Over years, the Party and State’s policies on national great unity and religious freedom have been seriously implemented by local administration and mass bodies. Therefore, mobilization of potential force from dignitaries and religious believers has reached significant results in the cause of modernization and industrialization. With the motto of “living in unity and good religion”, religious believers in the province have always attached to the nation.

The provincial People’s Council chairman Vu Minh Sang grants insignias “For the cause of solidarity and friendship among nations” to outstanding individuals.

At present, the entire province has had 268 religious workshops, 544 dignitaries, 494 monks and more than 156,000 religious believers, accounting for nearly 11% of local population. Most of dignitaries and monks as well and religious believers trust in the Party and State’s policies on religious freedom. At the residential areas, dignitaries and religious believers have positively responded the community’s self-control activities, united and promoted democracy, obeyed disciplines and regulations. The local religious believers have contributed to labor and production significantly.  

Many movements and mobilizations initiated by local authorities and all level Fatherland Front Committees have received great responses from dignitaries and monks and religious believers. Notably, they have actively participated in the mobilizations of “All people unite to build a cultural life in residential areas”, “Day for the poor”, as well as movements of study encouragement, community healthcare, poverty reduction, urban rejuvenation, HIV/AIDS control and so on.

Many quarters and hamlets with numerous religious believers have upheld the national identity and reached the title of cultural quarters and hamlets.

According to an incomplete statistics, dignitaries and religious believers in the province annually mobilize and collect more than VND5bil for social charity.

In the last months of this year, to celebrate the 11th national party congress and national Buddhism seminar 2011, the provincial steering board of Buddhism Association has launched a plan on doing charitable activities on a large scale with the total expense of over VND5.5bil. Accordingly, superior Buddhist monk Thich Hue Thong mobilized to grant 100 hi-unity houses worth VND2bil to the poor whilst superior Buddhist monk Thich Minh Thien mobilized to grant 1,000 bikes worth VND1.5bil to needy students.

In addition, Catholics, Protestant and Cao Dai religions and other religious communities across province held significant activities to mark the 11th national party congress. In the past natural calamity in the central region, superior Buddhist monk Thich Minh Thien, Catholic priest Ha Van Minh and other dignitaries’ timely paid assistance visits to flood victims.

Moreover, local dignitaries are exemplary people in the mobilization of “Studying and following Ho Chi Minh’s moral examples”.

Local dignitaries and religious believers have today kept contributing to local development. That contribution has created a hi-unity in the society. Local party committee, authorities at all levels have highly valued their contributions to the locality.

Reported by L.Sang – Translated by A.C