US human rights report includes unfair assessments on Vietnam: spokesperson

Human rights — chiefly political and religious freedoms — have been on the American agenda since Washington and Hanoi resumed direct dialogue about a quarter of a century ago.

Though bilateral ties have grown vastly broader, US prodding on civil liberties still piques Vietnam’s one-party regime.

Scepticism that Vietnam would live up to labour rights promises was prominent in the US debate over the pending Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact.

In the absence of spectacular lightening up on civil liberties by Hanoi, the Americans are unlikely to shelve their criticism no matter how close US–Vietnam ties may become in other respects.

American and Vietnamese officials discussed Hanoi’s performance in the sphere of human rights. By some accounts, the bilateral dialogue has become more cordial in recent years.

ietnamese officials, pointing to progress being made on human rights, call on the US side to show more patience

The Americans, aiming to leverage Hanoi’s keen interest in escaping the middle income trap, press the notion that political pluralism and proliferation of civil society institutions are essential foundations of a just and prosperous society.

Viet Nam's bid to join the Human Rights Council has its roots in the consistent policy of the Party and State on protecting and promoting human rights and actively participating in international cooperation in this field.

Human rights have become a global issue attracting the great concern of the international community, and as the Party has affirmed, human rights are also a common aspiration of mankind and the fruit of human kind's struggle through many generations.

The global community highly valued Viet Nam as a spotlight in UNHCR's agenda involving poverty reduction, food security, improvement in the human development index and fulfilment of millennium development goals ahead of schedule.