Vietnamese Party-State and Religious Pluralism Since 1986: Building the Fatherland?(Research Notes and Comments) (Report‪)‬

Over the last thirty years, since the reunification of modern Vietnam, Vietnamese religious policies have experienced tremendous changes. Thirty years ago, under a strict socialist approach inspired by Marxist-Leninist views, religions were widely seen as one of the expressions of class struggle, fated to progressively disappear from the public sphere with the implementation of the socialist political and socio-economic agenda. Though religious expressions were not banned, they were far from being encouraged, and religious activities in the public realm were closely monitored. This approach prevailed in the North from 1954 and during the American War and was implemented in the South after 1975 and reunification. It prevailed at least until the late 1980s, even after the launch of the doi moi policy in 1986. (1) Subsequently, cult places were less attended and religious practices had a tendency to dwindle. Nowadays, in vivid contrast, Vietnamese religious institutions are regularly praised in the public sphere by political leaders for their achievements and their contribution to the national project, "building the fatherland" (xay dung to quoc). The deep and rapid transformations experienced by the Vietnamese economy and society under the doi moi have also touched the religious sphere, particularly through the redefinition of the relation between religions and the state or the party-state. In parallel, pagodas, temples, and churches have recovered their crowds and prestige.