Medical staff from Muong Lat District Health Center conduct health checkups for women and children in Pha Den village, Pu Nhi commune. Photo: Tang Thuy
Previously, when mentioning Pha Den village, many people would think of a land plagued by outdated customs regarding marriage and funerals, consanguineous marriage, child marriage, and the belief in having many children, especially sons to "continue the family lineage." Furthermore, the Hmong people here live a self-sufficient lifestyle, completely dependent on the forest and slash-and-burn farming. Therefore, every year the people of Pha Den village face food shortages for several months. Poverty leads to stunted growth and malnutrition in the children, who lack adequate physical and mental care; many do not even attend school.
Faced with this situation, Pha Đén village incorporated population targets into its village regulations and conventions, using them as criteria for evaluating and awarding the title of "Culturally Advanced Family." Population collaborators in charge of the village went door-to-door to disseminate information about the Party's guidelines and the State's policies and laws on population work. As a result, people's awareness of population and family planning has steadily improved. To date, the village no longer has child marriage or consanguineous marriage, 100% of children of school age attend school, and many outdated customs have been eliminated and replaced with a new, culturally appropriate lifestyle.
Ms. Lau Thi Xia is a pioneer in eliminating the traditional belief in having many children, especially sons, in Pha Den village. At over 40 years old, she only has two daughters. Most women her age try to have sons, some even wanting to have five or six children and still wanting more. According to Ms. Xia, her husband always wanted a son to carry on the family line. However, thanks to the efforts of health officials and the Women's Union of the commune, Ms. Xia and her husband changed their minds and focused on developing their economy and securing their children's future. Currently, all of her children are attending secondary and high schools in Muong Lat district. "I saw my parents having so many children that no matter how much rice they had, it wasn't enough to eat or wear. So I stopped at just two children, even though they were daughters. Thanks to that, family life is less difficult, and my husband and I have the means to take better care of our children," said Ms. Xia.
Currently, in Pha Đén village, there are about 30 women of childbearing age, of which more than 20 are married, and over 50% of them have successfully implemented the population and family planning policy. Ms. Hơ Thị Dế, a health worker at Pù Nhi Commune Health Station, said: "The staff of the commune health station, along with the Women's Union of Pù Nhi commune, regularly coordinate with village officials to go down to each household to disseminate information about the population and family planning policy. Previously, women were hesitant to get IUDs, condoms, or birth control pills, but now they are no longer hesitant and know how to plan their own families."
Mr. Lau Van Dua, head of Pha Den village, shared: “Not only have we eliminated outdated customs and beliefs, but the villagers have also learned to change the crop structure and apply scientific and technological advancements to production. Thanks to this, from a situation where the entire village was poor before 2010, now 56 households have escaped poverty. There are no more dilapidated houses; the percentage of culturally exemplary families has reached 90%; and all children of school age attend school and are not involved in social vices...”
Officials from the Muong Lat District Health Center are providing reproductive health education to ethnic minority women.
Pù Nhi is a mountainous border commune in Mường Lát district, primarily inhabited by the Mong and Dao ethnic groups. The belief in having sons to continue the family lineage persists in many households. Therefore, changing this mindset is not something that can be achieved overnight. Along with incorporating population and family planning policies into village regulations and customs, Pù Nhi commune has also implemented many effective new communication activities, such as establishing clubs: pre-marital clubs, reproductive health care clubs, etc., to raise awareness about the consequences of consanguineous marriage, gender imbalance, gender equality, and to encourage couples of childbearing age to adopt modern contraceptive methods, without discrimination between girls and boys. These clubs have had a positive impact and have received enthusiastic participation from the people.
Having many children, especially sons, is a custom and belief among people in the highlands, but it places a burden on families and society, contributing to gender imbalance and hindering socio-economic development in the locality. For Pù Nhi commune, population and family planning remains a long and arduous journey, requiring significant time and effort. Therefore, more active coordination among agencies, departments, and local authorities is needed to change people's perceptions in order to successfully accomplish the two challenging tasks of population and family planning and socio-economic development, improving the quality of life for the people.
Tang Thuy
Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/chuyen-o-ban-de-pha-den-252852.htm
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