Vietnam: 07 backward marriage and family practices that should be eliminated through mobilization

Issued together with Decree No. 126/2014/ND-CP of Vietnam’s Government is the List of backward marriage and family practices which should be eliminated through mobilization. To be specific:

1. Getting married before the ages prescribed by the Law on Marriage and Family.

2. Marriage registration is not carried out by competent state agencies.

3. Forcing marriages due to physiognomy and astronomy reading and superstition; obstructing marriages due to ethnic and religious differences.

4. Prohibiting marriages between relatives of the fourth generation on.

5. Forcing the son-in-law to stay matrilocal to work for his parents-in-law after the marriage if his family has no money for wedding and no wedding presents.

6. The family ties are patriarchal or matriarchal, failing to ensure the equality between wife and husband as well as between girls and boys.

- Patriarchy:

+ Upon the divorce, if at the wife’s request, the wife’s family must return to the husband’s family all the wedding presents and other costs; if at the husband’s request, the wife’s family must still return to the husband’s family half of the wedding presents. After the divorce, if the woman remarries, she is not allowed to enjoy and take any property with her. After the divorce, the children must live with their father.

+ When the husband dies, the widow is not entitled to the heritance left behind by the husband. If the widow remarries, she is not allowed to enjoy and take any property with her.

+ When the father dies, only sons are entitled to the heritance left behind by the late father.

- Matriarchy:

+ The children are forced to bear their mother’s family name.

+ When the wife dies, the widower is not allowed to enjoy the heritance left behind by his late wife and to take his personal property home.

+ When the mother dies, only daughters are entitled to enjoy the heritance left behind by their late mother.

+ After his matrilocality, if the son-in-law is denied the marriage or after the betrothal ceremony and the wedding offerings being accepted, the son-in-law is denied the marriage, he will not be compensated therefor.

7. Rejecting marriages between people of different ethnic groups or between people of different religions.

View more details at Decree No. 126/2014/ND-CP of Vietnam’s Government, effective from February 15, 2015.

Le Hai

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