HA NOI — A festival in Ha Noi yesterday aimed to promote the values of culture diversity and the indigenous knowledge of ethnic minorities in Viet Nam.

Representatives of 11 ethnic minorities in 15 provinces staged a total of 16 performances at the Viet Nam National Academy of Music. The performers depicted their daily lives and told stories of how indigenous knowledge is applied from generation to generation.

Ban Thua An and Ban Thi An, two performers of the Dao ethnic minority from the northern Yen Bai Province, said that they wanted to promote the Dao culture and customs to friends nationally and internationally.

“We often perform our traditional dances at cultural festivals and teach them to our siblings as a way to maintain them,” Thua An said.

Be Hong Van, deputy director general of the Department of Polices on Ethnic Minority (under the Committee on Ethnic Minority Affairs), said that the festival is a good occasion for ethnic people to introduce the highlights of their cultures and their ancient knowledge.

“As a management agency of the ethnic minority affairs, we will increase the collaboration activities between different cultural organisations so that ethnic people will get more involved in the cultural, economic and political activities of the country,” she said.

The festival also held a photo exhibition about the traditional games and daily lives of ethnic people. — VNS