Country Foundations

Vietnam

Constitution in force since 1992, 11,344 words. Rights measured for 2023.

Declared
66%
mean across compared rights
Practiced
45%
mean across compared rights
Gap
−21%
delivers less than promised
Executive respects constitution
64%
V-Dem, measured directly

The rights ledger

Each row compares what the constitution declares against what is measured in practice. The two values are always shown together — a gap on its own is easy to misread.

Declared in the constitutionPracticed (measured)Falls short / exceeds
0255075100Right to life — declared 0%, practiced 62%, gap +62%Right to life0%62%+62%Freedom from torture — declared 100%, practiced 42%, gap −58%Freedom from torture100%42%−58%Freedom from slavery and forced labour — declared 0%, practiced 66%, gap +66%Freedom from slavery and forced labour0%66%+66%Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) — declared 100%, practiced 46%, gap −54%Freedom from arbitrary detention (ha…100%46%−54%Right to a fair and public trial — declared 33%, practiced 44%, gap +11%Right to a fair and public trial33%44%+11%Presumption of innocence — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Presumption of innocenceno practice measure100%——Right to legal counsel — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to legal counselno practice measure0%——Protection from self-incrimination — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Protection from self-incriminationno practice measure0%——Protection from double jeopardy — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Protection from double jeopardyno practice measure0%——Due process of law — declared 100%, practiced 40%, gap −60%Due process of law100%40%−60%Trial by jury or lay participation — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Trial by jury or lay participationno practice measure100%——Freedom of expression — declared 100%, practiced 14%, gap −86%Freedom of expression100%14%−86%Freedom of the press — declared 100%, practiced 27%, gap −73%Freedom of the press100%27%−73%Freedom of thought and conscience — declared 0%, practiced 44%, gap +44%Freedom of thought and conscience0%44%+44%Freedom of religion — declared 100%, practiced 39%, gap −61%Freedom of religion100%39%−61%Separation of religion and state — declared 50%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Separation of religion and stateno practice measure50%——Academic freedom — declared 0%, practiced 29%, gap +29%Academic freedom0%29%+29%Freedom of assembly — declared 100%, practiced 34%, gap −66%Freedom of assembly100%34%−66%Freedom of association — declared 100%, practiced 11%, gap −89%Freedom of association100%11%−89%Right to petition government — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to petition governmentno practice measure100%——Right to form and join trade unions — declared 50%, practiced 22%, gap −28%Right to form and join trade unions50%22%−28%Right to vote and universal suffrage — declared 50%, practiced 66%, gap +16%Right to vote and universal suffrage50%66%+16%Right to privacy — declared 100%, practiced 41%, gap −59%Right to privacy100%41%−59%Freedom of movement — declared 100%, practiced 71%, gap −29%Freedom of movement100%71%−29%Right to asylum — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to asylumno practice measure100%——Right to own property — declared 88%, practiced 70%, gap −17%Right to own property88%70%−17%Equality before the law — declared 100%, practiced 58%, gap −42%Equality before the law100%58%−42%Right to education — declared 100%, practiced 74%, gap −26%Right to education100%74%−26%Right to health care — declared 100%, practiced 62%, gap −38%Right to health care100%62%−38%Right to shelter or housing — declared 0%, practiced 58%, gap +58%Right to shelter or housing0%58%+58%Independent judiciary — declared 0%, practiced 24%, gap +24%Independent judiciary0%24%+24%Right to bear arms — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to bear armsno practice measure0%——decl.prac.gap

· marks a right with no provision in that country’s constitution. Scores run 0–100; practiced values are V-Dem indicators normalized across all country-years.

Promise and practice over time

The declared line steps when the constitution changes. The practiced line moves when behaviour does. The distance between those two moments is the part worth looking at.

Declared (the text)Practiced (measured)The text changed
0501001980: constitutional text changed (+11 pts declared)1992: constitutional text changed (−8 pts declared)2001: constitutional text changed (+4 pts declared)19752000

Mean across the 23 rights measured on both sides, 1960–2023. Vertical marks show years when the constitutional text changed enough to move the declared score.

Promised, but not delivered

  • Freedom from torture −58%
  • Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) −54%
  • Due process of law −60%
  • Freedom of expression −86%

Delivered, though never promised

  • Right to life +62%
  • Freedom from slavery and forced labour +66%
  • Freedom of thought and conscience +44%
  • Academic freedom +29%

Declared internationally

A constitution is only one place a country makes promises. These are the nine core UN human rights treaties.

Civil & Political Rights (ICCPR)ratified 1982
Economic, Social & Cultural Rights (ICESCR)ratified 1982
Racial Discrimination (ICERD)ratified 1982
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)ratified 1982
Convention against Torture (CAT)ratified 2015
Rights of the Child (CRC)ratified 1990
Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)ratified 2015
Enforced Disappearance (CPED)no action
Migrant Workers (ICMW)no action

Compare with

AfghanistanAlbaniaAlgeriaAngolaArgentinaArmeniaAustraliaAzerbaijanBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBeninBhutanBoliviaBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBrazilBulgariaBurkina FasoBurma/MyanmarBurundiCambodiaCameroonCanadaCape VerdeCentral African RepublicChadChileChinaColombiaComorosCosta RicaCroatiaCubaCyprusDemocratic Republic of the CongoDenmarkDjiboutiDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial GuineaEritreaEstoniaEswatiniEthiopiaFijiFinlandFranceGabonGeorgiaGhanaGreeceGuatemalaGuineaGuinea-BissauGuyana

Data generated 2026-08-08.