A/HRC/28/57/Add.1 B. Constitutional and legislative framework 6. On 28 November 2013, during the Special Rapporteur’s visit, Viet Nam adopted its new Constitution, which came into force on 1 January 2014. 7. The text of the new Constitution was substantively debated in Viet Nam. The draft, which the Government had made publicly available, elicited over 26 million comments, largely focused on chapter II relating to human and citizens’ rights. The Constitutional Drafting Committee carefully studied those inputs before submitting the text to the National Assembly. 8. Civil society interlocutors confirmed that certain consultation processes had been put in place, which indicated the opening of some space for discussion. Some of the greatest issues of contention around the draft Constitution were the leadership role attributed to the Communist Party, possible restrictions on the enjoyment of human rights, which were deemed to be too broad, and recognition of multiple forms of ownership of land. “Petition 72”, which was signed by 72 intellectuals, scholars, writers and artists, drew considerable attention to those issues. Publicly supported by 15,000 signatures, the petition was officially submitted to the Constitutional Drafting Committee and circulated online.1 9. Despite their impact on the debate, many of the key proposals put forward in the petition did not materialize in the new Constitution, which retains many features of the old one unchanged, notably the absence of a multiparty system. Some advances should be noted, however, and the Special Rapporteur hopes that the new constitutional framework will facilitate enhanced implementation of human rights, in particular cultural rights,2 in Viet Nam. 10. Chapter II of the new 2013 Constitution is entirely dedicated to human rights and citizens’ rights and duties, giving greater pre-eminence to human rights issues. Civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights are included, in particular rights of significant importance in the field of culture, such as the rights to freedom of expression and freedom of religion, to education, to engage in artistic creation and to participate in cultural life. 11. Under article 14 (2) of the Constitution, human rights and citizen’s rights shall only be restricted in imperative circumstances for reasons of national defence, national security, social order and safety, social morality and community well-being. Article 15 (4) states that the exercise of human rights and citizens’ rights shall not infringe upon national interests and the rights and legitimate interests of others. The undefined and broad reference to “national interests” raises some concerns, for example that it may possibly allow restrictions to human rights beyond those provided for in international standards. The Special Rapporteur hopes that those provisions will be interpreted in a restrictive manner and in accordance with international standards and that the opinions of the Human Rights Committee and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights will be taken into consideration in that regard. 12. In accordance with article 46 of the Constitution, citizens have certain duties, including that of safeguarding “social order” and observing the “rules of public life”. The Special Rapporteur stresses the importance of interpreting those provisions in a way that is 1 2 See Bui Ngoc Son, “Petition 72 : The struggle for constitutional reforms in Vietnam”, 28 March 2013, available from www.iconnectblog.com/2013/03/petition-72-the-struggle-for-constitutionalreforms-in-vietnam/. See Bui Ngoc Son, “Vietnam’s new Constitution: A Charter for Comprehensive Renovation?”, 12 December 2013, available from www.constitutionnet.org/news/vietnams-new-constitution-chartercomprehensive-renovation. 5