According to official figures, a total of 8,056 inmates have been granted early release under this year’s amnesty.

Medical interventions are now non-obligatory for people who want to be recognised as transgender, and trans men are eligible for maternity leave should they be pregnant.

The lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and queer (LGBTQ) community in Vietnam has faced legal barriers as the law currently only recognises two genders, without any acknowledgement of other gender identifications or of same-sex marriage, said Dinh Thi Thu Thuy, head of the Department of Law under the Ministry of Health.

Vietnam has seen a radical change in lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender (LGBT) rights over the last decade as the State has made significant steps to protect rights and equality.

Malaysia and Indonesia are considering the export restriction against palm oil to the European Union seriously and ready to take joint action to counter the discrimination.

Deputy Director of the VAAC Hoang Dinh Canh has denied rumours that Vietnam will not continue providing methadone treatment due to claims it is ineffective for synthetic drug addicts.

The number of new HIV infection cases in Malaysia declined 34 percent in the last six years, higher than the regional average of 13 percent.

The Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA) held a conference in Hanoi on June 22 to discuss spreading successful drug rehabilitation models.

As many as 97 prisoners, including six foreigners, in the Phu Son Prison 4 in Phu Luong district, the northern province of Thai Nguyen, were granted the President’s amnesty in 2016.

Vietnam will face a huge budget deficit in health services for people with HIV/AIDS in the next five years, said an official from the HIV/AIDS Prevention Agency.

Organisations and people who have greatly contributed to HIV/AIDS prevention and control in Vietnam were honoured with the Red Ribbon Awards in Ho Chi Minh City on November 25.

One hundred winners of the 45th Universal Postal Union (UPU) International Letter Writing Contest in Vietnam were honoured at a ceremony in the northern province of Vinh Phuc on May 20.

Mobilising the entire community at home and abroad in protecting and caring for children affected by HIV/AIDs is one of the goals set for 2014-2020, by a workshop in Hanoi.

Discrimination against men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender women can affect their ability to get health services and increase the risk of HIV infection.

The UN Women, the Belgian Embassy and the Belgian Development Agency in Vietnam jointly launched a comic and cartoon painting competition on gender equality in Hanoi on November 24.

Up to 100,000 people living with HIV nationwide are currently being treated with antiretroviral (ARV) drug as a result of the on-going effective HIV/AIDS prevention and control programme in Vietnam.