Not stopping at the preservation of core values, the city named after President Ho Chi Minh is proactively building a modern value system suited to the characteristics of a major urban centre. In doing so, it contributes to the city’s effective implementation of the Party Central Committee’s resolutions on cultural development in the locality.
New values of the city’s people
From the beauty of traditional customs and practices have emerged the distinctive cultural traits of the people of Sai Gon-Ho Chi Minh City. As the city enters a new stage of development, these qualities need to be further nurtured and strongly promoted, becoming an endogenous source of strength.
According to Pham Phuong Thao, former Deputy Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee and former Chairwoman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Council, the fine values of the people of Sai Gon-Ho Chi Minh City have been identified and summarised by many researchers as openness, generosity and compassion; pioneering spirit, dynamism and creativity; resilience, heroism and a unique culture of struggle.
Among them, openness, tolerance and compassion are clearly reflected in the city’s reception of migrant flows and its embrace of progressive ideas and new things. These qualities are also seen in a spirit that is not bound by formalities, does not place heavy emphasis on status or social strata, does not discriminate on the basis of differences in political views or religion, and is little constrained by cumbersome rituals. At the same time, the city’s pioneering, dynamic and creative spirit is evident across many fields and in all circumstances. Its people refuse to accept mediocrity or be held back by constraints.
According to Meritorious Artist Ngo Pham Hanh Thuy, in the context of globalisation, digital transformation and strong economic development, Ho Chi Minh City has many special characteristics: it is a convergence point for people from different regions, a place of strong interaction between tradition and modernity, and a powerful blend of local and global elements. For this reason, preserving traditional customs and affirming the value system of the people of Ho Chi Minh City is extremely necessary and urgent. In addition to preserving old standards, there must also be a proactive process of building and affirming the value system of the city’s people in the new era.
Maintaining the “three-legged stool”
For Ho Chi Minh City, a special urban area with the mission of serving as the country’s economic locomotive and largest centre of international exchange, establishing and affirming a human value system is more than just a task; it carries the stature of a long-term development strategy. Building a human value system for Ho Chi Minh City with representative virtues and qualities will help its people preserve their identity in a globalised world.
However, that value system cannot take shape without the educational foundation of the family, the first place where moral values are absorbed and where traditional customs are “kept alive” amid the storms of moral degradation and pragmatic lifestyles.
Doan Thi Thu Trang, Deputy Head of the Party Building Commission of the An Nhon Tay Commune Party Committee, shared that in the ceaseless flow of modern society, the role of moral education in the family has become increasingly crucial, serving as a thread connecting values between generations.
Life in Ho Chi Minh City always moves at a fast pace, and family education in the early years plays the role of setting moral orientation. Children are like blank sheets of paper; they learn by observing. If parents value honesty, children will form an upright character; if the family values learning, children will develop a studious spirit. These habits emerge naturally through small daily behaviours, such as greetings when leaving or returning home, and table manners.
Meanwhile, Nguyen Quang Phi, member of the Ho Chi Minh City Council for Literary and Art Theory and Criticism, said the downside of the market mechanism has created many “gaps” in family education today, significantly affecting the preservation of traditional customs, cultural values, morality and traditions.
According to Nguyen Quang Phi, to partly fill the “gaps” in family education caused by objective circumstances, the State in general, and Ho Chi Minh City in particular, should invest in and call for socialisation in the construction of housing, nurseries, kindergartens, schools and cultural institutions in industrial parks, industrial clusters and export processing zones to serve workers’ families. At the same time, individuals and organisations should be encouraged to provide family services.
The city needs to build a practical family service network to provide timely and regular help and support to families facing difficulties, especially those working in industrial parks, industrial clusters and tourist areas.
Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao from Cell 27 of the Vung Tau Ward Party Committee said the city’s development today cannot be measured only by growth figures, large-scale infrastructure projects or the ability to attract huge foreign investment. First and foremost, it must be defined by the quality and depth of spiritual life and the social creativity of every citizen.
For the value system of the people of Ho Chi Minh City to truly permeate life and become a lasting internal force for development, a breakthrough in education is needed to form models of creative people. The focus should be on strengthening cultural, moral and lifestyle education through close coordination between family, school and society. A healthy cultural environment should be built through substantive emulation movements, using examples of good people and good deeds to spread the values of truth, goodness and beauty.
