Family Life and Population Changes

• Vietnam's move to a free-market orientated economy has affected both the structure and function of modern Vietnamese families
• Vietnamese society see the family as a tool used to combat social evils such as drugs, prostitution, gambling, commercialism, that have developed as a result of the transition to a market economy
• After WWII, the majority of North and South Vietnamese people adhered to traditional customs and practices. After the 1950s, some traditions were questioned, especially by the North.
• The concept of the family as a self-contained socioeconomic unit was refuted by the communists and in response to this, a major family reform was initiated under a new law that was put into effect in 1960
• The law looked at the following aspects relating to family life:
  • Prohibiting forced marriages, Cohabitation without legal marriage and abuse
  • Equalise the rights and obligations of women and men within the family
  • Equal status between the sexes in all areas of life
  • Discouraging dowries and lavish weddings and labelling them as wasteful
  • Discouraging people to have large families
  • Advising young people not to marry before the age of 20 for men and 18 for women and to have no more than 2 children per household
• Attempts to implement the reform were made  was made difficult because women did not have a strong sense of feminism and men resisted it. Campaigns were used to raise awareness on the issue. By the 1980s some old habits still remained and change was slow but sure.
• Women played an increasing role in family life after the Vietnam. Some women had to run the household and work. This trend has continued to be the case in 2003, with an increasing number of women in the workplace, yet still performing domestic duties.

A survey conducted in 2000 highlighted the changes that have occurred in the family structure in Vietnam:

• 3045 participated in the survey, of those people 2014 (66%) were married and 1031 (34%) were unmarried
• Of the married people, 1107 (55%) were married before the economic renovation and 907 (45%) were married after
• Of the married people, 47% were farmers, of the unmarried people, 34% were farmers
• The survey has showed a decrease in arranged marriages, or marriages where parents have a say in a person's partner
• There are changing attitudes towards divorce too. 68% of the people interviewed believed that the tendency for separation or divorce was normal.
• Roles of women in the family have also changed according to the survey, almost half of the people surveyed agreed that maintaining the family should be a job shared between both partners. This opinion has been on the rise in recent years.

Family within Vietnamese civilisation:

There are two main periods of "civilisation" in Vietnamese history
• Agricultural
• Industrial & Post industrial

Agricultural

During this period the family has a number of characteristics

• Marriages imposed by parents
• Individuals interest must submit to those
of the family
• The son is highlighted
• Attention is paid to the cult of ancestors
• Children must work prematurely
• Family must provide education care for sick and old
• Family is often large
• Infant mortality rates are high and life expectancy is low

Industrial - post industrial:

• Development of urbanisation
• Women participate in production
• Marriages increasing result in partners choice
• More attention is paid to the individual's happiness and interests
• Society takes a more active role in family affairs
• Nuclear family becomes more popular
• Divorce increases
• Increase in alternative families and dislocated families
• Development of intellectual labor

• Vietnamese people distinguish between the immediate family and the extended family . The Vietnamese immediate family includes not only the husband, wife, and their unmarried children, but also the husband's parents and the sons' wives and children, The extended family consists of the immediate family and close relatives who share the same family name and ancestors and who live in the same community.
• The father is the head of the family, the Vietnamese father shares with his wife and children collective and bilateral responsibility, legally, morally, and spiritually. In the eyes of the children, the Vietnamese mother has the same status as the father.
• At an early age, children are taught by their parents to behave according to the principle of filial piety. (Filial piety consists of loving, respecting, and obeying one's parents.).

Population

Growing population rates in Vietnam are linked to changing perspectives on the Vietnamese family structure.

The main reasons for rapid population growth are:

• Average age for marriage is 24 in men and 18 in women, with women having children around 20, which means that women have an extended time to have children. (Compare this to the average age of around 30 in Australia for women to have children)
• A decrease in the mortality rate and an increase in health conditions
• The lack of a national policy which pays specific attention to population reduction
• the mass movement of family planning has not been widespread. This is due to the fact that information, education and communication in regards to family planning have not been able to psychological barriers and old customs.

Because of this rapid growth in the Vietnamese population, the development of the Vietnamese cultural, intellectual and physical psyche has not been the same compared to developing western countries.

• Vietnam is the third most densely populated country in South East Asia
• Population currently stands at 80 million. There has been a growth rate of 2% each year, with a projected population of 100 million by 2024.
• 1960 - 30.2 million (increase of about 36%) 1970 - 41.1 million  (increase of about 28%)1979/80 - 52.7 million  (increase of about 26%) 1990 - 66.6 million  (increase of about 20%) 2000 - 79.9 million  (increase of about 25%) 2024 - 100 million
• Such rapid population increases may cause a repeat of the 1981-86 food shortage where Vietnam had to produce an additional 400,000 tons of food each year to keep up to pace with the increasing population
• In 2000, Vietnam's population comprised of 60% of people who were under 25. This means that more than half the population has little recollection of the war?  Something to think about.
• According to world facts dot com, as of July 2003:
  • Vietnam's population is 81.6 million, a 1.6 million increase in 3 years. (That's half the population of Sydney!)
  • Population growth rate is 1.29%, a decrease in the 2000 rate.
  • Life expectancy has risen to 70
  • There is a negative migration rate of -0.46 per 1000 people, this due to past Wars and instability in government.
• Vietnam total land mass of329,560 sq km and Australia has a total land mass of 7,686,850 sq km. Vietnam is 23 times smaller than Australia but it has 4 times the population!

Health

• According to international health news, Vietnam's health care initiative since 1975 to treat, prevent and monitor the health of its population of almost 80 million people, despite its relative poverty, is worthy of praise
• The Vietnamese government has began to focus on the health system since 1975, and their aim is to improve it. National policies and campaigns are being used to help raise awareness of possible problems in the health system and to encourage people to use resources that are available.
• 1945 - Vietnam had 47 hospitals, total of 3000 beds, one physician for every 180000 people. Av life expectancy was 34.
• 1979 - Vietnam had 713 hospitals with 205,700 beds, more than 10,000 maternity clinics and rural health stations. Number of physicians increased to 1 per 1000 people. Av life expectancy was 63.
• Vietnam has an extensive, but poorly funded, govt health system
• The govt has provided a limited number of well-funded central government hospitals, but these are mainly located in urban areas. These facilities provide the best type of health care, but due to their location, not all people can use them, and because of their high fees, only upper-income groups can afford to use them.
• The government also provides district hospitals, polyclinics (medical clinics staffed by several physicians) and at the lower end of the spectrum, communal health centres which are staffed by one doctor or assistant doctor and one or two nurses or midwives
• Most govt health facilities charge fees for their services. Certain groups are exempted from having to pay fees, at least in principle, including: children under six years of age, the police and military, disabled war veterans, residents of some settlements schemes, and minority residents of mountainous areas.
• In Vietnam there is a private health care system which did not exist under communist rule. An important fact for you to know is that Vietnam is now known as The Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Socialism and communism are both left wing ideologies but they differ slightly. Communism consist of a centrally planned economy where everything is run and owned by the government. Socialism acknowledges and respects individual rights, it accepts parliamentary democracy and the use of persuasion rather than force, all of which are not implemented under communism.
• Levels of adequate health care have been lacking since the introduction of the Doi Moi in the late 80s. Although, this renovation was aimed at helping to improve the Vietnamese health system.
• The practice of traditional methods of medicine has remained in use over the years, only declining slightly since 1987. Western drugs are expensive and difficult to come across and can only be afforded by people with higher incomes. People of middle to lower class still heavily rely on traditional eastern medicinal treatments.
• Most Vietnamese people do not have health insurance
• The most common diseases in Vietnam were malaria, TB, trachoma, venereal diseases, whooping cough, polio and the measles. Incidence of catching these diseases in 2003 has decreased radically, with fewer cases being reported every year.
• Western countries face the problem of obesity where as Vietnam faces the problem of people being underweight. 1987 to 1989, it was discovered that Vietnam had a higher proportion of underweight and stunted children.

Social Welfare:

• Vietnamese people do not have a welfare system like the one in Australia. The Vietnamese government have a responsibility to look after urban unemployment, vocational training, homelessness, the care of orphans, war veterans, and the disabled, the control of epidemics, and the rehabilitation of drug addicts and prostitutes. Financial assistance is provided for Vietnamese Minority groups and war veterans.
• Social welfare is a new concept in Vietnam, coming about under the socialist rule

Education:

• Vietnamese people have inherited a great respect for education from their roots in Confucianism from their former Chinese rulers. Education has been, and still is, a big part of life. A good education is essential in getting a good job and it also boost morale and reputation.
• Like other Asian countries, the Vietnamese educations system was modelled after that of France but has recently been changed to incorporate Vietnamese history, language, literature and in some areas the teaching of revolutionary ethics
• Prior to the 1950s, poverty was a major reason why many people lacked sufficient levels of education. This problem still exists in 2003, but not to the extent that it did before WWII.
• Post Vietnam War - all public and private schools in the South were taken over by the state and teachers from the North were sent to the south to guide the transition of the teachers so that they are up to "Socialist teaching standards". We saw in that video a few weeks ago were Hien Tran was a trained teacher before the Vietnam War, but after the reunification of the country, she could not find work as a teacher because she got her degree in South Vietnam.
• Over the years, the Vietnamese education system has been reformed in order to meet the needs of the country, politically, socially and economically. For example there was a reform in education after the introduction of the Doi Moi in 1986. This was so that students were learning about issues that we related to the countries new economic renovation.