Elements of democracy
The idea of democracy resonates far and wide in Vietnam and has done so for decades. Rarely do Vietnamese regard democracy as foreign. Indeed the concept enjoys a very positive image. One veteran of Vietnam's Communist Party and of the war against the United States and to reunite the nation wrote, democracy and freedom have permeated the of bones and blood Vietnamese people" (Nguyen 1994, p.29) Today and in the recent villagers' petitions and letters objecting to particular officials or programs frequently implore authorities to be democratic and to uphold people's democratic rights And officials regularly portray the country's political system as democratic and the government as "of the people, by the people, for the people and