Full-time National Assembly deputies discussed a draft of the Law on Associations on September 8th (Photo: quochoi.vn)

Associations in Vietnam are diverse in size and purpose. As of December, 2014, Vietnam had 52,565 associations including 483 associations operating nationwide and 52,082 local associations. They are categorized as socio-political, socio-political-occupational, socio-occupational, and socio-humanitarian organizations. Associations play an expanding role in giving advice to and criticizing Party guidelines, State policies and laws, and government socio-economic development programs.

The Constitution acknowledges the right to organize associations

Vietnam has many associations because the right to organize associations is specified in the Constitution as a fundamental right of citizens. Article 10 of Vietnam’s first Constitution in 1946 said: “Vietnamese citizens have the right to freedom of speech, freedom of publication, and freedom of organization and meeting, freedom of religion, freedom of residence and traveling locally and overseas.” Article 25 of the 1959 Constitution read: “Citizens of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam have the rights of speech, press, meeting, demonstration, and establishment of associations. The State ensures sufficient conditions for citizens to enjoy these rights.”

Article 67 of the 1980 Constitution stated: “Citizens have the right of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of meeting, freedom of founding associations, and freedom of demonstration in accordance with the interests of the socialist State and people.”

Article 69 of the 1992 Constitution said: “Citizens have freedom of speech and press, the right to information, the right of meeting, the right to found associations, and the right of demonstration in accordance with laws.”

And Article 25 of the 2013 Constitution reads: “Citizens have the right of speech, the right of the press, the right to access information, the right of meeting, the right to found associations, and the right of demonstration.”  The Vietnamese State ensures and protects the right to organize associations in accordance with the International Convention on Political and Civil Rights which states that all people have the right to form associations, including the right to form and join trade unions to protect their interests.

The 6th Congress of the Hanoi Young Entrepreneur Association (Photo: hanoimoi.com.vn)

The State offers favorable conditions for its citizens to form associations

The legislative process in other countries shows that the connection between association organization and state management are key issues in the Law on Associations. It affects the content of regulations on forming an association. The draft Law on Associations contains specific articles on registering an association, an association’s rules, and state management of associations.

The draft Law replaces the wording “ask for permission to form an association” with the phrase “register to form an association” which shows that the State provides a legal corridor for forming associations and acknowledges the importance of associations in society.

Respecting fundamental human rights

The draft Law on Associations creates favorable conditions for citizens to associate and promotes voluntary, self-managed, responsible associations, with minimal state management to ensure political security and social order.

Vietnam is a signatory to the UN Convention on political and civil rights and the International Declaration on Human Rights, so the draft law also addresses the right of foreigners living and working legally in Vietnam to join associations.