As one of the particularly disadvantaged communes of Lac Son district (Hoa Binh), An Nghia commune has more than 90% of the population of Muong ethnic people. In recent years, with the participation of the government and the Commune Women's Union, legal awareness, especially the Law on Marriage and Family - in the ethnic minority women's community (DTTS) has had many positive changes.
According to Ms. Bui Thi Nhen - President of the Women's Union of An Nghia commune, early marriage and consanguineous marriage used to be a worrying issue in many mountainous areas. Many families have the concept of "the older daughter must get married early", " avoiding taking advantage of the price", leading to getting married before they are old enough, leading to consequences for health, economy and family happiness.
Faced with that reality, the Women's Union of the commune has coordinated with the District Justice Department, the Commune Police and departments and organizations to organize mobile propaganda sessions to remote areas such as Chay, Re, Vo, in vivid forms such as: legal skits, knowledge-based games, video clips of legal situations... All of which incorporate the content of the Law on Marriage and Family, especially regulations on marriage age, equal rights, prevention of domestic violence.
"Thanks to propaganda in both Muong language and popular language, and being close to life, the women absorb it very quickly. Many people after attending the media session proactively discussed with their children and grandchildren in the family, reminding them not to get married or get married early, Ms. Nhen shared.
At the communication ceremony held in April 2025 at the Chay village cultural house, dozens of female members listened to a detailed explanation of the wife's rights in marriage for the first time, and the behaviors strictly prohibited by law such as forced marriage and unwanted divorce. Ms. Bui Thi Luyen (35 years old) shared: "Before, I thought women had to endure, now I know that the law also protects me, I have the right to speak up."
Not only stopping at word-of-mouth propaganda, the Commune Women's Union also deploys the model of "5 clubs, no 3 clean" associated with legal communication, integrating propaganda into neighborhood meetings and environmental activities. In addition, the women also encouraged members to actively report domestic violence, support single women, women with psychological damage to come to the association's staff for free legal advice.
Thanks to these efforts, legal awareness among the Muong ethnic women in An Nghia commune has been gradually raised. According to incomplete statistics, in the past 2 years, the number of child marriage cases discovered in the commune has decreased significantly; no new cases of consanguineous marriage have been recorded.
However, according to local authorities, propaganda work still faces many difficulties due to the characteristics of isolated terrain, scattered population, and limited education levels. Therefore, the Commune Women's Union determined that in the coming time, it will continue to improve the capacity of grassroots propagandists, especially those who understand Muong language and are prestigious in the community.
