Women’s right to political participation in Vietnam: challenges and opportunities set forth by the 2013 constitution

• Main Author: Nguyen, Binh An
• Other Authors: Asian constitutional law recent developments and trends : Vietnam, Hanoi, 6th and 7th December 2019. Volume 1
• Format: Conference or Workshop Item
• Language: Vietnamese
• Published: Đại học Quốc Gia Hà Nội 2020
• Subjects: women’s right; human rights; gender equality; women liberation; the 2013 Constitution
• Online Access: http://repository.vnu.edu.vn/handle/VNU_123/94764
• Institution: Vietnam National University, Hanoi

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights and entitled to all the rights and freedoms regardless of race, color, gender, religion, and origin. In recent years, women’s right to political participation has received significant attention across the world and has been recognized internationally as an important measure of women’s status in a particular country. Therefore, women’s participation in national, local, and communal leadership has been one of the important goals of the global development policy. In Vietnam, women’s right to political participation is assured by the Constitution. The 2013 Constitution specifies legal frameworks and conditions for women’s comprehensive development and guarantees their right to political participation. This recognition has provided opportunities in respect of promotion, protection, and assurance of women’s right to political participation in legal documents; but in actual practice, legislative efforts to liberate women politically still face a lot of challenges, without yielding the desired results. This article studies current Vietnamese women’s right to political participation from the perspective of institutionalization of women’s constitutional rights in the system of legal documents. Based on the United Nations’ reports, international norms and conventions, constitutional provisions, statutory enactments, reports from non-governmental organizations, and other works of legal scientists who contributed a lot towards the evolution and growth of feminist jurisprudence and studies, the article analyzes achievements and existing challenges. It then proposes some recommendations to perfect the law on women’s right to political participation, with the aim of assuring the equal representation of women in politics and creating the prosperity and sustainable development of the country.