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| The Ministry of Information and Communications and the Government Committee for Religious Affairs launched the White Book “Religion and Religious Policy in Vietnam” to help domestic and foreign readers fully understand religious policies and religious life in our country. (Photo: Vinh Ha) |
Promoting similarities, aiming at the common goal of national renewal and international integration, it is impossible not to mobilize the potential strength of religious compatriots, strengthen the great national unity bloc, and join religious compatriots in being vigilant and fighting against forces that take advantage of religion to cause disunity among the nation and religious solidarity.
Perfecting the law to ensure freedom of belief and religion
To promote these "similarities" requires the entire political system at all levels to dialectically combine the common interests of national development with the specific interests of religious people in both material and spiritual life, including the need for religious spiritual life.
This is the driving force to promote the patriotic emulation movement among religious people to carry out the task of socio-economic development, ensuring security and national defense in accordance with the motto and direction of religious practice in association with the nation, and complying with the laws of religions. Vietnam is a multi-religious and multi-ethnic country, with many types of beliefs, religions and intertwined religious and ethnic factors.
In the history of national revolution, democracy, national unification and socialism building, religious dignitaries and followers have made many contributions in mobilizing followers to actively contribute to the cause of national independence, freedom for the people, and happiness for compatriots nationwide.
Ensuring the freedom of belief and religion of all classes of people, implementing the policy of great national unity under the leadership of the Party, the management of the State, the gathering and solidarity of the Front and mass organizations, many directives and resolutions on religious work, notably the Law on Belief and Religion issued in 2016, create a stable and consistent legal corridor to ensure the implementation of the freedom of belief and religion of citizens living in the territory of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
This is a necessary condition to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of state management of religious activities, ensuring citizens' rights and obligations, and being compatible with international law in the period of international integration. The spirit of national solidarity has been promoted when millions of religious dignitaries and followers have united to create the victory of the revolutionary cause under the leadership of the Party since its establishment.
In order to realize the freedom of belief and religion of the People, to perfect and institutionalize the management of the socialist rule of law state in Vietnam, the process of drafting the Law, Decree, etc., the contributions of religious dignitaries and followers to the drafts have been acknowledged and respected. The dissemination of the Law and Decree from the central to grassroots levels has been enthusiastically received by a large number of religious dignitaries and followers.
The international community has also recognized and appreciated Vietnam's efforts in perfecting the law, in accordance with international conventions that Vietnam has signed, shortening the time for recognizing religious organizations from 23 years to 5 years, and for the first time confirming the non-commercial legal entity of religious organizations... Therefore, religious organizations have the conditions to expand their organization and activities both domestically and internationally.
According to the latest statistics of the Government Committee for Religious Affairs, before the Ordinance on Beliefs and Religions, the whole country had 6 religions, 13 religious organizations, with 20,929 religious worship facilities, 34,181 dignitaries, 78,913 officials, and 17.4 million followers.
Since the Ordinance on Beliefs and Religions (2004 to 2018), the country has had 15 religions, with 41 organizations, 29,977 places of worship; 133,662 officials, 24.7 million followers of beliefs and religions. Since the Law on Beliefs and Religions took effect, Vietnam has had about 27 million followers (accounting for 28% of the population), with 43 organizations belonging to 16 religions recognized by the state or granted certificates of registration of operation, with nearly 60,000 dignitaries, nearly 150,000 officials, and nearly 30,000 places of worship.
Comparing the figures shows that the number of religions, religious organizations, and the number of dignitaries and followers have increased rapidly after 8 years of implementing the Ordinance. This confirms that the people's freedom of religion is always guaranteed in reality.
Localities with a large population of dignitaries and followers have been given hundreds of hectares of land for religious organizations to build places of worship, specifically: Ho Chi Minh City has allocated 7,500m2 to the General Confederation of the Evangelical Church of Vietnam (South) to build the Institute of Biblical and Theological Studies. Dak Lak Province has allocated more than 11,000m2 of land to the Buon Ma Thuot Bishopric. Quang Tri Province has allocated an additional 15 hectares of land to La Vang Parish...
Local authorities at all levels have resolved the religious needs of dignitaries and followers through a one-stop online public service mechanism, openly and transparently carrying out procedures related to citizens' rights and obligations related to beliefs and religions.
Major religious holidays such as Christmas of Catholicism and Protestantism; Buddha's Birthday of Buddhism and some major religious and belief activities such as Huong Pagoda festival, Ba Chua Su festival, Chol Chnam Thmay festival, Dolta festival... of Khmer people... were congratulated by the leaders of the Party, State, and Fatherland Front and organized delegations to visit, give gifts, and encourage.
Localities have created favorable conditions to help and guide religious followers and dignitaries to ensure the religious and belief requirements of the people; ensure hygiene, environment, security and order, attracting millions of compatriots and religious followers at home and abroad to participate, especially large-scale religious festivals such as the United Nations Vesak Day; the 500th anniversary of Protestantism coming to Vietnam... are vivid evidence of the attention of the Party, State and Fatherland Front to the freedom and belief of citizens with religious beliefs as well as non-believers; not being prejudiced against religions, refuting the distorted and slanderous arguments of hostile forces about the situation of human rights and freedom of belief and religion in Vietnam.
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| Chol Chnam Thmay is the largest and most comprehensive festival of the Khmer people. (Source: VNA) |
Promoting the spirit of national solidarity
However, belief and religion are sensitive and complicated issues. Hostile forces always consider religion as the vanguard force in the fight against communism in the world in general and in Vietnam in particular, so they have actively supported a number of extremist religious dignitaries in opposing religions, going against the views of the Party and State.
In addition, some dignitaries and believers who are dissatisfied with the government are used as "fuses" to incite opposition to human rights, demands for democracy, and freedom of religious belief with the aim of eliminating the national independence that our people have spent so much blood and sweat to gain.
Currently, hostile forces at home and abroad, including many "dignitaries" of religious organizations, gather followers and seek every way to sabotage the great national unity; propagate false arguments, slander the State for violating democracy and human rights in order to divide and sabotage the great national unity, and to divide the Party, the State and the Fatherland Front from religious people.
| Ensuring the freedom of belief and religion of all classes of people, implementing the policy of great national unity under the leadership of the Party, the management of the State, the gathering and solidarity of the Front and mass organizations, many directives and resolutions on religious work, notably the Law on Belief and Religion issued in 2018, creating a stable and consistent legal corridor to ensure the implementation of the freedom of belief and religion of citizens living in the territory of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. |
Every time the State amends, supplements or promulgates new legal documents to regulate social management activities such as the Law on Belief and Religion; the Law on Cyber Security... hostile forces, including many extremist dignitaries, call themselves the "flag of democratic struggle" to attract a part of the "gullible and gullible" people and take advantage of the patriotism of the masses of believers to incite activities against the Party and the State, causing political instability and social order and safety.
To consistently implement the policy of great national unity, promote the spirit of solidarity and patriotism of more than 96 million compatriots at home and more than 5.3 million compatriots abroad to actively participate in the cause of national construction and defense.
In particular, the unity and cooperation of more than 27 million religious followers will also contribute to building a prosperous "country" "standing shoulder to shoulder with the world powers" as President Ho Chi Minh wished. To achieve that goal, the political system at all levels from the central to the grassroots level needs to carry out the following contents well:
Consistently implement policies and laws on state management of religious work on the basis of paying attention to people's religious needs and proactively fighting against the exploitation of religion by hostile forces.
This is a very important task to ensure the people's freedom of belief, create conditions for religions to take care of the lives of believers, and on the other hand, bring religious activities into the framework of state management, contributing to eliminating illegal organizations that take advantage of religion, and making the activities of religious organizations healthier.
Correctly resolving and ensuring the legitimate religious and belief needs of the masses is to make religious people feel secure, believe in the leadership of the Party, believe in the regime and the cause of national renewal, clearly understand the plots and tricks of hostile forces, raise vigilance so that dignitaries and believers can voluntarily fight against the plots and tricks of hostile forces, protect the legitimate freedom of belief of religions and protect national security.
Thoroughly grasping the Party's viewpoint on religious work is the work of mobilizing the masses. Religious dignitaries and followers are a special group of people. The relationship between citizens and followers is always closely intertwined, complementing each other and cannot be separated, always aiming at the motto "good life, good religion".
Therefore, it is necessary to propagate and mobilize dignitaries and followers to clearly understand their rights and obligations as citizens, in which they attach importance to their obligations to their homeland and country and their duties to their religion and church, creating conditions for religious people to actively participate in building their lives, contributing with the whole people to successfully achieve the goal: "rich people, strong country, democracy, fairness, civilization".
Strengthening the coordination and unification of actions of the entire political system led by the Party to thoroughly resolve the relationships related to the domestic and foreign policies of the Party and the State in the work of beliefs and religions. Promoting the role of the Fatherland Front and mass organizations to propagate and mobilize religious dignitaries and followers of all genders and ages to participate in socio-political organizations, social organizations and mass associations in accordance with the practice direction of each religious organization.
(*) Deputy Head of Ethnic Committee, Central Committee of Vietnam Fatherland Front
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