‘Be A Brave Vietnamese’, the project aims to build up a reliably safe environment where no children fall victim to sexual abuse, is on track to prove highly effective, receiving high public applause in recent times.

A workshop recently held in Duy Xuyen District, Quang Nam Province helps pupils learn how to protect themselves from sexual abuse (Photo taken before the COVID-19 outbreak)

The project is the ‘brainchild’ jointly developed by Ms Duong Diem My from the FPT Da Nang University and her peers who are students at the city-based universities of Foreign Language Studies and Economics.

Going beyond expectations, the first workshop recently held within the framework of ‘Be A Brave Vietnamese’s project received a positive response from pupils at the Nam Phuoc 3 Primary School in Duy Xuyen District, Quang Nam Province.

During this workshop, some volunteers presented their perspectives on issues related to adolescent health, self-protection measures, and especially voiced against negative phenomena in a bid to build a large child protection network in the community.

“At first, I was even afraid when I heard about reproductive health and child sexual abuse. Since my participation in the workshop, I have learned how to protect myself.”, said Tran Thu Uyen, a 4^th grader at the Nam Phuoc 3 Primary School.

Another attendee, Tran Chau Giang said that such highly-practical workshop helped her know how to protect herself and gain a deeper insight into the significance of child protection against sexual abuse so that she could share with her friends, family members and peers.

In fact, stories of pedophile attacks reported in the media were getting so abundant and horrifying that My could no longer sit still and do nothing, and that inspired her to come up with the ‘Be A Brave Vietnamese’ idea. In her perspectives, education on sex, reproductive health, adolescent psychology, and abuse prevention is of high priority.

“We want to create an environment for children to be brave enough to express their feelings, and bravely tell their stories of suffering from sexual abuse and violence. It is essential to create a humane community where adults together stand up and join forces to ensure that no children can become sexual abuse victims”, said My.

She pointed out to the fact that sexual abuse of children, in recent years, has become one of the highly concerning issues that need proper attention. It causes physical and mental harm to children. The abuser's behaviour can adversely affect a child's life.

Besides, unprotected sex can lead to unwanted pregnancy, and cause sexually transmitted diseases, sexual disorders in adulthood. Through workshops on child sexual abuse prevention, ‘Be a brave Vietnamese’ aims to equip children with appropriate skills to protect themselves.

For the time being, the project is targeting primary school pupils who need to be  equipped with specific knowledge on how to spot signs of child sexual abuse, protect themselves, and share with adults what they consider inappropriate behaviour on their bodies.

The project is expected to organise more workshops for pupils and students in Da Nang and the neighbouring province of Quang Nam after COVID-19 resurgence is contained, thereby raising public awareness of child protection.

Reporting by THIEN LAM- Translating by T. VY, H. NGOC, T. AN