Viet Nam Human Rights
Therefore, the Government of Vietnam has been striving to combat natural disasters by reducing risks and promoting preparation and development for different climate change-related scenarios. These activities have further affirmed Vietnam’s policies on guaranteeing human rights, especially the rights of vulnerable groups in the society.
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| Vietnam actively responds to climate change. (Photo for illustration: baotainguyenmoitruong.vn) |
It is worth noting that the Government of Vietnam has made a strong political commitment to responding to climate change. At forums on the cooperation on climate change response or during diplomatic meetings, Vietnamese leaders have always emphasized the realization of international commitments and the effective implementation of related international commitments, and wished to coordinate with other countries in the field.
Especially at the 74th session of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in New York (the US) this September, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and other world leaders voiced their support for the birth of an urgent new agreement on people and nature. In a short video screened at the event “Leaders for nature and people,” PM Phuc confirmed that Vietnam is joining the world and making all-out efforts to implement the transition process toward green and circular economic models. Phuc stressed that Vietnam resolutely does not exchange environment for economic development and infringe sustainable development. The Vietnamese Prime Minister said that Vietnam always places climate change response, natural resource management, and environmental protection in important positions in its issued resolutions and development orientations.
It is also worth mentioning one of the initiatives marking Vietnam’s term (2014 - 2016) as a member of the UN Human Rights Council was on climate change. At that time, Vietnam proposed initiatives related to efforts in response to the impacts of climate change, the guarantee of the rights of vulnerable groups, and implementation of sustainable development goals. Based on Vietnam’s initiative, a resolution on climate change, co-authored by Vietnam, the Philippines, and Bangladesh, was approved by the UN Human Rights Council. The resolution focuses on the impacts of climate change on women’s rights.
Remarkably, having outstandingly completed its term, and although the country is no longer a member of the council after holding this position twice, Vietnam has continued to pursue initiatives proposed at the council, including those on responding to climate change and guaranteeing the rights of vulnerable groups. Vietnam will promote similar initiatives and topics related to this issue at bilateral and multilateral forums such as the UN Socio-Economic Council (ECOSOC) and UNESCO Executive Board. In the region, Vietnam can integrate issues of concern in activities of ASEAN mechanisms and ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR).
Vietnam is targeting to run for a seat at the UN Human Rights Council for the third time in order to further pursue and promote its initiatives, including the climate change ones.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet once said that the UN Human Rights Council can play an important role in dealing with climate change. And at the 42nd regular meeting of the council this September, she re-affirmed the priority to promote human rights in the context of climate change and added that the world has never faced a bigger challenge than it is now.
As one of the five countries most severely affected by climate change, Vietnam is acutely aware of the importance of climate change response and the need to focus on adding approaches to protecting the health of the community and vulnerable groups in the society, ensuring the right to food, housing, education, and benefiting from national programs and policies on climate change.
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Climate change is one of biggest challenges to the human beings.
Climate change can lead to serious impacts on production, life and environment on a global scale.
Climate change have been and will continue leading to comprehensive and deep changes in global development and security, especially energy, water, food, society, job, diplomacy, culture, economy and trade.
Viet Nam is considered as one of the countries most affected by climate change, its Mekong Delta is one of the world’s three most vulnerable deltas (together with the Nile Delta in Egypt and the Ganges Delta in Bangladesh) to the sea level rising.
Climate change impacts on Viet Nam are serious threats to the cause of poverty reduction, the realization of millennium goals and the country’s sustainable development.
Over the past years, due to climate change, the frequency and intensity of natural disasters have increased, causing great human and property losses, damaging socio-economic and cultural infrastructure, and imposing negative impacts on environment.
Climate change seriously threatens food security and agricultural development
Viet Nam plans to become a modern industrialized country by 2020, its production and consumption of energies will sharply increase, especially in industries, transport, and urban development, resulting in higher emission of greenhouse gas.
The community’s awareness of climate change is still very limited and one-sided, mainly centering on negative impacts but not on matching life styles, models of production and consumption with orientations of low-carbon and green growth.
At present, a general model of development adopted by developing countries is to exploit natural resources, make use of cheap labor, and cause environment pollution. This is an unsustainable model.
Climate change can open more opportunities for global, multilateral and bilateral cooperation through which such developing countries like Viet Nam can access to new emerging regimes for financial assistance and technological transfer from developed countries.
Climate change is the biggest challenge to human beings, causing deep impacts and comprehensively changing the life on the globe. As one of the worst affected countries, Viet Nam considers the response to climate change a vital issue
Response to climate change is a responsibility of the whole apparatus
the State’s decisive role in management must be highlighted, enterprises’ creativity and responsibility encouraged, socio-political and professional organizations and communities’ participation and supervision brought into full play; it is also necessary to make full use of internal forces and international cooperation
Measures to cope with climate change must be systematical, integrated, interdisciplinary, interregional, and suitable to specific stages and international stipulations
The Strategy on climate change must have a century-long vision and be the foundation for other strategies.
To strengthen people and natural systems’ adaptability to climate change while developing a low-carbon economy in order to protect and improve quality of life, guarantee national security and sustainable development in the context of global climate change, and proactively work with the international community in protecting the earth’s climate system.
Viet Nam should pay a special attention to reducing greenhouse gas emission in order to protect the earth’s climate system.
Strategic tasks will be checked, adjusted and supplemented in line with new development orientations to build and consolidate a low-carbon economy which can resist and adapt to impacts of climate change.
To become a modern industrial country as desired, after 2025, Viet Nam should pay a special attention to reducing greenhouse gas emission in order to protect the earth’s climate system. Its activities to adapt to climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emission should be carried out in combination with socio-economic development.
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