According to Dinh Manh Hung, Vice Chairman of the Thuan Chau district People’s Committee, in order to preserve and uphold traditional cultural values and raise the quality of the spiritual life of the La Ha ethnic minority group, the district has organized La Ha ethnic language classes, provided necessary facilities for the cultural house, and held festivals to preserve the traditional culture of the La Ha people. These activities have contributed to improving the quality of the spiritual life and upholding the cultural identities of the La Ha ethnic people.

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The cultural space of the La Ha ethnic people in Liep Te commune, Thuan Chau district, Son La province

One of the traditional festivals of the La Ha people is Pang A festival, which is held in March and April every year. Attentively, the “xang bok” tree (including bamboo, banana and sugarcane trees tied together) is an indispensable thing at the festival. During the ritual ceremony, the shaman invites ancestors and deities to attend the ritual and bless local people with health, peace and prosperity. Then, local people dance and beat drums around the “xang bok” tree. After the ritual, the offerings are shared among the participants and they sing together and drink “ruou can” - alcohol brewed from yeast of forest leaves, tubers, and fruits in jugs and drunk with cane tubes.

We visited Liep Te commune on the occasion of the inauguration of the community cultural house of the La Ha ethnic people in Hien village. The house is designed with a modern style, but it still carries La Ha's national cultural identity.

Lo Van Thuan, Chairman of Liep Te commune People’s Committee, underlined that the inauguration of the community cultural house helps preserve and promote the values of national cultural heritage, associated with the goal of local socio-economic development. Currently, Liep Te commune has established a club to preserve La Ha ethnic culture, maintained activities of seven art teams to re-enact dances and festivals of the La Ha people.

Regardless of the great efforts of Thuan Chau district in preserving the traditional culture of the La Ha ethnic people, as some traditional festivals, folk songs and dances are becoming extinct due to the impact of modern life, in the time to come, the district will continue to pay much attention to implementing supporting programs and projects, restoring cultural festivals and maintaining activities of the art teams in the villages, as well as holding La Ha language classes in the La Ha ethnic language to preserve and further promote traditional cultural values of the La Ha ethnic minority people.

Translated by Quynh Oanh