Southern Khmer people unite, build and protect their homeland

Lesson 2: FOR PHUM SOC, COMMUNITY AND PROSPERITY OF HOMELAND

50 years since the Liberation of the South and the reunification of the country, the Khmer people in the South have remained steadfast in their commitment to the Party and Uncle Ho. Many young Khmer people today follow the example of their ancestors and continue to contribute to building their villages and hamlets to become more and more prosperous. Many of them are willing to give up their salaries of tens of millions of dong in the city to return to their hometowns to start a business, with the thought: “Loving the country means devoting all your heart to the work you are doing… and always aiming for the values ​​of the community, where you were born and raised!”

Always follow the Party, follow Uncle Ho

In Giong Tranh hamlet, Tap Ngai commune, Tieu Can district, Tra Vinh province, there is the Monument to the revolutionary tradition of the Khmer people in Giong Tranh hamlet. The project was inaugurated on June 30, 2016. According to Mr. Thach Rong, Secretary of the Party Cell of Giong Tranh hamlet, the hamlet is considered a typical revolutionary cradle of the Khmer people in the South. Under the leadership of the Party, the revolutionary movement was formed here and spread widely, and at the same time, many outstanding children were born for the Party. The hamlet has 11 Vietnamese Heroic Mothers, 1 Hero of the People's Armed Forces, 6 families with meritorious services to the revolution and 70 families of war invalids and martyrs... Notably, the hamlet has 3 Khmer ethnic cadres who were former members of the Party Central Committee.

Ms. Thach Thi Chal Thi, Director of Sokfarm, discussed with foreign partners.

“The memorial located in Giong Tranh hamlet is the wish of cadres, intellectuals, monks and Khmer people in the locality. The memorial is not only a source of pride but also an educational project on the tradition of solidarity and heroic revolutionary tradition for the Khmer people of Giong Tranh hamlet in particular and the Khmer people of the South in general. The Khmer people of Giong Tranh hamlet always promote the revolutionary tradition, believe in and follow the Party's guidelines and policies, and the State's laws and policies. In particular, they always study and follow the moral example of Uncle Ho" - Mr. Thach Rong shared.

In recent times, under the leadership of the Party, with correct and humane policies, such as: Program 134, 135, building new rural areas, Socio-economic development program for ethnic minorities and mountainous areas... the life of Khmer people has changed day by day. According to preliminary statistics of the Southern localities, in 2018, the whole region had 21,474 Khmer ethnic party members, accounting for 3.14% of the total number of party members in the region. By 2023, this number will reach 25,326 party members, accounting for 3.45% of the total number of party members in the whole region... This force is the bridge between the Party and the people.

Mr. Danh Hiep is nearly 70 years old, a party member, a retired cadre and has been voted for many years as a prestigious person in Hamlet Coi 5A, Khanh Binh Tay Commune, Tran Van Thoi District, Ca Mau Province. He is also one of nearly 500 prestigious people selected from all over the country to attend the Program to commend and honor advanced models as prestigious people among ethnic minorities nationwide at the end of 2023... He shared: "During the chaotic war, then the time when the country was just at peace and unified, although there were still many difficulties and shortages, the Party and the State were always for the people, for ethnic minorities... I always thoroughly researched ethnic policies, learned about examples of "good people, good deeds" in ethnic minority areas to encourage, persuade, and motivate my children and grandchildren, my Khmer people to take care of building and developing their lives, building new rural areas, and sustainably reducing poverty...".

Thoi Xuan Commune, Co Do District, Can Tho City has 646 households and 2,747 people of Khmer ethnicity, accounting for 44.27% of the commune's population. Up to now, the commune has only 2 poor Khmer households. According to Mr. Do Xuan Phuc, Vice Chairman of Thoi Xuan Commune People's Committee, Khmer people always trust the leadership of the Party and strictly follow the policies and laws of the State. Since then, they have actively participated in local movements: donating land to build 7.5km of rural roads, contributing funds with the commune to build 13.5km of lighting on rural roads. Thoi Truong 1 hamlet people contributed 150 working days to dig and install 1,100m of clean water pipes... Traditional festivals such as Chol Chnam Thmay, Ok Om Bok, Sene Dolta are solemnly and richly organized. Pagodas, schools, and medical stations are being built more and more spaciously. Khmer children are able to study and access knowledge. Many Khmer pagodas - which play an important role in the life of the Khmer community - have Uncle Ho's picture placed in solemn places of worship; the image of the red flag with a yellow star flying on the roof of Khmer pagodas has become a sacred symbol of faith in the Party and in Uncle Ho.

Follow the example of our ancestors

Born in peacetime, knowing about war only through history books and the stories of their ancestors, many children of the Khmer people soon realized the value of “independence and freedom”, fostering the will to legitimately enrich their villages with local resources. The stories of Chau Thi Diu in An Giang and Thach Thi Chal Thi in Tra Vinh are inspirational journeys.

“Pal in Khmer means palm tree, mania means passion. I named the company Palmania Joint Stock Company, specializing in producing palm sugar products. I hope that the specialty of my Khmer people will reach out of the poor countryside,” Ms. Chau Ngoc Diu explained. To realize that dream, Ms. Diu gave up her high-paying job and returned to her hometown to start a business…

Ms. Diu's hometown is Tri Ton district, An Giang province. More than 10 years ago, after graduating from university, she worked as a bank employee and then moved to work at a community welfare unit in Ho Chi Minh City. At that time, Ms. Diu's salary was up to tens of millions of VND per month. Therefore, many people were surprised when she decided to give up everything to start a business from the palm trees in her hometown. Ms. Diu shared: "I want to make a typical product of my hometown that anyone can easily give as a gift. I want to bring value to local products."

In June 2017, Ms. Diu and her friend invested capital to establish Palmania Joint Stock Company, headquartered in Ho Chi Minh City, with her as Director. In August 2019, the company moved its headquarters to Tri Ton town. After 2 years of research and development, the company successfully developed a new product - pure, natural, additive-free Palmania palm sugar powder... Notably, at the end of February, 3 products of Palmania palm sugar syrup, palm sugar granules and palm sugar powder were recognized as 5-star OCOP products. This is not only a source of pride but also a great motivation for Palmania to continue developing indigenous raw materials associated with the Khmer ethnic group - palm trees... Previously, when she worked for a community welfare unit, having traveled a lot and met many people, Ms. Diu understood the disadvantages of women, especially ethnic minority women. She always thinks about Khmer women in the countryside... "Diu wants to create jobs for Khmer women. That dream has now come true when more than 90% of her company is Khmer women" - Ms. Diu said.

Chau Ngoc Dieu, Palmania Joint Stock Company with palm products.

After more than 5 years of development, the master's couple who "left the city to return to the countryside" to start a business have gradually reaped sweet fruit. On average, each year, the company produces 240 tons of finished organic materials for the consumer market. Revenue in 2024 reached 21 billion VND. The company has a distribution system of more than 400 agents, over 30 provinces and cities, 200 organic store chains, supermarkets nationwide, officially exporting to markets in Germany, the US, the Netherlands, Australia, Japan... The company currently creates stable jobs for 90 households (mostly Khmer ethnic people), including 48 employees and is associated with 42 farming households. From 1 product, the company now has 6 products researched from coconut nectar and in the future, more than 30 food and cosmetic products... The company's coconut garden area for nectar has reached 20 hectares with 5,000 coconut trees. By 2025, the company aims to increase the area of ​​coconut trees for honey to 30 hectares, and by 2030 to 300 hectares... That is a remarkable achievement of Tra Vinh Farm Company Limited - SokFarm. "Sok in Khmer means happiness and Sokfarm means happy agriculture... We choose organic agriculture because we want to create products that are not only delicious but also clean, transparent and kind from the root. To me, organic is not just a farming technique, but a philosophy of life - respect for the land, for the trees, for the farmers and for the consumers" - Ms. Thach Thi Chal Thi, Director of Sokfarm shared.

“What are the differences that make Sokfarm successful today?” I asked. Director Chal Thi replied: “It is the result of perseverance, transparency, and a persistent belief that Vietnamese agricultural products - if done properly - can go very far… I think the biggest difference is that we did not start this business just to sell products, but to live a decent life with our homeland. We started with nothing, no capital, no support, only one thing: faith in the Khmer people, in coconut trees, and in the ability to create value from the locality…”.

I asked: "What should we do to make Khmer people, especially young people, stick with Sokfarm from the first days of its establishment until now?" Ms. Chal Thi: “We use practical actions to build trust. Right from the beginning, my husband, Mr. Ngai (Pham Dinh Ngai - General Director and founder of Sokfarm) and I went to each farmer's household, explained the techniques, gave samples, and signed clear contracts. When people saw the effectiveness - income from coconut nectar was many times higher than from selling coconuts, they began to trust. And, when they saw that Sokfarm was always on time, transparent, and never broke promises, they began to stick with us. For young Khmer people, I do not advise them to "leave the city and return to the countryside", but I say that the place where you were born still has a lot of potential, you can be the one to pave the way for your hometown. When there is a good environment, opportunities to learn and develop, I believe that young people will stay and together create something to be proud of for their village and hometown".

I asked: “What message does Sokfarm want to send to the younger generation to live without being ashamed of their ancestors?”. Ms. Chal Thi replied: ““If you truly love your country, then work hard to implement it!”. That is a saying that I really like, and it is also the spirit that Sokfarm chooses to live and work in every day. I think, patriotism is not necessarily something big. Patriotism is when you devote all your heart to the work you are doing, taking care of each product, being transparent in each process, and always aiming for the values ​​of the community, the place where you were born and raised… I see many young people have very good ideas, but are afraid to start, waiting to be “full” before doing it. Actually, there is no time called “100% ready”. Just start, then you learn and correct as you work. That is the real journey. My advice: “Don’t be afraid that starting a business is difficult. The hardest thing is… not starting.”

Director Chal Thi shared a lot about Sokfarm's "patriotic journey". She said that what she is most proud of is that Sokfarm has contributed to creating a model of "happy agriculture" - where people, especially Khmer people, can live stably in their homeland, with work that they are proud of. It is not only about increasing income but also about changing perceptions and rekindling faith in local resources. "I am very touched that the Sok School English class - a small project from the need to find a class for my children - has now developed into a community learning space for more than 40 students who are children of workers and farmers around the factory. In the future, I hope that Sok School will not only teach English, but also become a place to foster life skills, vocational skills and develop integration thinking for children, especially Khmer children. I believe that investing in education is the most sustainable way to help my homeland change!" - Ms. Chal Thi shared.

*

* *

That is a very humane patriotic journey of young Khmer people living fully in peace. And there are many, many Khmer people who constantly strive to rise up, together with the locality, contributing to improving the lives of ethnic people. Then, 50 years after the Liberation of the South and the reunification of the country, the Khmer ethnic minority areas in the South are becoming more prosperous and more dignified.

(To be continued)

Last article: Taking good care of the lives of Khmer ethnic people

Source: https://baocantho.com.vn/-ong-bao-khmer-nam-bo-doan-ket-xay-dung-va-bao-ve-que-huong-a185728.html