Vietnam | Good News For Humankind

A Vietnamese court building at dusk for an article about Vietnam death penalty reform — 12 words

Vietnam cuts death penalty for eight crimes including corruption and drug offenses

By Peter Schulte / June 26, 2025 / Good News For Humankind

Vietnam death penalty reform marks one of the most significant shifts in the country’s criminal justice history, removing capital punishment from eight categories of offenses including economic crimes and corruption. The revised penal code introduces a restitution pathway allowing convicted individuals to have death sentences commuted to life imprisonment by returning illegally obtained assets, prioritizing recovery of public funds over retribution. This structurally novel approach creates transparent, measurable criteria for sentencing rather than leaving mercy to judicial discretion. The reform aligns Vietnam with a growing global movement to narrow the scope of capital punishment, even where full abolition remains politically difficult.

Vietnam develops ‘world’s first’ African swine fever vaccine for commercial use

By Peter Schulte / June 2, 2022 / Good news links

African swine fever, one of the most devastating livestock diseases, was first detected in Vietnam in February 2019 and forced the country to cull around 20% of its hog herd last year.

Vietnam sees a 100-fold increase in solar capacity over the last two years

By Peter Schulte / June 2, 2021 / Good news links

In 2020, the only countries that installed more solar than Vietnam were the U.S. and China.

4 major Asian nations cancel 80% of planned coal power projects

By Peter Schulte / January 18, 2021 / Good news links

Indonesia, Vietnam, Bangladesh, and the Philippines have canceled nearly 45 gigawatts of proposed coal power projects, a figure equal to more than one-quarter of the total installed capacity of Germany.

Skulls of Khmer Rouge victims, for article on Khmer Rouge Cambodia

Vietnam ends Khmer Rouge rule in Cambodia, halting a genocide

By Peter Schulte / January 7, 1979 / Archive of Human Genius

On January 7, 1979, Vietnamese forces rolled into Phnom Penh and ended the Khmer Rouge regime, closing nearly four years of rule that had killed an estimated 1.5 to 2 million Cambodians — roughly a quarter of the population. The road to justice was long, but the day itself broke the nightmare.

Vietnam's flag, for article on vietnamese independence declaration

Vietnam declares independence as World War II ends in Asia

By Peter Schulte / September 2, 1945 / Archive of Human Genius

Vietnam’s independence was declared on September 2, 1945, when Ho Chi Minh stood in Hanoi’s Ba Dinh Square before a crowd of hundreds of thousands. He opened with words borrowed from the American Declaration of Independence — a pointed move from a leader who knew his audience. The moment launched a decades-long struggle that reshaped Southeast Asia.

Territories of Đại Việt under Lý dynasty, for article on Lý dynasty Vietnam

Vietnam’s Lý dynasty founds a rule-of-law state that lasts 216 years

By Peter Schulte / January 1, 1009 / Archive of Human Genius

In 1009 CE, a general named Lý Công Uẩn took the throne of Đại Cồ Việt with the backing of court officials and Buddhist monks, founding a dynasty that would last 216 years. A year later, he moved the capital to a riverside plain he named Thăng Long — the city we now call Hanoi.

Kingdom of Funan map, for article on Funan kingdom

Funan rises as Southeast Asia’s first known kingdom

By Peter Schulte / January 31, 0001 / Archive of Human Genius

Funan, Southeast Asia’s earliest known kingdom, took shape in the Mekong Delta in the first century C.E., trading with Rome, India, and China from its port at Óc Eo. Its people engineered a vast canal network linking inland cities to the coast. Much about them, including what they called themselves, remains unknown.

Map of Văn Lang, for article on Hồng Bàng dynasty

Hồng Bàng kings unite Vietnam’s earliest known kingdom

By Peter Schulte / January 20, 0001 / Archive of Human Genius

The Hùng kings ruled Văn Lang, an early Vietnamese kingdom along the Red River Delta, with traditions dating back to around 2500 B.C.E. From their capital at Phong Châu, they oversaw 15 regional divisions and a rice-farming society whose bronze drums still astonish today. Millennia later, Vietnam honors them as founding ancestors.