Economic development has been identified as a "lever" contributing to the mountainous districts' goal of completely eliminating outdated customs and traditions. While changing the ingrained perceptions and habits of some people is not easy, specific policies and concentrated resources have demonstrated the determination of the entire political system in Tan Son district to improve the lives of ethnic minority communities.
The Dao Tien ethnic people in Coi village, Xuan Son National Park, preserve the art of printing patterns using beeswax.
Community awareness
One of the important aspects of village regulations and conventions is the recognition of good customs and traditions, and the proposal of solutions to limit and eventually eliminate outdated and superstitious practices. This serves as a foundation for 100% of residential areas in Tan Son district to develop village regulations, which include provisions for strong efforts to eradicate backward customs and traditions.
Visiting Thach Kiet commune these days, we met Ms. Phung Thi Toan - Head of Minh Nga hamlet - at a training course on preventing child marriage and consanguineous marriage organized by the District Ethnic Affairs Department. While carefully taking notes in her notebook, Ms. Toan said: "I have to update my knowledge. In case the regulations of the village charter are no longer suitable, I will encourage the people to change them."
The Minh Nga area has 145 households, all of whom are Dao ethnic minority, including 50 poor and near-poor households. The darkness of poverty once brought with it many long-standing customs, most notably child marriage. To change people's perceptions and put an end to underage marriages among Dao teenagers, Ms. Toan and other representatives of the residential area proposed the creation of a village charter. This charter stipulates that if a family has a child who marries before reaching the legal age, the village will not allow the shaman to perform rituals, and local Party officials will not be allowed to attend the celebratory feast. From 2022 to the present, there has only been one case of underage marriage in the entire area. Through concrete and decisive measures, child marriage in Tan Son district has been significantly reduced. From 2019 to 2021, out of 1,419 marriages in the entire district, only 20 cases were child marriages (accounting for 1.4%), and consanguineous marriages were completely eliminated.
Besides the strict village regulations and conventions, the role of village elders, community leaders, and influential people is crucial in mobilizing the people to learn and implement the new way of life. In Kiet Son, the roads are paved and straight, streetlights illuminate the streets brightly at night, and security cameras are installed from houses to the main roads. The face of the rural area has improved significantly – this is the pride shared by Comrade Ha Thanh Minh, former Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of the People's Council of Kiet Son commune.
One of Mr. Minh's most memorable experiences during his years of service was campaigning and collecting signatures from neighboring communes to build a high school for local children. In the 1980s, Thanh Son district (before the district was divided) only had three high schools. Students in Kiet Son who wanted to attend high school had to travel dozens of kilometers to reach their schools, so many dropped out and got married early. Mr. Minh, then the Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Kiet Son commune, personally cycled to collect nine signatures from nine chairmen of neighboring communes, pledging to encourage their children to attend school. This handwritten commitment with nine signatures later became an important foundation for the establishment of Thach Kiet High School (the predecessor of Tan Son High School today).
The light of literacy and education has motivated the youth of Kiet Son commune in particular and Tan Son district in general to strive for a better future. The quality of education and training in the district has continuously improved. Job placement and vocational training for rural laborers have been emphasized. In the first six months of 2024, the percentage of trained and skilled laborers reached 59.2% (an increase of 1.3% compared to 2023), and the percentage of laborers with degrees, certificates, and certifications reached 31.8% (an increase of 0.9% compared to 2023).
Neighborhood leaders and residents of Thach Kiet commune, Tan Son district, participated in a training course on preventing child marriage and consanguineous marriage organized by the District Ethnic Affairs Department.
Building a new way of life
In 2022-2023, Tan Son district allocated nearly one billion VND from its operational budget to invest in programs aimed at reducing child marriage and consanguineous marriage among ethnic minority and mountainous communities. Dozens of training courses, communication campaigns, seminars, and competitions were organized, reaching hundreds of officials, community leaders, and ethnic minority people about regulations related to preventing and combating child marriage and consanguineous marriage.
Regarding the implementation of the National Target Program for socio -economic development in ethnic minority and mountainous areas for the period 2021-2025 (National Target Program 1719), Tan Son district has implemented the program in all 17/17 communes and 171/172 villages and hamlets in the ethnic minority and mountainous areas of the district.
Meeting Mr. Chảo A Chua, Secretary of the Youth Union of Mỹ Á area, Thu Cúc commune, in late July, he enthusiastically said: "In the entire Mỹ Á area, there are now only two cases of marriages before the age of 18. That's a huge leap forward compared to before." Mỹ Á area has 100% Hmong population and was once a "black spot" of poverty and backward customs in the mountainous Tân Sơn district. The district has dedicated many resources and attention to the people here to help them escape poverty, bringing a brighter and more joyful atmosphere to this village nestled in the mountains.
The "Peaceful Hmong Village" program in My A area, launched in 2021, with the district police force as the core, has actively contributed to disseminating the Party's guidelines and the State's policies and laws to the people; mobilizing them to abandon outdated customs, build a new life, and protect village security. Traditional shamans and priests, who once represented the old ways, have taken the lead in encouraging the villagers to abandon backward customs and adopt new lifestyles from the lowlands. Village elder Sung A Vang said: "I have seven sons, but I only allowed the third one, over 20 years old, to get married and have children. Now, people in My A don't have as many children as before. Having fewer children allows for economic development and better upbringing of the children."
Besides fostering a new way of life in culture, young people are also the core of the entrepreneurship movement. Currently, the entire district has over 10 youth-led startup models that are yielding high economic returns. This is a positive sign, showing that policies to develop education and build a new cultural life have been effective.
Comrade Nguyen Xuan Toan, Deputy Secretary of the District Party Committee and Chairman of the Tan Son District People's Committee, stated: "Eliminating long-standing outdated customs among ethnic minorities is not an easy task; it requires persistent implementation of various solutions that are appropriate to the lives, psychology, and awareness of the people. In the coming time, the district will continue to mobilize the entire political system, focusing primarily on campaigning and propaganda, concentrating on preserving and maintaining valuable traditional cultural values, while also taking strong action against deliberate violations of the law to deter future offenses and ultimately eliminate backward customs that hinder socio-economic development."
With the concentrated resources and strong determination of the entire political system, the people and ethnic minorities in Tan Son district are gradually improving their quality of life, adopting new ways of thinking and doing business, thereby completely eliminating outdated customs and creating momentum for future development.
Thuy Trang
Source: https://baophutho.vn/xoa-bo-hu-tuc-xay-dung-nep-song-moi-218240.htm
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