Summary of Doctoral thesis: Implementing the law on women’s political rights in Vietnam

From a theoretical and historical perspective, the thesis studies the theoretical and practical issues of law and implementation of political rights for women. Since then, the dissertation has demonstrated the scientific basis and proposed the views, solutions to ensure the implementation of political rights of women in Vietnam today.

NGUYEN THI THU HA

IMPLEMENTING THE LAW ON WOMEN’S POLITICAL RIGHTS IN VIETNAM

SUMMARY OF DOCTORAL THESIS Field of study: Theory and History of the State and the Law

Code: 62 38 01 01

HA NOI - 2018

Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics

Supervisors: 1 ASSOC PROF., DR NGUYEN THI BAO

At date month year 2018

The thesis can be found at the National Library and The Library of Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics

INTRODUCTION

1 The necessity of the thesis

In Vietnam, paying attention to women’s works is a consistent viewpoint

of the Party and State throughout the revolution In the Testament, President Ho Chi Minh wrote: In the cause of fighting against America, saving the country, our country’s women made great contribution in combat and in production The Party and the Government need to have a practical plan to foster, raise and help

so that more women are in charge of every job, including leadership jobs Women themselves must strive to rise It is a revolution that leads to true equality for women

In particular, during the Doi moi period, the Party's policy on gender equality and women's empowerment was reflected throughout the resolutions of the Party Congress, resolutions and directives of the Party Central Committee, the Politburo, The Secretariat on mass work, the mobilization of women, the work of female cadres From the policy of the Party, the State has promulgated a number of specific policies and laws to create conditions for women to develop and promote gender equality, in which the most important thing is to ensure and create conditions for Vietnamese women to exercise their political rights

Equality between men and women was determined right from the first constitution of 1946 by the Democratic Republic of Vietnam This issue continues to be inherited in the 1959, 1980, 1992, and 2013 Constitutions, and

is subject to specific laws and regulations A series of legal documents of the State have been issued to enhance the status of women in society and to implement gender equality such as the Civil Code, Labor Code, Marriage and Family Law, the Population Order, The Law on Gender Equality, the Law on Domestic Violence Prevention and Control, etc The legal system and policies

on women have been increasingly improved, especially with the promulgation

of the Constitution 2013, Human rights in which women's rights are asserted to

be important motivators for social development In line with the promulgation

of the law, Vietnam ratified and acceded to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 and most of the fundamental international treaties on human rights, including conventions relating to women's rights such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966), the Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966), the Convention on the

Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women Against Women (1979, CEDAW); Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

Laws of Vietnam basically have internalized international standards on human rights, including women's political rights, in line with the general development trend of humanity and the Vietnamese characteristics, therefore motivated women to overcome obstacles to meet practical requirements, affirm their position in the family and in society Results of election of deputies to the XIV National Assembly, women accounted for 26.6% of the total delegates This is a high percentage of votes cast in the National Assembly and has placed Vietnam as one of the countries with the highest percentage of female legislators in Asia and the world (over 25%) The ratio of female deputies to the National Assembly in our country is higher than that of China, India, Japan and many other countries in the region According to the Union of Parliaments, Vietnam was ranked 37th out of 188 countries in the world in terms of percentage of women in the legislature (as of January 31, 2011, basing on reports of different countries’ legislatures)

However, in addition to the achievements made in ensuring that women are exercising the rights provided for by law, it must be recognized that the implementation of the law on women's rights, including political rights, still has many limitations Although Vietnam was ranked high in the world in terms of percentage of female deputies, there is still a large gap between male and female (73.4% and 26.6%); Especially in the percentage of women holding key positions (chief level) There are still barriers from family and society towards women when participating in social and political works The proportion of women attending the government has not met the requirement; Discrimination

on the career advancement opportunities for women leads to a lack of leadership and management of women remains a major challenge; Laws on political rights and public morality on women's political rights in our country are not fully recognized as a tool for the management of society and the protection of legitimate rights and interests of women Violation of the law on women, especially violations of the law on women's political rights still occurs

in some places, which hinder the process of promoting democracy, strengthening legislation, building a socialist rule-of-law state, going against the good nature of the society that we are building

The shortcomings mentioned above are due to the following reasons: The legal system of women's political rights is lack of synchronism with low

feasibility; awareness of subjects regarding women's political rights is not sufficient; Capacity of the subjects in implementing the law is limited; The work of directing, inspecting and supervising the delay of the implementation

of the law is insufficient and indecisive in handling, which leads to improper and inadequate implementation

The question is why Vietnam is considered one of the countries with a good legal system from the perspective of gender equality, but the proportion of women attending the government tends to decrease, the shortage of women's participation in the 2015-2020 term mandate, including the term 2020-2025, is

a reality at all levels; The voice of women in important areas of the country has not been emphasized This poses the need for research to find out the results, limitations and causes of results, limitations in implementing the law so as to propose solutions to ensure the implementation of political rights of women in Vietnam

Thus, the PhD candidate selects the topic: "Implementation of the law on political rights for women in Vietnam today" to study within the scope of doctoral thesis on law, specialized in the theory and history of the State and the law

2 Research purposes and research tasks

2.1 Research purposes

From studying the theories and practices of the implementation of political rights of women in Vietnam nowadays, the thesis explains and defines the perspectives and solutions to ensure the implementation of political rights of women in Vietnam today

Secondly, analyzing to show the results, limitations, causes of the results and constraints of the law and the implementation of political rights of women

in Viet Nam nowadays

Thirdly, explaining, defining the views and proposing solutions to ensure the implementation of political rights of women in Vietnam today

3 Research subjects and scope of research

3.1 Research subjects

From a theoretical and historical perspective, the thesis studies the theoretical and practical issues of law and implementation of political rights for women Since then, the dissertation has demonstrated the scientific basis and proposed the views, solutions to ensure the implementation of political rights of women in Vietnam today

3.2 Research scope

- Scope of content: Research on the implementaion of political rights for women in Vietnam

- Spatial scope: Research on the territory of Vietnam

- Scope of time: Research the law and the implementation of political rights for women from 1945 to present

4 Theoretical basis and research methodologies

4.1 Theoretical basis

The dissertation was based on dialectical materialism and historical materialism of Marxism-Leninism and Ho Chi Minh's ideology on the state and law, on human rights and citizenship; The Party and the State's undertakings, views and policies on gender equality and women's political rights, on solving social issues, building socialist rule-of-law state, continue to build and perfect the legal system, promoting the human factor; Ensuring human rights and citizenship, including the political rights of women in the current trend of integration and development

4.2 Research Methodologies

In Chapter 1, the author uses the method of secondary document study, analysis and synthesis used to obtain information from available sources relating to the subject of implementation of political rights for women in our country today

In Chapter 2, the author mainly uses analytical methods to formulate concepts; Analytical methods used to study subjects, contents, forms and factors guaranteeing the political rights of women in our country; Comparative legal methodology is used to refer to international norms and experiences on the political rights of women in some countries in the world and references to Vietnam

In Chapter 3, the author uses a statistical method to assess the current political rights for women in Vietnam, and to evaluate and analyze the results, limitations, reasons for the results and limitations, from which the author clarified the content of the thesis

In Chapter 4, the author mainly uses analytical and synthesis methods to provide scientifically sound opinions and solutions that contribute to ensuring the political rights of women in our country

5 New contributions of the thesis

5.1 In practice

- The dissertation is the first one to clearly assess the legal status and the implementation of political rights of women, analyzing the advantages, limitations and causes of the strengths and limitations of the political rights for women in Vietnam since 1945

- The thesis argues the views and makes recommendations on solutions to ensure the political rights of women in Vietnam at present

6 Theoretical and practical significance

- The thesis contributes to illuminating the theoretical and practical issues

of implementing political rights for women in Vietnam, being a reference in the process of amending, supplementing and issuing legal documents on women's political rights in Vietnam

- The dissertation provides scientific arguments and materials for agencies in the political system, social organizations to educate to enhance the awareness of the law and the organization of the implementation of political rights for women in Vietnam

- The dissertation is used as a reference for teaching and learning about the law of human rights in general and the law on women's rights in particular

7 Structure of the thesis

Apart from the introduction, conclusions and list of references, the content of the dissertation consists of 04 chapters, 09 sections

Chapter 1 OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH SITUATION RELATING TO THE

THESIS AND THE ISSUES THAT NEED FURTHER STUDYING

1.1 SUMMARY OF THE RESEARCH SITUATION RELATING

TO THE THESIS

Through the survey and evaluation of the results of research on the implementation and implementation of political rights for women, there are many scientific works presented in different forms to study the aspects of political rights, the political rights of women, and the guarantee of the implementation of political rights for women However, in our country, there are no comprehensive researches on the political rights of women in Viet Nam

in the current period The study of theoretical and practical background of the general situation of implementation, and the implementation of political rights

of women in Viet Nam in particular is also a field that has not been properly researched This is the limitation, the gap left open in legal science research as well as the science of women's political rights in Vietnam today

1.2 PROBLEMS NEED FURTHER STUDYING

The dissertation examines the theoretical basis of the implementation of political rights for women, focusing on theoretical analysis of basic concepts, subject, content, form, role and factors to ensure the implementation of political rights of women; The dissertation focuses on assessing the current status of the political rights of women in Vietnam; Analyzed, systematized and developed guiding views, proposed solutions to address the causes and overcome shortcomings and weaknesses to ensure the political rights of women in Vietnam nowadays

With the research results of the related scientific works and based on the available theories, the thesis set out the research hypothesis as follows: Implementation of the law on political rights for women in Vietnam still has many limitations Facing the practical requirements of social life and the demanding task of building a socialist rule-of-law state, it is necessary to improve the quality of implementation of the provisions of law Proper awareness of the law and proper implementation of the law are decisive factors

in ensuring that women's political rights are guaranteed

Hence, the thesis raises important research questions that need to be answered: Understanding what is political rights, the law on political rights, and implementation of political rights for women? What are the contents, characteristics and roles of women's political rights law? Who is responsible for the implementation of the law on political rights of women in Viet Nam today? What are the contents, form and roles of the implementation of political rights for in women? What are the required factors in order to ensure the implementation of political rights for women? What is the value of reference for the study of political rights for women in some countries around the world? What are the results and limitations in the law of Vietnam and in the implementation of political rights for women? Are there any reasons that affect those results? What are the views, solutions to ensure the implementation of political rights in Vietnam today?

Chapter 2 THEORETICAL BASIS OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE LAW

ON POLITICAL RIGHTS FOR WOMEN IN VIETNAM

2.1 CONCEPTS OF POLITICAL RIGHTS, LAW ON POLITICAL RIGHTS OF WOMEN, IMPLEMENTATION OF THE LAW ON POLITICAL RIGHTS TO WOMEN

2.1.1 The concept of political rights, the law of political rights, the content, the characteristics and the role of the law on women's political rights

- On the basis of the study of concepts at home and abroad, the PhD candidate gives the following definitions: Women's political rights are one of the fundamental rights in the system of human rights, recognized by the State in legal documents and implementation guaranteed; It establishes the legal capacity of women in the process of women's direct or indirect participation in state management and social management; The law on women's political rights

is a system of general rules of conduct promulgated by the State and ensured to

be implemented; adjusting social relations arising in the course of ensuring the right to participate directly or indirectly in state management and social management in order to create conditions for women to enjoy their political rights and to build up a society oriented towards the objectives of prosperous people, strong country, democracy, justice and civilization

- The content of the law on women's political rights is to address specific legal norms aimed at establishing and protecting the capacity and legal status of women in the political field

- Legislative characteristics of women's political rights: Legislation on women's political rights recognizes and develops measures to ensure human rights and citizenship; The law on women's political rights expresses the State's responsibility towards women in creating conditions and opportunities for women equal to men; The law on women's political rights institutionalizes the views, guidelines and policies of the Party and State on women

- The role of the law on women's political rights: Institutionalizing the Party's policies, guidelines and viewpoints on women's political rights; Creating

a solid legal foundation for the implementation and protection of women's political rights; Encouraging, motivating and creating legal basis for women to fight for their political rights

2.1.2 Concept of the implementation of the law on political rights for women

Studying, referring to current legal science viewpoints, the PhD candidate has come up with the concept: Law enforcement is the overall purposeful activities of legal subjects in order to realize the rules of law into into real and legal acts of the subjects through specific activities in order to bring into full play the role of law in regulating social relations; the Concept: implementation

of the law on political rights for Vietnamese women nowadays is the overall purposeful activities aimed at the realization of the law on women's political rights in the Socialist rule of law of Viet Nam into practical and legal acts of the subjects through specific activities for the purpose of ensuring that women enjoy political rights and promote their capacity and role in building up the fair, civilized people's society

2.2 SUBJECT, CONTENT, FORM, ROLE AND FACTORS ENSURING THE ENFORCEMENT OF THE LAW ON POLITICAL RIGHTS FOR WOMEN

2.2.1 Subjects implementing the law on political rights for women

Subjects implementing the law on political rights for women are legal persons and natural persons who directly or indirectly participate in the enforcement of the law on political rights for women, including: the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam and government agencies constituing the state apparatus;

Vietnam Fatherland Front and mass organizations; Vietnamese women and other subjects

2.2.2 The content of the implementation of the law on political rights for women

Implementing the law on political rights for women in Vietnam in the current period includes the following contents:

First of all, the State in general and agencies and authorities in particular carry out activities to organize and implement policies and laws in general and for women in particular, in life, to women and the subject

Secondly, state agencies and competent persons organize the implementation of activities on the application of the law on women's political rights and the settlement of complaints and denunciations in the course of exercising rights, or handling and settling legal disputes, problems and violations or other legal events arising in the course of organization of implementation; Reward, honor the positive behavior

Thirdly, organinzation so that subjects, in particular the women, implement the law on political rights for women, facilitate and assist the subjects in the practical implementation of their rights and obligations

2.2.3 Forms of implementation of the law on political rights for women

Compliance with the law on political rights for women is a form of legal implementation that restrains legal entities from practicing illegal activities Compliance with law is to take legal action (mainly required for compulsory and prohibited practices) It consists of activities that the subject performs, follows consciously, but is passive based on requirements and contents described in the law (keep true, do right, obey the requirements and contents set out)

The use of the law on political rights for women is a form of law enforcement where the subject exercised his or her rights and legal freedom These rights and freedoms are defined by the law in the form of potential that the subject may or may not perform without the compulsory or prohibited law Consequently, the use of the law is broader and includes compliance with the law

Enforcement of the law on women's political rights: The form in which legal entities perform their duties by acting in a positive way It is the implementation of the requirements of specific norms, not the obligation of

general compliance such as compliance with the law In this form, the law requires the subjects to fulfill obligations fully and seriously These subjects

do exactly as required by law so that the law is implemented in practice The legal norms that are enforced are mandatory norms Legal compliance is obeying the law Not observing the law is not in compliance with the law (breaking the law)

Applying the law on political rights for women: This is a special form of legal enforcement, only by the competent authority The State shall, through a competent authority or a person authorized by the State to organize the implementation of the provisions of law or by himself / herself, shall base himself / herself on the provisions of law to make decisions on the application

of law in the Specific case Applying the law is both a public agency's activity and a form of public service, which is a way for the State to organize the public with the right to freedom of thought

2.2.4 The role of the implementation of the law on political rights for women

First of all, implementing the law on political rights of women is the most basic and effective way of applying the Party's policies and laws, especially the policies on gender equality that is expressed in legal norms, into real life, becoming reality in practice

Secondly, implementing the political rights of women is one of the means

to uphold the nature of our State as the State of the people, by the people and for the people, as a means of promoting the responsibility of the authorised agencies and persons to ensure social justice; implementing gender equality

Thirdly, implementing the law on the political rights for women is a way

to help women raise their sense of law, foster their capacity for mastery of the state and society, and handle the common work of the community

Fourthly, implementing the law on political rights for women is a measure to prevent illegal activities and crimes, and to strengthen socialist legislation

2.2.5 Factors guaranteeing the implementation of the law on political rights for women

- Political and socio-economic factors

- Legal elements

- Organizational factors

- Some factors negatively affect the implementation of the law on political rights for women in Vietnam today

2.3 IMPLEMENTING LAWS ON POLITICAL RIGHTS FOR WOMEN IN SOME COUNTRIES AND THE REFERENCE VALUES FOR VIETNAM

The study of the experiences of some countries in the world on the enforcement of the law on political rights of women shows that this is a matter

of great concern, with many different uses, depending on the socio-political and economic conditions, and circumstances of each country, in each historical period From the experiences of each country in the enforcement of the law on women's political rights, it is possible to inherit, develop and apply creatively in the current situation in Vietnam

Chapter 3 ACTUAL SITUATION OF THE LAW AND THE IMPLEMENTATION

OF LAW ON POLITICAL RIGHTS FOR WOMEN IN VIETNAM

3.2 ACTUAL SITUATION OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF OF THE LAW ON POLITICAL RIGHTS FOR WOMEN IN VIETNAM NOWADAYS

3.2.1 The research results and causes of the results in the implementation of the law on political rights for women in Vietnam today