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| Mr. Phan Thanh Hai, Director of the Provincial Department of Culture and Sports |
This statement is put out by Mr. Phan Thanh Hai, Director of the Provincial Department of Culture and Sports, in a talk with Thua Thien Hue Weekly, after the project "Hue – The capital of Ao dai" was approved by the Provincial People's Committee.
“Awakening the heritage, bringing it back to the community, and encouraging the community to participate in the protection and promotion of the Ao dai heritage, is the work of the cultural sector,” said Mr. Hai.
What were your feelings when the project "Hue - the capital of Ao dai" was officially approved?
I was very happy when I received the news that the Provincial People's Committee approved the project. This is the legal basis for the Department to synchronously deploy and promote the revival of the traditional Ao dai in Hue Ancient Capital.
As I have repeatedly affirmed, the restoration of the position and branding of "Hue – the capital of Ao dai" of Vietnam is the story of resurrecting a traditional cultural heritage, bringing that heritage into contemporary social life, and let that heritage shine as it once was. This is also the process by which we gradually build the image and brand name of Hue Ao dai, turning the Ao dai into a unique cultural and tourism product, and a special advantage of Hue Ancient Capital.
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| Ao dai is considered a special heritage of Hue Ancient Capital, which has been always preserved, promoted and spread in contemporary life |
Therefore, Ao dai is not only the image and the cultural identity of Thua Thien Hue, but also a typical tourism product and service, which makes an important contribution to Hue so as to become rich and luxurious by its own strength. I believe that the project will be successfully implemented, with the attention of the provincial leaders, the efforts of the cultural sector and related departments and branches, especially the strong support of the local community.
Over the years, the spreading of Ao dai from traditional festivals to daily life has been effectively deployed and mobilized by the cultural sector. In your opinion, what does this mean in the implementation of the project in the coming time?
In the past time, besides the professional work such as organizing scientific seminars, collecting and digitizing relevant documents, building a profile of the Ao dai as a heritage, etc., the Department has always found ways to bring the Ao dai into daily life, in cultural and sports festivals, flag-raising ceremony at offices, and on the occasion welcoming diplomatic guests... We have also worked closely with relevant departments and branches to spread and promote the revival of Ao dai.
It can be said that the movement to research and restore ancient costumes, including Ao dai, bringing this heritage into contemporary life, has been warmly received by young people. This is really a good sign, showing that young people are aware of the value of cultural heritage, and that Vietnamese ancient costumes are very beautiful and worth being felt proud. And, we must realize that it is necessary to show our own identity in the flow of human culture.
The specific actions mentioned above have built a solid foundation to realize the project's goals.
There are many specific goals indicated and outlined in the project. In your opinion, which goal is the most important throughout, and why so?
It is true that in the project "Hue - The capital of Ao dai", we have set out many specific and clear goals, which we determine to reach all. In particular, the highest goal of the project is to bring the heritage really back to the community; then, Hue will really be the capital of Ao dai of Vietnam.
Regarding the title, I think that the goal of completing the dossier of "The Ao dai tailoring craft and the custom of wearing Hue traditional Ao dai" to submit it to the UNESCO for consideration and recognition as a representative intangible cultural heritage of humanity is important throughout. This is because the Ao dai tailoring craft and the custom of wearing Hue Ao dai is a heritage with profound human values, associated with the spiritual life, customs and practices of Hue people, which is highly appreciated by the community and continuously passed down from generation to generation. Therefore, this heritage deserves to be recognized as a representative intangible cultural heritage of humanity.
However, a great deal remains to be done to achieve this goal. In the immediate future, it is necessary to carry out an inventory and identify the heritage value, as well as proposing to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to add the heritage "The Ao dai tailoring craft and the custom of wearing Hue’s traditional Ao dai" into the list of national intangible cultural heritages.
After that, we should keep on proposing it to the Ministry for consideration, and submitting it to the Prime Minister for permission to build a dossier "The Ao dai tailoring craft and the custom of wearing Hue traditional Ao dai", to submit to the UNESCO to be included in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
If it is registered by UNESCO, we will have many favorable conditions to continue to identify, research, document it, and develop measures to protect the heritage in the community. At the same time, it shows that the world community has reaffirmed and confirmed the rich cultural heritage treasure of Vietnam, and respectfully recognized the contributions of our nation to the further enrichment of the cultural heritage treasure of mankind.
It is known that of more than VND 535 billion of the total project implementation budget, more than VND 524 billion is from socialization. Is it true that the role of socialization in preserving traditional cultural values is decisive for almost all?
That's right! In recent years, the conservation and promotion of cultural heritage values by the method of socialization have been implemented in many localities, including Hue Ancient Capital, with the active participation and response of all classes of people. The most evident is shown in the restoration of relics, and the restoration of cultural activities and traditional festivals.
With the people's awareness of respecting the history and of the pride in their ancestors, the socialization of cultural heritage conservation has brought positive results. Therefore, the successful implementation of the project "Hue – the capital of Ao dai" on the basis of mobilizing socialization resources is decisive and feasible.
Moreover, when implementing this project, we have determined that we must focus on the community, so that the community can join hands to protect and promote the values of heritage, and the project’s investment resources are mostly from the community. Therefore, along with the implementation of the project, we will also carry out researches and propose appropriate policies to mobilize the maximum socialization resources, and promote the strength of the community.
An Ao dai museum for Hue is great. Can you clarify more on the formation of this museum?
There are five public museums and five non-public museums in the province. The establishment of an additional museum of "Hue Ao dai" in the future will contribute to introducing the Ao dai to the public at home and abroad in a more methodical and scientific manner. The Ao dai museum will be a place to display products associated with the stories of Hue Ao dai, from its formation to the changes in social life, along with the country's history.
This will be also the venue for art and cultural events and exhibitions displaying works of various art forms with the creative inspiration from the five-panel Ao dai. Visitors can experience the process of making an Ao dai, from cutting cloth, tailoring, drawing, and embroidering on the five-panel Ao dai.
Thank you for the talk, sir!