A/HRC/16/53/Add.1 worship of his family, including those belonging to his father who still follows the traditional belief. This act incited a dispute on beliefs, within the family members, causing violent reactions and even a punch from the father. This case like the cases of the other two individuals occurred within the family and have been reconciled. They did not need the local authority to intervene and no complaint was lodged by or on behalf of the three persons. 443. The Government indicated that it was the consistent policy of the State of Viet Nam to respect the right to freedom of religion or belief and to create favourable conditions for people to exercise their rights. The present open and religious practices in Viet Nam show that the rule of law in the state of Viet Nam has undertaken all necessary measures to guarantee citizens freedoms and prevent acts that could violate freedoms of religion or abusing religion or belief to violate the law. 444. In Viet Nam the right to freedom of religion or belief is clearly stipulated in its Constitution, legal documents and in accordance with International law and practices. Viet Nam’s legal system has been continuously readjusted to accommodate and harmonize with its international commitments. Article 70 of the Constitution 1992 and Article 47 of the Civil Code and the Ordinance on Religion and Belief stipulate that citizens have the rights to freedom of religions or beliefs and freedom not to believe or to follow any religion. Religions are equal before the law. Worship places are protected by the law. No one shall infringe on the right to freedom of religions or beliefs, or to take advantage of religions to violate State laws. Citizens, religious leaders and followers are entitled to all citizens’ rights and bear citizens duties. Article 5 of the Civil Code 2005 provides that all sides involved in a civil transaction are equal and it is forbidden to resort to differences of ethnicity, gender, social strata, religions, beliefs... to have unequal treatments. Article 49 of the Civil Code stipulates that “Everyone shall have the right to work and are free to choose their jobs and profession; and are free from discriminations on the bases of ethnics, gender, social strata, religions or beliefs. Article 87 of the Criminal Code 1999 stipulates heavy punishment for acts of separation between religious followers and non followers, between followers and people’s authorities and social organizations; Article 129 of the Criminal Code 1999 stipulates punishment for acts of violations of the right to freedom of belief and religion of citizens. 445. According to the Government, Viet Nam is a multi-religion country with 22,000 places of worship, belonging to 32 organizations and associations of 12 different religions. Eighty percent of its population exercises faith, among which 22.3 million people are religious followers. Viet Nam is also considered to be a museum of religions for hosting almost all major religions in the world such as Buddhism, Catholicism, Protestantism, Islam, which coexist in peace and development. The Vietnamese State implements various preferential policies towards religions, including granting land for construction of places of worship. In the past three years alone, the State has provided assistance for constructing new or renovating 1500 places of worship. 446. The religious life in Viet Nam has been diversified and well developed with achievements recognised by the international community. In reality, Christianity (Catholicism and Protestantism) has become the second largest religion in Viet Nam after Buddhism, with over 7 million followers (of which over 6 million are Catholics and over 1 million are Protestants). Protestantism is currently the fastest developing religion in Viet Nam. Throughout the country, there are now 6 major seminaries for religious dignitaries and over 700 educational facilities for followers. The Protestant Institute of Bible and Theology in the city of Ho Chi Minh has the capacity to train 500-700 postulants annually. Furthermore, many religious-supplementary training classes have been organized for Protestant dignitaries in central highland provinces, who belong to ethnic minorities and have not undergone such training. 84