Raising awareness to prevent early marriage and incestuous marriage

In many ethnic minority villages, the story of fourteen and fifteen year old girls leaving school to get married is still quietly happening. Early marriage and incestuous marriage not only take away the childhood and future of these girls but also leave long-term consequences. To change this situation, the Women's Union at all levels has stepped in, contributing every day to changing perceptions and opening new doors for women and girls.

Báo Đắk Lắk•02/12/2025

H Thieng Nie (born 2006, in Sa Bok hamlet, Nam Ka commune) was forced by her parents to get married when she was only 15 years old so that the family would have “one less mouth to feed” and have someone to help with housework. Since then, her dream of going to school ended. Now just over 18 years old, H Thieng has two small children, no job, and takes care of them every day. H Thieng’s older sister and younger sister also got married when they were only 14 and 15 years old, creating a vicious cycle of poverty and ignorance that continues for many generations.

The story of H An Trei (born 2006, Krai village, Nam Ka commune) is equally heartbreaking. His family is poor, his mother raised 5 children by herself, H An dropped out of school in 2nd grade to help support the family. At the age of 16, she got married with the thought of "having someone to help her mother". But early marriage made life more difficult, H An's young child was stunted, often sick, and the family could not afford to take him to the doctor. The unstable income from her husband's hired job was not enough to support the whole family.

Members of the Dak Lieng Commune Community Communication Team promote gender equality in the area.

According to statistics, in the period 2020 - 2024, Dak Lak recorded more than 1,700 cases of child marriage, mainly among the Ede, M'nong, H'Mong, and J'rai ethnic groups. The causes come from limited awareness, backward customs, and lack of legal knowledge. Child marriage causes many girls to get married when their bodies and minds are not yet mature; and incestuous marriages pose a risk of children contracting genetic diseases and weakening the race.

In order to improve knowledge and protect the rights of women and girls, in April 2023, the Yang Lah 2 Village Community Communication Team (Dak Lieng Commune) was established with 10 members who are village officials, women's association heads, and prestigious people in the community. After nearly 3 years of operation, the Communication Team has become a place to record, listen, and work with the community to find solutions to urgent social issues, contributing to protecting the rights and future of women and children here. Ms. Nguyen Thi Thao, Vice President of the Dak Lieng Commune Women's Union, said: "In the past, there were many cases of early marriage and incestuous marriage in the area. Since the establishment of the Communication Team, when members went to propagate, people's awareness has clearly improved; the situation of early marriage and incestuous marriage has also decreased significantly."

Officials of the Women's Union of Nam Ka commune propagate the prevention of child marriage and incestuous marriage to female members.

The "Leaders of Change" Club is one of the concrete models of Project 8 established by the Ea Knop Women's Union in collaboration with schools. With 30 members, the Club helps students practice skills, confidence and become "little leaders", active cores in the student movement, contributing to changing the awareness and behavior of friends on sensitive social issues. Taking on the role of Chairman and leader of the Club, Ban Vu Bao Ngoc (Dao ethnic group, 9th grade student, Cao Ba Quat Secondary School) shared: "Thanks to the knowledge I learned, I went home to share with my parents, siblings and friends about the consequences of early marriage. I also actively propagate at school, tell real stories so that everyone is aware and together prevent it, gradually changing awareness in the community".

In recent times, the Provincial Women's Union has proactively implemented many solutions to prevent and combat child marriage and consanguineous marriage. From 2022 to present, the province has disbursed more than 18 billion VND to implement Project 8 under the National Target Program for the Development of Ethnic Minority and Mountainous Areas. The Union has organized 370 communication sessions on Project 8, 145 communication sessions on gender equality; trained nearly 3,000 cadres, village elders, village chiefs, and prestigious people; supported the implementation of 4 policy packages related to safe childbirth and child health care. The province currently has 534 models such as community communication teams, Leaders of Change Clubs, and "Trusted Addresses" in the community.

Ms. Kim Thoa Adrông, Permanent Vice President of the Provincial Women's Union, said that in the coming time, the Union will strengthen coordination with departments and branches to innovate communication forms, possibly dramatizing or mobilizing young people who had been married early to become propagandists. Sharing from those who have experienced it will have a great impact on the ethnic minorities here.

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