Cooperation program of the Vietnam Women’s Union and the Vietnam People’s Navy
In the atmosphere of the 65th anniversary of President Ho Chi Minh’s call for patriotic emulation movement, the current movement of “joining hands for seas and islands”, and the Seas and Islands Week 2013, the program is a meaningful activity refecting the responsibility, commitment, and role of the VWU and Vietnamese women in national development and defense.
Speeking at the conference, VWU President Thanh Hoa emphasized the great mission of protecting national sovereignty over seas and islands, shouldered by the entire Party, armed forces, and people with the key role taken by the Navy. Aware of its responsibility, WVU has been communicating to raise women’s awareness and mobilizing women’s participation in promoting the strength of the seas and islands. Various movements toward seas and islands have been carried out by the VWU such as “Shirts for soldiers” and “For our beloved Truong Sa-Spratlys”. The WUs frequently visit and support families of the soldiers and officials deployed at border and island areas, the Heroic Mothers, and families of war invalids and martyrs. Particularly for the past 4 years, with the support of the Commander of the Navy, the VWU staffs have paid annual visits to the Spratlys, seeing with their own eyes the hardship faced by the soldiers there. President Thanh Hoa reaffirmed that the VWU would continue to propose to the Party and the Government the policies and measures to improve the material and emotional life of soldiers and to take care of the navy soldiers’ families.
Both sides appreciated the cooperation program as an effective mechanism to uphold respective roles and responsibilities in different perspectives. Accordingly, the two sides cooperate to communicate to women about the tasks of seas and islands protection including the Navy’s activities in this field; to mobilize women and their family to participate in managing and protecting the seas and islands, marine works, acting against violation of the sea and island sovereignty of Vietnam; to organize activities and movements towards the seas and islands; to take care of soldiers’ families; to assist poor and disadvantaged women in the deployment areas, women in the sea and island areas, and female family members of navy soldiers and off-shore fishermen; to organize exchanges between the two sides, and support the grassroots Women’s Unions in the Navy and on islands to realize emulation movements and Women’s Union activities.