Vietnam’s Ministry of Justice has backed plans for the eventual legalization of same-sex marriage in the one party socialist state – submitting a draft of an amended Law on Marriage and Family to the government.

The Justice Ministry wants an end to Clause 5 Article 10 in Vietnam’s Law on Family and Marriage which explicitly bans same-sex marriage and has suggest equalizing the age at which people can get married regardless of sex in preparation for greater change.

Currently Vietnamese women must be at least 18 to get married, while the age is 20 for men and the Justice Ministry wants to change this to 18 for both sexes.

Dantri International news reports that Justice Minister Ha Hung Cuong conceded that many Vietnamese may not be ready to see same-sex couples marrying yet.

But a government committee set up by the Justice Ministry exploring the issue has suggested a road map to equality – starting with the recognition of the property rights of cohabiting same-sex couples in preparation for the eventual government recognition of same-sex marriages.

The Justice Ministry is only the second government ministry to back plans to legalize same-sex marriage in Vietnam, with the Health Ministry backing plans for reform in April.

Human rights advocates told GSN in February that they did not expect to see a vote on the issue by Vietnam’s National Assembly before 2014.