Bringing a warm Mid-Autumn Festival to every child

PV: Can you tell us about the significance of the Mid-Autumn Festival to the cultural and spiritual life of children?

Mr. Phan Sy Hien:As we know, Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as Children's Festival, Moon-watching Festival or Reunion Festival, is one of the special traditional holidays of the Vietnamese people. Mid-Autumn Festival is an occasion for families to reunite, gather together to enjoy the feast and watch the moon, but above all, this is an opportunity for children to have fun and freely fly around in their magical childhood world. The story of Hang and Cuoi flying to the moon is a poetic image, stimulating the imagination as well as arousing the innocent souls of children towards soaring and beautiful dreams.

Children are excited about the Mid-Autumn Festival atmosphere. Photo: Minh Quan.

During the Mid-Autumn Festival, most children are eager and excited because they will be able to enjoy the feast, carry star lanterns, receive gifts and encouragement from adults. Memories of the Mid-Autumn Festival greatly affect the subconscious and even the children's ideas later on.

In our country, the Mid-Autumn Festival has long been a children's festival, associated with the innocent dreams of children about a magical and good world. This is a cultural beauty of the Vietnamese people that not many countries in the world have.

Mr. Phan Sy Hien - Deputy Director of Nghe An Provincial Children's Support Fund.

PV: Along with International Children's Day (June 1), the Mid-Autumn Festival is a big holiday for children nationwide, and at the same time, it is an occasion for the whole society to show its concern for the future buds of the country. Can you elaborate on this?

Mr. Phan Sy Hien:For a long time, the Mid-Autumn Festival has been an occasion for each family and the whole society to show their concern for children, the future buds of the country. This vividly and clearly demonstrates one of the good traditional moral traits of the Vietnamese people, which is to give children the best things, considering children as the next generation, contributing significantly to the country's longevity and development, as the figurative proverb says: Old bamboo shoots grow.

In recent times, authorities at all levels from central to local levels, philanthropists, and benefactors at home and abroad have had many good and meaningful ways to bring children, especially children in special and difficult circumstances, a complete, warm and loving Mid-Autumn Festival.

Leaders of the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs presented gifts to children at the Provincial Children's Support Fund. Photo: Minh Quan

On this occasion, many orphaned, homeless, poor, sick children... have had simple happiness such as eating delicious food, playing interesting games, living in sharing, letting their souls fly to the moon with wonderful fairy tale dreams... Many charity programs have been organized regularly during the Mid-Autumn Festival in recent years, bringing great joy to children. All Mid-Autumn Festival activities and entertainment are aimed at children, all are carried out with the desire to bring joy to them, helping them have more motivation to reach a brighter future.

Art performance in the program "Mid-Autumn Festival in the village" in Con Cuong district. Photo: Minh Quan.

PV: In recent years, in addition to children who have had a full and fulfilling Mid-Autumn Festival, there are still many children in difficult circumstances who have not had a full Mid-Autumn Festival. As someone who has worked for many years in child protection and care, can you elaborate on this issue?

Mr. Phan Sy Hien:Every year, the majority of children in urban and developed rural areas often celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival at agencies, units where their parents work, at school or in residential areas. However, there are still many children in remote, isolated and extremely disadvantaged areas who only know about the Mid-Autumn Festival spontaneously, in conditions of both material and spiritual deprivation. For them, the Mid-Autumn Festival will only be a "dream" without the joint efforts of kind-hearted people and the whole society.

Thanks to the attention of authorities at all levels, departments, branches, and socio-political organizations, many children in mountainous, remote and isolated areas have had a meaningful and fulfilling Mid-Autumn Festival. Photo: Minh Quan

Therefore, along with giving Mid-Autumn Festival gifts to poor children, agencies, units and philanthropists also pay special attention to children in especially difficult circumstances, children in remote areas, ethnic minority areas and mountainous areas...

In order for all children to have a complete and meaningful Mid-Autumn Festival, in 2022, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee has directed all levels and sectors to focus on organizing and implementing Mid-Autumn Festival activities for children in the province. In particular, the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs is assigned to preside over and coordinate with the Provincial Youth Union, relevant departments, branches, units and People's Committees of districts, towns and cities to have a plan to organize Mid-Autumn Festival for children in residential communities, educational institutions, and facilities for children in special circumstances; organize delegations to visit and give gifts to children; pay attention to children in special circumstances, children from poor and near-poor households, children in hospital, orphans at the Provincial Social Protection Center; children in areas with a large number of ethnic minorities, children in remote and isolated areas.

That demonstrates the concern and responsibility of all levels and sectors for the work of protecting, caring for and educating children, in order to create opportunities for children to enjoy their basic rights.

Mr. Phan Sy Hien - Deputy Director of Nghe An Province Children's Support Fund presents Mid-Autumn gifts in Thanh Chuong district. Photo: Minh Quan

PV: It is known that in more than 20 years of working in child care and protection, you have participated in many Mid-Autumn Festival programs and events for children in many localities in the province. Can you share some memorable memories?

Mr. Phan Sy Hien:Among the times organizing Mid-Autumn Festival for children in the whole province, I remember most in the Mid-Autumn Festival of 2014, Nghe An Children's Support Fund coordinated with local authorities to organize the program "Mid-Autumn Festival in My Village" in Mai Son Commune, Tuong Duong District. It is one of the most remote and isolated communes in the province, so traveling and bringing gifts to the commune was very difficult. After traveling more than 200 km from Vinh city, we had to take a boat on the hydroelectric reservoir for two and a half hours, then take a motorbike for nearly 1 hour on 15 km of bumpy road to reach the center of Mai Son commune.

The program was held in an empty lot in the center of the commune and about 1 hour before the program officially started, people gathered in large numbers, from children to the elderly, everyone was very excited. When the program took place, not only children but also adults and the elderly sang and danced to the performances on stage. We were very moved when hearing many people confide that "it has been more than 40 years since the superiors came to the commune to organize such a fun Mid-Autumn Festival program".

Another memorable event was in 2017, Nghe An Children's Fund in collaboration with Vietnam Children's Fund and Con Cuong district organized the Mid-Autumn Festival 2017 for Dan Lai children with the theme "Mid-Autumn Festival with Dan Lai children", with the participation of 200 Dan Lai ethnic children and 400 disadvantaged children in Con Cuong district. To implement this program, the provincial and Con Cuong district's child welfare officers went to Co Phat and Bung villages, to each family to bring Dan Lai children to Con Cuong town to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Through our conversation, we learned that this was the first time in their lives that they had been to town and that they had never celebrated the Mid-Autumn Festival properly. By participating in this Mid-Autumn Festival program, in addition to receiving practical gifts, the children also had the opportunity to meet friends from other communes, as the first steps to approaching and integrating into the outside environment.

PV: After 2 years of many difficulties due to the Covid-19 pandemic, what is special about organizing Mid-Autumn Festival activities for children in 2022, sir?

Mr. Phan Sy Hien:Over the past two years, the Covid-19 pandemic has been complicated, greatly affecting people's lives and activities, many activities have been almost paralyzed. That has affected the spiritual life of people in general, in which the most affected and most vulnerable are still children. The Covid-19 pandemic has changed children's habits, reducing social connections and interactions. Recreational activities during holidays and Tet are almost impossible.

Parents record their children's lovely Mid-Autumn Festival moments. Photo: Minh Quan.

This year, the Covid-19 epidemic has been better controlled, Mid-Autumn Festival activities have improved, children have received more attention. They have participated in many fun and entertaining activities, and have the opportunity to develop both physically and mentally.

Therefore, although the weather has been unfavorable in recent days, with heavy rain in many localities, authorities and organizations at all levels have made great efforts to bring children a bustling and warm Mid-Autumn Festival. As in many highland localities, due to weather conditions, it is not possible to organize the festival outdoors, so the Mid-Autumn Festival has been organized at the communal People's Committee hall or cultural houses in hamlets and villages...

PV: On the occasion of Mid-Autumn Festival 2022, what message do you want to convey regarding child care and protection?

Mr. Phan Sy Hien:Currently, in our province, there is still a gap in economic life between urban areas, plains, favorable areas and highlands, remote areas, which cannot be narrowed in a short time.

However, one of the things that can be done immediately and get results faster is to erase the boundaries of cultural reception and enjoyment. Even in poor and deprived conditions, if they receive timely attention from authorities at all levels, departments, branches, and socio-political organizations, children in remote, isolated, and especially disadvantaged areas can celebrate a Mid-Autumn Festival with relatively complete stages such as preparing food, watching the moon, breaking food, carrying lanterns, etc. By doing so, I believe, we will reduce a lot of inferiority complexes and gain confidence to move forward.

The Mid-Autumn Festival is one of many festivals that Vietnamese people celebrate during the lunar year, but it is a special festival because it is mainly dedicated to children. Providing the young generation of the country with a decent Tet is one of the direct and regular responsibilities of the whole society and the community. On the occasion of the Mid-Autumn Festival 2022, with the love and responsibility of each person towards children, we hope to continue to receive the attention and care of the community for children, especially those in special and difficult circumstances in the province.

PV: Thank you for the interview!

Currently, Nghe An province still has more than 13 thousand children in especially difficult circumstances, more than 10 thousand children with various disabilities and thousands of children living in extremely difficult conditions who need the care and support of all levels, sectors, organizations and individuals to overcome difficulties. With the joint efforts and hearts of the whole society, we believe that more and more children in special and difficult circumstances will be cared for and helped, creating opportunities for them to strive to become useful people for their families and society.

Mr. Phan Sy Hien - Deputy Director of Nghe An Provincial Children's Support Fund