Favor of Noi Ferry

Every time I come to Pha Noi (Muong Tip - Ky Son), the village elder Lau Va Sua invites me to drink wine - a wine distilled according to the traditional method of the Mong people for thousands of years, which not every guest has the chance to enjoy. Every time like that, the elder Va Sua is thoughtful, passionately telling stories about his people and village.

Rice farming in Ky Son

In the past, villagers lived a nomadic life, concentrated according to their clans, so free migration almost became their way of life. Therefore, having a place to settle down year after year was seemingly impossible. With many migrations, life was not secure, and forests were gradually depleted due to slash-and-burn farming, many clans gradually dispersed.

Following the Party's call, many families returned to their hometowns and established villages to live. Since then, many Mong villages have sprung up, economic models have been gradually applied to production life, so life has been increasingly improved. Pha Noi village was also formed following the same trend. At first, it was very difficult, only a few families followed the district's settlement policy. One family had just built a new house one day, and the next day, the parents and husband migrated across the border. Many times, hunger and nostalgia for the forest have lured many people to find a way back to their old way of life. There were also families who listened to bad people's instigation on the other side of the border and left their clans and homeland; thinking that life would be better, who would have thought... Then, the border guards appeared, changing the concept and awareness of the Mong community in Pha Noi.

Border Guard Station 543 is located in Muong Tip Commune, Ky Son District, managing 27km of border with Muong Moc District and Nong Het District, Xieng Khouang Province, Laos. Here, just crossing a stream nearly 5m wide is considered "going abroad". The dry season is extremely hot, the rainy season is almost isolated in the vast mountains and forests. Sometimes the Nam Mo River is angry, roaring and pushing floods as if wanting to swallow the small border guard station precariously perched on the stream.

At first, when they arrived at Pha Noi, they encountered many difficulties. Partly because of the language barrier, partly because of cultural differences, but mostly because the people here were not very enthusiastic about their presence. But then, with the close guidance of the Provincial Border Guard Command, the Command of Station 543 determined that: to complete the task of maintaining the Fatherland's border, the fastest way was to go deep into the lives of the people, to consider each villager as a relative in a family; each border guard soldier himself was also a child of the village. In which, the first important and practical task was to eliminate illiteracy and help people develop the economy.

In Pha Noi, only a handful of people know Mandarin. The district Education Department opened a few primary school classes but had to disband early because students went to the fields one after another. The "best student" in the village only stopped at grade 5. Faced with that situation, the station commander quickly implemented the illiteracy eradication work right in the village. The green-shirted soldier became a teacher. In just a short time, many illiteracy eradication classes were established with the participation of dozens of students. The elderly also went to school, the young also participated, especially Mong women also learned to read and write. There were families where both husband, wife and children participated in the illiteracy eradication class. They studied very enthusiastically and actively even though in the family, they were the main laborers...

Time has passed, many seasons of Ban flowers have bloomed, each border guard has become a son of the Mong village. In each Mong family in Pha Noi, we have seen the "imprint" of the border guard. It could be the cotton coat worn by the old man in the cold season, the blue socks that keep the children warm during class hours, the plastic sandals for the father to go through the forest to the fields... They have integrated into the community life, participated in all the work of the village and become the trust and love of the villagers. The villagers are examined regularly and guided to protect their health carefully and meticulously. With the border guards, the village is cleaner. A civilized and cultural lifestyle is gradually formed in the village and in the consciousness of each villager...

Pointing to the terraced rice fields stretching to the foot of the mountain, old Va Sua boasted: "Thanks to the border guards! At first, when we saw them growing rice, no one dared to follow suit, but when those rice grains came to the villagers during the famine season, we understood." I asked the village elder about the area and rice yield, he just smiled: "I don't know, I just know that wherever there is water, I can grow rice and do it. When it comes to harvesting, I just count the baskets, not weigh them like in the lowlands." Wet rice has reached Pha Noi and helped the people here escape hunger. Other economic models have also been implemented and brought high efficiency. Currently, Pha Noi village has no more hungry households. Life is stable, many families have purchased means of transportation and expensive items. Most of the village's 50 households have small irrigation electricity to serve their daily life and production. As their living standards improve and their economy develops, the Mong people here have more confidence in the policies of the Party and the State. They place all their trust in the border guards.

Pha Noi ferry now has no nomadic migration, no illegal border crossing. People work hard under the guidance and help of green-uniformed soldiers. People have settled down, so the national security situation in the area is more stable and safe. Border patrol work has been carried out smoothly thanks to the close cooperation of the people in the village...

Standing on the high hill looking down, the white Ban flowers bloom in Pha Noi. In the midst of that pure white, each wooden-roofed house appears with warm smoke from the kitchen. Saying goodbye to Pha Noi, I still feel the strong aroma of cassava wine. And the image of the border guard with the Mong ethnic people is forever engraved in my heart about the affection of Pha Noi...

Binh Minh (PX15 - Nghe An Police)