Viet Nam : Living conditions and treatment of educated adult women relocated to Hanoi (2013)

Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Ottawa

1. General Situation

In correspondence sent to the Research Directorate, a professor of anthropology at the University of Copenhagen, who researches sexual and reproductive health and its role in the formation of social connections in Viet Nam, states that a woman living alone in the country "can do almost anything on her own with very few formal restrictions" (Professor 23 Jan. 2014). According to Freedom House, women generally have the same access to education as men and are treated similarly in the Vietnamese legal system (2013). Nevertheless, Freedom House adds that, although economic opportunities have grown for women, they continue to face discrimination in wages and promotion (2013).

In correspondence with the Research Directorate, a Ph.D. student at the University of Amsterdam, who studies issues related to gender and sexuality in Viet Nam and who also runs an NGO dedicated to public health issues in the country, stated that there are no restrictions preventing single, divorced or widowed women from living alone in Viet Nam, especially in Hanoi (Ph.D. student 23 Jan. 2014). However, she specified that divorced or widowed women may have more difficulties because they may lose some benefits to which they had access because of their spouse, such as access to land and housing (ibid.).

According to a report by the World Bank that cites a 2009 household survey, "[m]any more women appear to be living on their own than men"; according to the survey, women make up 67 percent of single person households and this likelihood increases with age, particularly after 65 (World Bank 2011, 41). The report adds however that many of these women are widows and that households headed by widows tend to be among the poorest in the country (ibid.). Information that corroborates the information provided by the World Bank report could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

2. Relocation

According to the Ph.D. student, women and men can generally relocate freely within Viet Nam, as long as they have their identity card, which enables them to register in a new town (23 Jan. 2014). During a telephone interview with the Research Directorate, an assistant professor of anthropology at Seattle University, who researches women and gender-related issues in Viet Nam, also stated that women may relocate within Viet Nam, but that their particular situations will have an impact on the challenges that they will face (Assistant Professor 21 Jan. 2014). She mentioned in particular that a woman's economic situation, having children, and the reason for relocating may have an impact (ibid.). She also explained that people who try to relocate usually rely on the help of people around them, particularly to find accommodations and work (ibid.). According to her, educated women are at an advantage in that respect (ibid.). Similarly, the Ph.D. student stated that a woman's level of education and economic independence will have an impact on her ability to relocate and on the resources available to her; the Ph.D. student stated that with limited financial means, a woman may have no other choice than to live in an area that is less safe (23 Jan. 2014).

According to a briefing note published in 2011 by UN Women, the majority of internal migrants in Viet Nam are women; the majority of those women are unmarried and around 65 percent of them are between 15 and 24 years old (UN 6 Dec. 2011). According to UN Women, "[m]any female migrants earn much less on average than non-migrant women and much less than all men" (ibid.). UN Women also states that all male and female migrants are more vulnerable to physical and psychological violence because of their isolation, weak social networks and lack of access to legal protection (ibid.). According to the Ph.D. student, a poor woman could become a victim of human trafficking or be forced to become a prostitute (23 Jan. 2014). The Assistant Professor also stated that some women who move and have limited resources turn to prostitution (Assistant Professor 20 Jan. 2014).

The Assistant Professor stated that it could be easier for a woman to relocate to Hanoi than elsewhere in the country because there are more social movements (ibid.). According to her, it would be more difficult for a woman to relocate and live alone in the smaller cities or in the rural areas (ibid.). However, according to the Ph.D. student, there are few government social programs or NGO initiatives for women who migrate towards cities like Hanoi (Ph.D. student 23 Jan. 2014). Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

According to Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2012 published by the US Department of State, a system of household registration and block wardens monitor the population (US 19 Apr. 2013, 6). The Assistant Professor also mentioned the existence of the registry and specified that it is mandatory to register with the local authorities; according to her, people can be tracked "very easily" in Viet Nam (Assistant Professor 20 Jan. 2014). She also stated that each locality has a representative in charge who wants to stay informed regarding the residents, and that individuals may have to be interviewed by such a representative in order to obtain permission to relocate (ibid.).

3. Treatment of Relocated Women

The Professor stated that the normative constraints imposed on women can be "massive," and that "[w]omen who fail to live up to social norms and expectations risk being ignored and excluded […] [which] can be much more damaging to a person than having difficulties earning an income" (Professor 23 Jan. 2014). The Professor stated that being accepted into a new social community "depends on being part of existing social networks, being connected to people who will 'introduce' one to others" (ibid.).

The Assistant Professor stated that women who live alone, whether they are single or divorced, are generally poorly perceived in Viet Nam (Assistant Professor 20 Jan. 2014). She explained that single women will not talk about their personal life in order to avoid gossip about them; she stated that she knows women who do not go out, except to go to work, to escape "incessant questioning" about their personal life (ibid.).

The Assistant Professor added, however, that these conditions are changing and that the situation is different in the cities where the people do not necessarily know their neighbours (ibid.). She also stated that it was generally more accepted that women choose to live alone, especially those belonging to the uppermiddle class (ibid.). Similarly, an article published in May 2012 by Viêt Nam News, "the national English language daily in Viet Nam" (Viêt Nam News N.d.), states that "[i]in modern Viet[n]am it is becoming more and more common for young women to live alone" (Viêt Nam News 1 May 2012). The article adds that "[t]raditional modes of thinking are losing their hold on young minds, and people now don't necessarily sneer at women who choose to stay single" (ibid.).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Assistant Professor of anthropology, Seattle University. 20 January 2014. Telephone interview with the Research Directorate.

Freedom House. 2013. "Vietnam." Freedom in the World 2013. [Accessed 22 Jan. 2013]

Ph.D. student, University of Amsterdam. 23 January 2014. Correspondence sent to the Research Directorate.

Professor of anthropology, University of Copenhagen. 23 January 2014. Correspondence sent to the Research Directorate.

United Nations (UN). December 6, 2011. Factsheet Briefing on Gender Issues in Migration and Urbanisation as They Relate to Poverty. Produced by UN Women as a supplementary briefing for the consultative group meeting. [Accessed 17 Jan. 2013]

United States (US) 19 April 2013. "Vietnam." Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2012. [Accessed 17 Jan. 2013]

Viêt Nam News. 1 May 2012. Trung Hieu. "Unmarried Women No Longer on the Shelf". [Accessed 17 Jan. 2013]

_____. N.d. "About Us." [Accessed 20 Jan. 2013]

World Bank. 2011. VietNam Country Gender Assessment. [Accessed 17 Jan. 2013]

Additional Sources Consulted

Oral sources: Center for Legal Research on Human and Citizen Rights; Centre for Women and Development; Hagar Vietnam; Hanoi International Women's Club; Institute for Family and Gender Studies; Professor of Sociology, University of Bonn; Professor of Women's and Gender Studies, Rutgers University; Research Centre for Gender and Development; Research Centre for Gender, Family and Environment in Development; Research Centre for Human and Citizen's Rights; Research officer, Overseas Development Institute, United Kingsom; Vietnam National University - Center for Women's Studies; Vietnam Women's Union; Vietnamese Institute for Human Rights.

Internet sites, including: ActionAid; Agence japonaise de coopération internationale; Le Courier du Vietnam; Factiva; International Centre for Research on Women; International Women's Rights Action Watch; Musée des femmes du Vietnam; Le Nouvel Observateur; Sexual Violence Research Initiative; Southeast Asia Resource Action Center; Thanh Nien; United Kingdom - Foreign & Commonwealth Office, Home Office; United Nations - United Nations Fund for Women, Millenium Development Goals Achievement Fund, World Health Organization, UN Women, Refworld; United States - Department of State; University of California Berkeley Library - Vietnam Women's Studies Bibliography; University of Iowa - Women Studies Resources; University of Toronto Law Library - Women's Human Rights Resources Database; Viet Nam - Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Public Security; The Voice of Vietnam.