CULTURE AND INFORMATION SECTOR

BINH THUAN CULTURE AND INFORMATION

SECTOR: REALITY AND ORIENTATIONS

LAM QUANG HIEN Director of Binh Thuan Service of Culture and Information

Binh Thuan is a coastal southernmost province, about 198km northeast of Ho Chi Minh City. It has a total land area of 784,860 hectares. The province consists of one city and eight districts divided into 117 communes and towns (16 highland communes, 57 mountain communes). It has a population of 1,108,246. Twenty ethnic groups in the province live in harmony. The Kinh ethnic group (961,111) constitutes 93.03% of the total population, followed by the Cham, Raglai, Hoa, K'ho, Tay, Nung and Choro. Therefore, the culture-information sector determines that are the key tasks of the province are to build a cultural life, to preserve and promote national cultural heritages, to build a healthy cultural environment, to strengthen and develop cultural institutions, especially at the grassroots level.

Over the past year, especially since the reestablishment of the province in 1992, under the leadership of the Ministry of Culture and Information, the provincial Party Committees and People's Committee, culture-information activities have been carried out concertedly and extensively in the fields of culture, literature and art, information and communication, book distribution, cultural products, library, cinema, preservation and museum. Initially they have gained encouraging results, contributing to the stabilized politic, economic, cultural and social development and a better spiritual life for the local people.

The culture-information branch has paid attention to planning, professional training, and improving the work of the cadres at different levels. The number of cadres has been raised from some dozens to 300, coming from different sources, half of whom receive university and college education. The rest of them have undergone training courses or refresher courses designed to suit the situations of the province.

The movement "the whole people unites to build a cultural life" initiated in late 1996 has expanded to 9/9 of the districts and cities. There have been 385 “cultured” hamlets and cultured zones. One hundred ninety eight thousand households have registered to become “cultured” families. One hundred thirty- six thousand, eight hundred and ninety seven out of 218,000 households have won the title “cultured family" in 2002. The campaign has made a positive impact, creates a momentum to promote movements of revolutionary actions among the population, contributes to reducing poverty and enhancing unity among communities, urban and rural communities, stabilizing social life, developing production and maintaining order and security. The people highly hail these movements.

The preservation-museum work has also gained encouraging achievements. Thousands of objects, including rare and valuable ones, have been collected. So far, the Ministry of Culture and Information has recognized... among over 300 relics in the province as national heritage. These destinations attract many domestic and foreign visitors, notably among them are Duc Thanh School, Ho Chi Minh Museum (Binh Thuan branch), Cham Poshanu Tower, Cham - Bac Binh royal heritages display room, Ta Cu - Tham Thuan Nam cable network, Co Trach-Tuy Phong Pagoda, Thay Thim-ham Tan palace.

Binh Thuan Theatre company, Binh Thuan Printing and Packaging Company, Binh Thuan Film Company, Binh Thuan Book and Cultural Services Stock company, Binh Thuan library have not only generated income, fulfilled the target of serving the political task, but more importantly, they have helped eliminate the “blank spaces" in the enjoyment of culture and art and narrowed the gap in the cultural life of different regions in the province. Annually, the province's film crew shows for 1,400 times, the province's mobile information crew and 8 district and city theatre groups make 350 shows. They always fulfill ~their political tasks and win the heart of the people (showing to 750,000 audiences).

In the past three years, the Binh Thuan Post Office has built 60 new post offices and cultural points, each post office with 60-70 million, and support 500,000 annually for new books to facilitate necessary communications and at the same time add a cultural institution to the rural area.

The State management over cultural field has been maintained and consistently strengthened, especially since the Government issued Decision N_o.19 ad Decree N_o.30 on abolishment of the business licences that go against the Law on Enterprise. The Service of Culture and Information advised the Province People's Committee on issuing normative acts on building new lifestyle -cultured lifestyle, on strengthening management over printing, publishing and movies and karaoke, advertisement, discos, and the regulations on civilized wedding, funerals, festivals and abolishment of superstitions. In parallel with promoting inspection, specialized and inter-agency teams 814 have boosted their inspection and have discovered and dealt with violations against Decree 87/C, 88/C and collected hundreds of million of dong in fines. They contribute to reduce social evils and restoring order and discipline in the field of culture and cultural services business.

Preliminary statistics show that there are in the province 50 folk festivals of different scales. Each is associated with a tradition and belief of local ethnic communities. Some are imbued strongly with the identity of an ethnic group such as the nghinh Ong festival of the Chinese people in Phan Thiet, Ramwan festival (Ramadal) of the Cham (previously Muslims), Cham's wedding, the festival to celebrate new harvest of the K'ho in Phan Son, Bac Binh. The culture-information sector has researched and included them in intangible culture project.

Implementing the policy of the Government to implement socialization of specialized fields in the spirit of the Resolution 90/CP and Decree 73/CP, the province has gained initial results, notably in restoration of cultural and scenic landscape, building of cultured ham- lets and communities and establishing of amateur music stages. Apart from the State funds, the people also contribute hundreds of their working hours and billions in building infrastructure, improving the face of rural and urban areas and help halt the degradation of cultural and historic heritages. On average each cultured hamlet and community contributes at least 40 million, not to mention other voluntary contributions by collective households stemming from their bond with each other. Each performance stage is invested with 10-50 million.

Apart from these achievements regarding the practical needs and new tasks, the Binh Thuan culture-information sector has faced many shortcomings.

In general, only some establishments are newly built. Libraries, culture-information office, cinema-services centers, the living areas of music and dancing troupes, multipurpose Ho Chi Minh Museum complex (Binh Thuan branch) are newly built with an investment of 8 billion, the open-air 400-sea theatre and a display room about the life of Uncle Ho were built 15 years ago other institutions were rebuilt from old institutions. At the city and district levels, only Ham Thuan Bac Culture-Sports Centre is invested with 5 billion Other localities, including Phan Thiet City seriously lack cultural institution! and specialized equipment and facilities.

Binh Thuan's spending for the cultural and information work is small. In 1997, it was 3.345 billion, in 1998, 5.720 billion; in 1999, 5.492 billion; in 2000 6.932 billion; in 2003 over 7 billion. On average this sum constitutes less than 1.5% of the total province's spending.

There has been no permanent staff of culture-information workers at the communal, district levels. Besides, these workers have to take many tasks and have a low monthly pay. These have many bad affects on the work of the branch at the grassroots level.

The goals of the sector are to continue to carry out the đoi moi in the direction of modernization and industrialization for the purpose of rich people, powerful country, equitable, democratic and civilized society. In the short term, from now to 2005, Binh Thuan culture-information sector put its efforts into successfully implementing the following key tasks:

Firstly, to promote propaganda and information activities on the five key tasks of the province associated with "Three reduce" with regard to culture, art, library, cinema, book distribution, preservation and museum work, to continue to bring into play the role of mobile information teams at different levels, to write interesting informative dramas, to perform in the rural area, the remote area, the far-flung area, and the former revolutionary bases so that the practical information about the line, policies and strategies of the Party and the State law can reach the people.

Secondly, to promote the movement: "The whole people build a cultured lifestyle", especially build cultured hamlet, community and families offices. To try to achieve the goal 50% of cultured communities and hamlets; 95% agencies win the title of civilized lifestyle; 85% of the families in the province are recognized as cultured family; and adopt regulations on practicing democracy at the grassroots level and on civilized wedding, funeral, festival and on abolishment of superstition.

Thirdly, to raise the efficiency State management and strengthen State  management over cultural activities, eliminate serious social evils according to Decree 87/cp, 88/cp, put a stricter control on publication, distribution, printing, cultural products, Internet advertisements, karaoke, discos, etc. In order to make wholesome the cultural and spiritual life of the people in the province.

Fourthly, to use the State and local budget to carry out target culture programs, to build infrastructure, to t invest in light and sound facilities, prevent degradation of historical relics, restore historical and cultural and art relics, bring culture activities to the grassroots level, develop cinema, research on intangible culture.

Fifthly, to consolidate and organize the structure of managerial organs, advisory organs and non-productive agencies according to the spirit of the Resolution of the 7^th Central Party Committee (plenum 8), promote talent, aptitude and efficiency. To enhance the skills of the cultural leaders and managers so that they can fulfill their responsibilities.

In order to make culture actually a spiritual foundation of society, we think, that the Government should work out , soon a conceded strategy, spend at least 2% of the total local budget on culture- information activities, establish a permanent staff of culture-information workers, and spends an appropriate sum on capital construction through the target program of Vietnam's culture and information sector. Only with this, can the province implement successfully the Resolution off the 9^th party Congress (4^th tenure) on culture that is concretized by the Resolution of the 5^th Congress of the Central Party Committee (5^th , plenum) on building and developing an advanced Vietnamese culture strongly imbued with national identity in the period of national industrialization and modernization./.