Both the Constitution and government decrees provide for freedom of worship; however, the Government continued to restrict those organized activities of religious groups that it declared to be at variance with state laws and policies. The Government generally allowed individual worship for those persons who participated privately in recognized religious bodies, including the Buddhist and Roman Catholic traditions. Participation in religious activities throughout the country continued to grow significantly; however, the Government maintained organizational control of the administration of recognized religions, and restrictions on the hierarchies and clergy of most religious groups remained in place. The Government controlled the administrative process leading to the creation of the official organizations for the major sanctioned religions, including the naming of their officers. In some cases, most notably the Hoa Hao, Cao Dai, and Buddhist religions, some former leaders of the nonofficial pre-1975 organizations and many believers reject the official organizations.

Overall, the status of respect for religious freedom did not change during the period covered by this report, but remains improved from conditions of the early 1990's. The Government used the lack of official recognition of groups to restrict them; certain groups of Buddhists, Protestants, and Hoa Hao lack legal recognition. Restrictions remained on unrecognized religions and dissident religious leaders and groups. These restrictions were particularly harsh in some border provinces, although religious practice and observance became easier for believers in other parts of the country. In April 2001, the Government officially recognized the Southern Evangelical Church of Vietnam and allowed the group to elect its own leaders democratically. However, in February 2001, in the Central Highlands provinces of Gia Lai and Dak Lak the government took action against Protestant ethnic minorities protesting in part against the loss of traditional homelands to recent migrants--mostly ethnic Vietnamese--and abusive police treatment in the provinces. The authorities detained several Protestant leaders, and security forces harassed some local Christians, especially those suspected of advocating political autonomy for the region. The Government continued to permit only intermittent, supervised access to these provinces by diplomats, nongovernmental organizations (NGO's), and other foreigners, making it difficult to verify conditions there.

Police routinely questioned persons who advocate dissident religious views and arbitrarily detained persons based on their religious beliefs and practices. Groups of Protestant Christians who worshipped in house churches in ethnic minority areas were subjected to detention by local officials who broke up unsanctioned religious meetings. Authorities also imprisoned persons for practicing religion illegally by using provisions of the Penal Code that allow for jail terms of up to 3 years for "abusing freedom of speech, press, or religion." There are an estimated two dozen religious prisoners and detainees.

The generally amicable relationship among religions in society led to some modest attempts at cooperation and dialog in the southern part of the country.

The U.S. Embassy in Hanoi and the U.S. Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City maintained an active and regular dialog with senior- and working-level government officials to advocate greater religious freedom. The U.S. Ambassador and other U.S. officials discussed concerns about the detention and arrest of religious figures and other restrictions on religious freedom with cabinet ministers, Communist Party officials, and provincial officials. Intervention by the U.S. Government during the period covered by this report resulted in improvements, such as the release of at least five religious prisoners and detainees, a more open dialog on Cao Dai, and the recognition of the Southern Evangelical Church of Vietnam.

The country has a total area of approximately 122,000 square miles, and its population is approximately 80 million. The Government officially recognizes Buddhist (approximately 50 percent of the population), Roman Catholic (approximately 8 percent), Cao Dai (1.5 percent), Hoa Hao (1.5 percent), Protestant (0.9 percent), and Muslim (0.1 percent) religious organizations. Approximately 38 percent of citizens consider themselves nonreligious.

Among the country's religious communities, Buddhism is the dominant religious belief. Many Buddhists practice an amalgam of Mahayana Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucian traditions that sometimes is called Vietnam's "triple religion." Some estimates suggest that more than half the population is at least nominally Buddhist, visit pagodas on festival days, and have a world view that is shaped in part by Buddhism, although in reality these beliefs rely on a very expansive definition of the faith. One prominent Buddhist official has estimated that 30 percent of Buddhists are devout and practice their faith regularly. The Government's Office of Religious Affairs uses a much lower estimate of 7 million practicing Buddhists. Mahayana Buddhists, most of whom are part of the ethnic Kinh majority, are found throughout the country, especially in the populous areas of the northern and southern delta regions. There are fewer Buddhists proportionately in certain highland areas, although migration of Kinh to highland areas is changing the distribution somewhat. Mahayana Buddhist monks in the country occasionally have engaged in political and social issues, most notably actively campaigning for peace and against perceived injustices in the former Republic of Vietnam during the 1960's.

A Khmer ethnic minority in the south practices Theravada Buddhism. Numbering just over 1 million persons, they live almost exclusively in the Mekong Delta. 

There are an estimated 6 million Roman Catholics in the country (approximately 8 percent of the population). French missionaries introduced the religion in the 17th century. In the 1940's, priests in the large Catholic dioceses of Phat Diem and Bui Chu, to the southeast of Hanoi, organized a political association with a militia that fought against the Communist guerrillas until the military defeat in 1954. Hundreds of thousands of Catholics from the northern part of the country fled to Ho Chi Minh City (then called Saigon) and surrounding areas ahead of the 1954 partition of North and South. Catholics live throughout the country, but the largest concentrations remain in the southern provinces around Ho Chi Minh City and in the provinces just southeast of Hanoi. Catholicism has revived in northern regions. In recent years, congregations in the cities of Hanoi and Haiphong and many nearby provinces have rebuilt churches and reinstituted religious services.

In the past several years, diplomatic missions from the Vatican have resulted in the filling of bishoprics that had been vacant for a number of years. In June 2000, a bishop was named for Da Nang province, and in August 2000, a bishop was named for Vinh Long province. During a Vatican delegation's visit in June 2001, the Government reportedly agreed to the Vatican's appointment of three additional bishops: A new bishop for Bui Chu Diocese; an auxiliary bishop for Ho Chi Minh City; and a coadjutor bishop for Phan Thiet. However, the Government also reportedly refused to allow appointment of a bishop for the Hung Hoa Diocese, a coadjutor bishop for Hanoi, and a bishop for Haiphong. The head of the Vatican delegation stated that the atmosphere in the meetings was warmer than on any of his six earlier visits. Government officials stated that they "view the Catholic Church as a positive force." 

There are at least 700,000 Protestants in the country (less than 1 percent of the population), with more than half of these persons belonging to a large number of unregistered evangelical "house churches" that operate in members' homes or in rural villages, many of them in ethnic minority areas. Perhaps as many as 150,000 of the followers of house churches are Pentecostals, who celebrate "gifts of the spirit" through charismatic and ecstatic rites of worship. Protestantism in the country dates from 1911, when an American missionary from the Christian and Missionary Alliance arrived in Da Nang. Reports from believers indicated that Protestant church attendance grew during the period covered by this report, especially among the house churches, despite continued government restrictions on proselytizing activities. Based on believers' estimates, two-thirds of Protestants are members of ethnic minorities, including ethnic Hmong (an estimated 150,000 followers) in the northwest provinces and some 200,000 members of ethnic minority groups of the Central Highlands (Ede, Jarai, Bahnar, and Koho, among others). The house churches in ethnic minority areas have been growing rapidly, sparked in part by radio broadcasts in ethnic minority languages from the Philippines.

The Cao Dai religion was founded in 1926 in the south. The Office of Religious Affairs estimates there are 1.1 million Cao Dai. Some NGO sources estimate that there are from 2 to 3 million followers. Cao Dai groups are most active in Tay Ninh Province, where the Cao Dai Holy See is located, and in Ho Chi Minh City and the Mekong Delta. There are separate groups within the Cao Dai religion, which is syncretistic, combining elements of many faiths. Its basic belief system is influenced strongly by Mahayana Buddhism, although it recognizes a diverse array of persons who have conveyed divine revelation, including Siddhartha, Jesus, Lao-Tse, Confucius, and Moses. During the 1940's and 1950's, the Cao Dai participated in political and military activities. Their opposition to the Communist forces until 1975 was a factor in government repression after 1975. The Cao Dai were granted legal recognition only in 1997. Some adherents claim that it became more broadly based in 2000. 

Hoa Hao, considered by some of its followers to be a "reform" branch of Buddhism, was founded in the southern part of the country in 1939. Hoa Hao is a largely privatistic faith that does not have a priesthood and rejects many of the ceremonial aspects of mainstream Buddhism. According to the Office of Religious Affairs, there are 1.3 million Hoa Hao followers; church-affiliated expatriate groups estimate that there may be from 2 million to 3 million followers. Hoa Hao followers are concentrated in the Mekong Delta, particularly in provinces such as An Giang, where the Hoa Hao were dominant as a political and military as well as a religious force before 1975. Elements of the Hoa Hao were among the last defenders to surrender to Communist forces in the Mekong Delta in the summer of 1975. 

Mosques serving the country's small Muslim population, estimated at 60,000 persons, operate in western An Giang province, Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and provinces in the southern part of the country. The Muslim community is composed of ethnic Cham in the southern coastal provinces and western Mekong Delta. The Muslim community also includes some ethnic Vietnamese and migrants originally from Malaysia, Indonesia, and India. Most practice Sunni Islam.

There are a variety of smaller religious communities. Approximately 4,000 Hindus live in Ho Chi Minh City; some are ethnic Cham, but most are Indian or of mixed Indian-Vietnamese descent. Another estimated 4,000 ethnic Chams reportedly practice forms of Hinduism on the south central coast area.

There are estimated to be from several hundred to 2,000 members of the Baha'i Faith, largely concentrated in the south; prior to 1975, there were an estimated 130,000 believers, according to Baha'i officials.

There are several hundred members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) who are spread throughout the country but live primarily in the Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi areas.

Of the country's approximately 80 million citizens, 14 million or more reportedly do not practice any organized religion. Some sources strictly define those considered to be practicing Buddhists, excluding those whose activities are limited to visiting pagodas on ceremonial holidays. Using this definition, the number of nonreligious persons would be much higher, perhaps as high as 50 million persons.

Foreign missionaries from various groups throughout the country engaged in developmental, humanitarian, educational, and relief efforts. None of these organizations legally are permitted to register or to proselytize.