Speak "Thai, O Du" to increase propaganda effectiveness
(Baonghean) - After nearly 3 hours and nearly 80 km, we arrived at the headquarters of Base Construction Team No. 4, Tuong Duong Military Command in Nga My commune.
Today, the team's staff went to the base to propagate and mobilize young people to join the army in the first batch of 2012. Only Lieutenant Colonel Dinh Xuan Hong, Deputy Team Leader, and Major Nguyen Dinh Tan, an employee at home, took care of the vegetable garden. Major Nguyen Dinh Tan came out to welcome us, along with the greeting "Nhang khoi!". After saying that, seeing us bewildered, he suddenly remembered that he was greeting strangers in the Thai ethnic language.
Inside the house, the unit's daily necessities are labeled in the Thai and O Du languages. Lieutenant Colonel Dinh Xuan Hong explained: "Most of the cadres and staff in the team are from the lowlands, so they face many difficulties in propaganda and mobilizing the people because they cannot listen or speak the local language. Therefore, they are required to learn the local language themselves to improve the effectiveness of propaganda and mobilization. Because there are no ethnic language classes, they learn by themselves and are required to speak in Thai and O Du in daily communication and activities."
Construction team No. 4 helps the family of young man Lo Van Quyen in Vang Mon village repair their house before leaving for military service.
Major Nguyen Dinh Tan confided: "When I first came here to work, because I didn't know the ethnic language, I often went to the village to propagate and mobilize people. On days when people went to the fields, only the elderly were left at home, so I had to return because many elderly people here don't know Kinh language.
So I was determined to learn Thai and then O Du. Fortunately, there were three Thai ethnic staff in the team, so learning Thai was relatively easy. The three Thai comrades were appointed "foreign language teachers" by the team members. During the day, they went into the village to mobilize and guide the people to implement a new lifestyle, apply science and technology to production, animal husbandry, etc. At night, after watching the news, everyone sat at the table and spelled each letter like a beginner. The team's meeting room was used as a classroom, and teachers and students were all cadres and staff in the team. And so, starting from vowels, consonants, simple, common words, up to now, many comrades can replace the position of "teacher". Along with self-study and mutual learning, the team also increased sending cadres and staff to the village to work with the people to improve their Thai language skills."
It is known that after listening and speaking Thai, they continued to learn the O Du language. The O Du is one of the 9 ethnic minorities in the country, so their customs and language are also very unique. Therefore, in order to learn the language of the ethnic minorities, the cadres and employees of the Construction Team No. 4 had to go down to the village to eat, live and work with the people for a long time. Through the time of working, living and communicating with the people, they gradually heard and understood some common phrases in the O Du language. Thanks to their frequent stay in the village and the people, the effectiveness of propaganda, mobilization and assistance work and the language learning of the team members has been improved. Up to now, most of the cadres and employees of the team can listen and speak Thai and O Du.
Not only that, thanks to being able to listen and speak the local language, the staff of Construction Team No. 4 have created trust and closeness with the local people. As a result, after 4 years of being stationed in Nga My commune, the staff of Construction Team No. 4 have contributed to stabilizing the political security situation, public order and safety, and helping the local people gradually escape poverty.
Phung Ngoc Thang