Eliminate bad customs, build civilized life

Preserving and promoting indigenous cultural values ​​while eliminating backward customs and practices has multiplied many meaningful movements, contributing to building a civilized life in the highland villages of Lai Chau province.

Preserving and promoting indigenous cultural values ​​while eliminating backward customs and practices has multiplied many meaningful movements, contributing to building a civilized life in the highland villages of Lai Chau province.

The initial results of implementing Resolution No. 15-NQ/TU, dated December 22, 2023 of the Provincial Party Committee on the fight to eliminate backward customs, practices and habits, and build a civilized lifestyle have affirmed that when the resolution originates from reality, with appropriate approaches, taking people as the center will be the fastest way to bring the resolution into life.

Bright spots are replicated

Hua Than Village, Muong Than Commune (Than Uyen District) is a pioneer in propagating to the people to eliminate bad customs in organizing funerals with many cumbersome rituals, affecting the health and safety of the community. Party Secretary Sung A So is a young cadre (born in 1986) who is always conscious of preserving indigenous culture, and at the same time actively mobilizing people to change some bad customs that are no longer suitable.

Comrade Sung A So said that Hua Than village has 100% of the population being H'Mong ethnic people, there is a custom of leaving the deceased in the house for 3-7 days to invite a shaman with many bad customs, feasts, unsafe and expensive. As a young person, having access to information and seeing many places having solemn and economical ways of doing things, Secretary Sung A So discussed his concerns in the Party cell and reached a consensus to mobilize people in the village to innovate the organization of funerals.

Determining that change cannot be done in a day or two, the Party cell chose the method of "slow and steady wins the race", with exemplary Party member families encouraging their relatives to do it first. The results were beyond expectations, in a short time, Hua Than village eliminated some old customs and moved towards building a civilized, frugal and suitable lifestyle. Hua Than Party cell became a bright spot of Than Uyen district in implementing Resolution No. 15 of the Provincial Party Committee.

Comrade Hoang Van Tuan, Deputy Head of the Propaganda and Mass Mobilization Department of Than Uyen District Party Committee, shared that from the way of doing things in Hua Than village, the district has built a model of New Cultural Lifestyle among the H'Mong ethnic group and piloted it in five villages of Phuc Than commune. After one year of implementation, with the consensus of the people, the district has expanded it to all 21 villages with H'Mong ethnic group. Along with that, the Party Committee, government and organizations have mobilized people to eliminate the bad customs of dowry, using homemade hunting guns, storing and using explosives, etc.

The model of "Eliminating child marriage - building a civilized lifestyle" in Ho Mit commune, Tan Uyen district has also become a model that has been widely replicated. Ho Mit is one of the localities with the highest rate of child marriage in Lai Chau province. In Mit Noi village alone, in the period of 2020-2024, the number of child marriage couples accounted for more than 80% of the married couples. This situation causes many consequences for reproductive health as well as the quality of life of the community, and is a "barrier" to the development of the locality. Faced with the above situation, the Party Committee of Ho Mit commune is determined to mobilize and persuade people to gradually change and eliminate this bad custom.

Secretary of the Ho Mit Commune Party Committee Thao A Sinh said: “Given the reality of the commune, the Party Committee has issued a resolution and assigned specific tasks to each village and hamlet Party cell, each organization to propagate, supervise, and bring legal education and life skills models to the community, especially young people; invite medical staff and teachers to provide pre-marital counseling; mobilize people to register their marriages according to the law and organize them to sign a commitment not to get married early, to practice a civilized lifestyle in marriage... These actions have helped people gradually change their awareness, the number of households getting married early in the commune is decreasing significantly every year. Ho Mit is striving to become the first commune to eliminate early marriage, and to properly implement regulations on a civilized lifestyle in marriage.”

Right policy, immediate effect

According to the Propaganda and Mass Mobilization Department of Lai Chau Provincial Party Committee, many backward customs, practices and habits of ethnic groups have existed for generations, becoming obstacles to local socio -economic development. The results of the campaign and struggle to eliminate backward customs have spread humane models such as "No children giving birth to children" of the Provincial Women's Union; changing backward habits such as the model "Livestock raising with centralized barns", "Villages without early marriage, incestuous marriage" in Muong Te district.

Many backward customs, practices and habits of ethnic groups have existed for generations, becoming obstacles to local socio-economic development.

People in Than Uyen district have signed the commitment "5 things to do", "5 things not to do" or the model "Prevention and fight against child marriage, incestuous marriage" and "Youth club says no to child marriage, incestuous marriage", "Giang family daughter-in-law commits to eliminating backward customs, practices and habits to build a civilized lifestyle" in Tam Duong district, Tan Uyen district...

Through various forms of propaganda and mobilization to implement Resolution No. 15-NQ/TU, the people of all ethnic groups in Lai Chau province have gradually changed their perceptions and backward habits, approaching a new way of life. The content of the resolution is integrated into village and hamlet meetings; broadcasted through loudspeakers in residential areas, social networking sites, and fairs; visually promoted through banners, slogans, and leaflets; or in the form of dramatization; or through prestigious people, folk artists, etc. Thereby raising the awareness and responsibility of cadres and party members and gradually creating positive changes in the community.

Comrade Le Chi Cong, Deputy Head of the Standing Committee of the Propaganda and Mass Mobilization Department of Lai Chau Provincial Party Committee, said that the implementation of Resolution No. 15 has achieved many goals at the same time, both eliminating backward customs and practices and creating a foundation for building a civilized lifestyle. Initial results have changed the way of thinking and working, bringing people new models of livelihood creation such as service development, community tourism associated with preserving the cultural identity of ethnic minorities.

Implementing the resolution, many Party committee officials and civil servants of assigned agencies and units have carried out the “4 together” (eating, living, working and speaking the ethnic language together) with the people. With the “hand-holding” approach, the team of officials from departments, branches and organizations from the province to the district and commune levels went down to the villages and hamlets to guide the people to adjust their living habits to the new cultural lifestyle.

Notably, the organization of the "Skilled Mass Mobilization" contest to propagate the elimination of backward customs, practices, and habits, and the building of a civilized lifestyle at the district, commune, and ward party levels, with 220 questions and answers, and the organization of mock trials on child marriage, attracted a large number of people, cadres, party members, civil servants, public employees, and armed forces soldiers to accompany and cheer, and was broadcast live on digital platforms and social networks, creating a very positive effect in the community.

Along with reviewing and identifying backward customs and practices, the Steering Committee for the implementation of Resolution No. 15-NQ/TU of districts and cities deploys and guides communes and towns to organize people's meetings to unify the inclusion of backward customs and practices into village, hamlet, and residential group conventions and conventions to eliminate them according to the roadmap.

With the spirit of drastic and responsible participation of Party committees, Party organizations and grassroots organizations, according to the assessment of Lai Chau Provincial Party Committee, after more than a year of implementing Resolution No. 15 in the province, there have been strong and positive changes. Exemplary cadres and Party members, and people who have agreed to follow have changed their awareness, gradually forming new thinking and taking specific and practical actions to build a civilized lifestyle. Weddings, funerals, festivals and daily life have developed in the direction of both preserving traditional cultural values, selectively absorbing new culture, and resolutely eliminating backward customs and practices, gradually improving the quality of people's lives.

Article and photos: PHAM CUONG and TRAN TUAN

Source: https://nhandan.vn/xoa-bo-hu-tuc-xay-dung-doi-song-van-minh-post885164.html