Vietnam chooses not to sanction same-sex marriage

The National Assembly’s Social Affairs Committee chairwoman Truong Thi Mai said, “the committee agrees with the regulation that marriage between people of the same sex should not be recognised. However, the committee also acknowledges that there are different opinions on the issue.”

Among the committee members, many agreed with removing the ban as the public’s perception and awareness of same-sex marriage had changed. They argued that homosexual marriage should be allowed on the grounds of human rights, and that such a legal sanction would help subdue discrimination.

The Ministry of Health, the Youth Study Institute, and the Institute for Prosecution Sciences under the Supreme People’s Procuracy went further, arguing that homosexual marriage should be permitted, because homosexuals, like everyone else, have the right to live, love, be loved, and pursue happiness.

However, the majority of committee members disagreed with the movement to allow same-sex marriage.

Thai Binh province’s Department of Justice said same-sex marriage was “unsuitable to the social functions of Vietnam’s traditional marriage. It is necessary to continue banning marriage between people of the same sex, because besides many gene-driven homosexuals, there are also many ‘fake homosexuals’.”

Meanwhile, a government report commenting on the amendments to the law acknowledged that homosexuals living together as husband and wife has over the recent years become a burning issue in Vietnam.

Though the official number of homosexuals in Vietnam remains unclear, there are many websites, forums and clubs catering for homosexuals.

“There has been a rise in homosexuals openly living together and recognised by their families. The homosexual community has expressed their wish that their marriages be recognised by the state,” the report said.

“Though the existing law bans same-sex marriage, homosexuals still live together and many same-sex wedding ceremonies have taken place,” the report said. “The government holds that the state does not recognise homosexual marriage, and also does not administratively interfere in homosexuals’ right to live in accordance with their sexual tendency.”

As of August 2013, a number of nations geographically close to Vietnam neither ban nor recognise this type of marriage, including China, Thailand and South Korea. Currently, 16 developed nations recognise homosexual marriage, including Argentina, Spain, Canada, South Africa, Sweden, New Zealand, France, the UK and Brazil, while 17 nations, such as Germany, Austria and Colombia, choose not to accept this type of marriage but recognise same sex unions.