale conference on human rights. Major Ky said it was essential to equip staff directly working on human rights in localities with information and knowledge, and noted that the conference was a chance for discussing measures to further promote human rights in Lai Chau./.