A/HRC/28/57/Add.1 dominant culture of their communities.11 Women must be encouraged to be not merely guardians, but creators of cultural values and new family traditions. (b) Good and bad practices 71. One challenge concerns the implementation of article 22 of Law 28/2001 on Cultural Heritage, which states that positive customs, ways of life and lifestyles of the nation shall be preserved, while “outdated customs that harm the people’s cultural life shall be abolished”. The Government seems to have a strong propaganda apparatus to promote good values and eliminate bad practices through advocacy rather than prohibition. The Special Rapporteur is concerned, however, about reports that, in March 2014, seven ethnic Hmong followers of the Duong Van Minh faith in Tuyen Quang were sentenced to prison terms. They had built “funeral homes”, which the authorities consider an “evil practice”. The funeral homes were destroyed by the authorities and those who objected were beaten and arrested. 72. The Special Rapporteur discussed at length with government officials how “bad practices” and “superstition” were defined and identified. She was informed that research bodies mandated by local governments identify bad practices, elicit the views of relevant communities through discussions and make proposals to the relevant ministries. Many workshops are held before a decision is adopted. 73. Conversations with various stakeholders suggested that “bad practices” are those considered to be detrimental to the development of a modern society grounded in Vietnamese traditions, values and culture. They include practices detrimental to people’s health, their rights or their general well-being. Examples mentioned to the Special Rapporteur included early marriages, funeral practices which raised concerns in term of health and hygiene, and expensive wedding ceremonies. The Special Rapporteur is of the view that the term “bad practices” needs to be clarified and defined as practices that are in contradiction with human rights or that undermine human dignity. 74. According to interlocutors, policies to combat “bad practices” are conceived and implemented with some level of stigmatization of remote minorities, premised on the widespread view that their traditions are outdated and can hinder the development of modern society. However, some officials stressed the need to respect “the advanced values” of those communities. Such a “selective” approach may have grave consequences; unless there is meaningful consultation and engagement with the communities concerned, such an approach imposes an outsider’s viewpoint on what is good or bad. Some communities view the fight against bad practices as a cover for assimilation policies. 2. Linguistic diversity 75. Article 21 of Law 28/2001 on Cultural Heritage, as amended by article 1, paragraph 6, of the Amended Law 32/2009/QH12 on Cultural Heritage, provides for the protection of the spoken and written languages of ethnic groups in Viet Nam. (a) Scripts 76. Only 25 minority languages in Viet Nam have scripts. Some have several scripts — ancient and contemporary versions. The Government recognizes that some ethnic languages are difficult to express in the Vietnamese script. It has taken steps to retrieve, select or develop minority scripts, in consultation with the relevant communities, and to promote the teaching and learning of the scripts of ethnic minority languages. 11 A/67/287, para. 19. 15