Hmong village in Nam Giang

Hmong women in Nam Giang village tend to their family's bean garden. Photo: HOANG HA THE

In 2009, 11 Hmong households with more than 50 adults and children from Thai Nguyen and Tuyen Quang provinces migrated to Phu Yen to seek a new life. At first, they faced many difficulties, but with the attention of authorities at all levels, the lives of the people here have gradually improved.

Journey to new land

In the early summer sun in the Son Giang mountainous area, I followed Mr. Chu Van Diep, Head of Nam Giang village (Son Giang commune, Song Hinh district) to learn about the life of the H'Mong village here. Along National Highway 29, turning into the settlement of 35 H'Mong households, the road is paved with concrete for nearly 1km along with a three-phase electricity system invested by the State in late 2012. Many houses are built spaciously on a flat land area of ​​more than 5,000m2, water for daily use is pumped by electric motors from dug wells or drilled wells. Walking around the area, almost every house has a TV, a motorbike, a few dozen bags of rice in the corner of the house, a flock of native H'Mong chickens... We feel the new sustainable vitality present here.

Mr. Ma Seo Ky (72 years old), the oldest person in the village and also the one who was present from the early days when the Hmong village was established, in a broken Kinh accent, recounted: “In 2009, my family and 10 other Hmong families (including children) from Thai Nguyen and Tuyen Quang provinces migrated freely to Phu Yen, settling at Doc Phuong (now Son Thanh Tay commune, Tay Hoa district). This is an upstream protection forest planning area that does not allow people to build houses, so we had to live temporarily and isolated on the high mountains. During the day, we went to scrape cassava, cut sugarcane for hire, and at night, when we came back, looking everywhere, it was pitch black.”

With the support from the local government and the efforts of the H'Mong people themselves, it is hoped that in the near future, this place will develop more and more, becoming a bright spot in the ethnic minority community in Phu Yen.

According to Mr. Ksor Y Phun, Vice Chairman of Song Hinh District People's Committee, at that time, in order to stabilize life and ensure rural security in the district, on August 12, 2012, the Provincial People's Committee issued Decision 1176/QD-UBND approving the plan to arrange accommodation for 11 H'Mong ethnic households who migrated freely from Phuong slope to Nam Giang village residential area, Son Giang commune. In addition to moving to a new place of residence, each household was supported with 8 million VND and 500m2 of land to build a house.

Mr. Pham Quoc Thong, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of the People's Council of Son Giang Commune, shared: "The difficulty at that time was that when the H'Mong people migrated freely here, they often went to the high mountains to live, so their children could not go to school. However, thanks to the efforts of the Party and local authorities, not only were these households able to settle down in their new homes, but most of their children were also able to go to school to learn to read and write, and the H'Mong villagers in Nam Giang village enjoyed social welfare like people in other places."

Prosperity in the new land

Currently, 35 Hmong families have settled in Nam Giang village, children of all levels can go to school with preferential treatment, many are in the final year of high school with the dream of going to university to start a career in the future. The Hmong villagers here not only preserve their traditional culture but also gradually adapt to modern life. Some families have experimented with clean agricultural models, growing organic vegetables, raising free-range chickens, initially bringing economic efficiency. In particular, the Chu Sinh production area in the south of Nam Giang village now has a concrete bridge across. Mr. Chu Van Diep said: "For a long time, people had to wade across Beo stream to go to work in the Chu Sinh production area. Now, thanks to the Hmong households settling down and producing, the villagers benefit from the Suoi Beo bridge."

Mr. Hong Van Vanh (37 years old) and Ms. Ly Thi Sia (35 years old) are originally from Mo Ba village, Tan Long commune, Dong Hy district, Thai Nguyen province. They followed their parents here from the beginning and now have their own family. Ms. Ly Thi Sia confided: “My family has 3 hectares of hills growing acacia and 2 sao of rice fields. The stable income helps the couple take care of their 3 children.”

With the support from the local government and the efforts of the H'Mong people themselves, it is hoped that in the near future, this place will develop more and more, becoming a bright spot in the ethnic minority community in Phu Yen.

Source: https://baophuyen.vn/xa-hoi/202505/lang-hmong-o-nam-giang-1a511de/