English - CEDAW Southeast Asia

CEDAW and the Law:
Article 68 of the Constitution states: “The citizen shall enjoy freedom of movement and
of residence within the country; he can freely travel abroad and return home from abroad in
accordance with the provisions of law.”
Article 48(1) of the Civil Code states that individuals have the right to freedom of travel
and freedom of residence. An individual’s freedom of travel or freedom of residence may be
restricted only by decision of a competent agency and in accordance with the order and
procedure specified by law. 678 The Law on Residence, No. 81/2006/QH11 of November 29,
2006 (Law on Residence) also provides: “Citizens have the right to freedom of residence…
Citizens rights to freedom of residence is only limited under decisions of competent State
agencies and in accordance with the order and procedures prescribed by law”. 679
In relation to husbands and wives, Article 55 of the Civil Code provides that the place of
residence of husband and wife is the place where the husband and wife live permanently
together. They may have separate places of residence if they agree. The Marriage and Family
Law further states that the domicile of husband and wife is selected by themselves without
being bound by customs, practices or administrative boundaries. 680 The Law on Residence
provides that the place of residence of husband and wife is the place where the husband and
wife live together, but the husband and wife may have different places of residence if they
agree. 681 The Decree on Marriage and Family Law (Ethnic Minorities) also provides specific
provisions on residence places of wives and husbands states in Article 11(1): “Wives and
husbands choose by themselves or mutually agree to stay separately or together with either
of their families, without having to be bound by customs and practices. After their marriages,
wives and husbands shall be entitled to live together without obstruction by anybody.” The
decree elaborates: “Patrilocality or matrilocality shall apply only when it is compatible with the
wives’ and husbands’ aspiration to choose their residence places.” 682 These laws were put in
place to address customs and practices that perpetuate inequality, in particular the custom
that ‘women have to follow their husband’ and ‘a young girl has to obey her father, a young
married woman has to obey her husband, the widow has to obey her son’. 683
Unlike the Civil Code and Law on Marriage and Family, which have provisions on nondiscrimination
on the basis of gender, 684 the Law on Residence contains no such provision. To
ensure that non-discrimination is highlighted as a main principle relating to residency, it is
important to have explicit provisions stating that equality is a core principle in the application
of the Law on Residency and that discrimination on the basis of gender in the application of
the provisions of law is a prohibited act.
294
Recommendation: It is recommended that Article 4 of the Law on Residence
include the principle of gender equality and non-discrimination. It is also recommended
that direct and indirect discrimination on the basis of gender be included as among the
prohibited acts in Article 8 of the law.
678
Civil Code, Article 48(2)
679
Law on Residence, Article 3
680
Law on Marriage and Family, Article 20
681
Law on Residence, Article 15
682
Decree on Marriage and Family Law (Ethnic Minorities), Article 11(2)
683
Combined Fifth and Sixth Periodic Report, pp. 50-51
684
See Part V.13.3, Indicator 108 for the exact provisions
Review of key legal documents and compliance with CEDAW