By liberal democratic standards Vietnam is an authoritarian regime. The three branches of power — the executive, legislature and judiciary — remain under the CPV’s leadership, preventing any meaningful independent checks-and-balances. A key element of a functioning democracy is civil society, which is strictly monitored in Vietnam. Hence, the country  can hardly be recognised as democratic in nature.

But there have been some exciting developments since the country started the market-oriented economic policy Doi Moi in the late 1980s. Significant political reforms have been undertaken, creating some pre-conditions for democratic development at the national level in the future.

The most remarkable political reform is related to the relationship of the central–local authorities. Beginning in the late 1990s, the decentralisation approach taken by the central government gives more autonomy to the local government in making decisions and having practices. This has provided the space for local-government decisions that sometimes differ to central government expectations, though at times the centre has reigned this in, particularly for local policies with liberalising effects.

Decentralisation has also accelerated economic development differentiation among localities, depending on creative practices taken by the authorities therein. Đà Nẵng, a central coastal city, is a notable example.

For more than a decade now Đà Nẵng has been known nation-wide as one of the most dynamic and livable cities in the country. It is also a popular place for domestic and foreign holiday-takers. Some indicators related to good governance, such as economic growth; modern infrastructure; a people-centric public service, including the behaviour and attitude of public servants; and public engagement in local politics (as seen during meetings of the the local legislative body) are all impressive by comparison with other provinces and cities. Good governance is linked with democratisation in Đà Nẵng. The city ranked especially high on six important indicators, all relevant to democratisation — participation, transparency, accountability, control of corruption, administration procedures, and public service delivery — in The Vietnam Provincial Governance and Public Administration Performance Index (PAPI 2012).

The case of Đà Nẵng shows that although Vietnam fairs poorly on the above six indicators at a national level (as given by international ranking agencies like the Polity IV Project, Freedom House, International Transparency and World Audit (for democracy)), it is capable of very different and far more promising results at the sub-national level.

One important factor seems to be leadership. Đà Nẵng’s prosperity is often associated with one charismatic and outspoken leader, Nguyen Ba Thanh, former chairman of the Đà Nẵng Party Committee and legislature. Thanh was recently appointed by the CPV Politburo to be the leader and manager of the Central Commission for Internal Affairs, a CPV Central Committee body re-established in early 2013 to regain party control over various issues including anti-corruption.

Views of Thanh’s leadership style in Đà Nẵng vary, with both positive and negative accounts. More neutral comments say Thanh is an authoritarian, but competent and determined leader. The appraisal by ordinary people of Thanh’s performance seems to differ significantly to that of his colleagues.

Đà Nẵng and Thanh are interesting case-studies. They shows that under one-party rule, democratisation can begin from the bottom rather than the top. A provocative question is:  is authoritarian leadership needed for development and democracy to go ahead at the subnational level while necessary conditions for regime change are inadequate at the national level?

Political developments in Vietnam over the past two decades suggest this may be possible — that the one-party, authoritarian leadership of highly competent individuals can lead to democratic development

It seems that political development in Vietnam is taking two directions: tightening authoritarianism at the national level and increasing democratisation at the sub-national. However, whether changes of a democratic nature at the local level can lead to similar changes at the national level remains to be seen.

Hai Hong Nguyen is a PhD Candidate at the School of Political Science and International Studies, University of Queensland.