Human Rights and Business. An Assessment of the Responsibility of the State in Vietnam

Abstract

INTRODUCTION Human rights are universal in nature, and belong to all people without discrimination. However, the extent to which these rights are realised differs between countries, regions, and sectors, and indeed depends on the willingness and capacity of duty bearers. This chapter examines the role of the state as the key duty bearer to respect, protect, and fulfil human rights responsibilities in the business field in Vietnam. This chapter argues that human rights norms and standards are not fully integrated in the Vietnamese legal system. In fact, corporate human rights responsibility is not an area of significant interest, and has not been effectively addressed by relevant government institutions and organisations. The main challenges hindering full implementation relate to the gaps in the legislative, administrative, and judicial systems, all of which will be addressed in this chapter. In order to understand how human rights responsibilities are being promoted and implemented in the business sector in Vietnam, it is important to understand the role of the relevant actors, in particular the leading role of the state. This chapter assesses how the state system in Vietnam is compatible with the UN international standards on human rights and business. This chapter provides an overview of CSR issues in Vietnam and briefly examines the role of relevant state institutions in addressing corporate human rights responsibility. The chapter than identifies the state's central role in fulfilling human rights obligations by examining existing policies and laws on corporate human rights responsibility. It also examines the legislative, executive, and judicial bodies’ contributions to the creation and enforcement of law and policies related to corporate human rights responsibility. The chapter concludes that, in the context of business in Vietnam, there is still a lack of capacity amongst all relevant state institutions that in effect constrains the respect, protection, and fulfilment of human rights. CSR AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN VIETNAM: THE ROLE OF RELEVANT PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS While corporate social responsibility (CSR) has been discussed globally for decades, it is a relatively new concept in Vietnam. CSR was first introduced to Vietnam in the mid-1990s, when TNCs invested in local factory facilities (initially in the footwear and garment industries) and implemented their own codes of conduct or labour standards. Since then, CSR has gained attention from a variety of actors, including corporations, international organisations and government and non-governments institutions.