Vietnam: Young Women Volunteer to Enlist in the Army
Huỳnh Trần Diễm Thúy, a recent college graduate, who opted to enlist in the military this year, has been the topic of much discussion in the Cần Giờ area of HCM City's Long Hòa coastline commune in recent days.
Thuy has a bachelor's degree in archivology and is well qualified for a variety of positions, but she would rather enlist in the military.
When she finally received clearance to enlist, she was overjoyed. Her anxieties that she wouldn't be able to enlist because she was only 44 kilogrammes were allayed when she received the call. Thuy has always looked up to her mother, a police officer, because she is the person who taught her everything she knows.
Thuy's decision was inspired by a mental picture of the mother serving the community in a military uniform.
Another 25-year-old woman from HCM City's District 3, named Phan Vu Kim Phng, also volunteered for military service. After receiving her degree in economic law from university, Phung submitted an application to join the local mobile militia.
She wore the blue shirt of the militia and was an active member in the community. The young woman joined the Communist Party in 2022 after showing remarkable leadership in a variety of community-based initiatives.
While working in Ward No. 13, Phung's mother Vũ Thị Ngọc Hải Phượng claimed she observed many young people join the military and urged her daughter to do the same.
"I felt quite emotional when I found that my daughter wrote an application to join the army," Phượng told Sài Gòn Giải Phóng (Liberation Sài Gòn) newspaper.
Phung is her youngest daughter; after finishing college and taking part in COVID-19 prevention efforts, she joined the local mobile militia.
The mother remarked: "Phụng really becomes more mature when she is a member of the Communist Party. It will be more difficult for a woman to serve in military service, but I always support my daughter's determination. And I believe Phụng will complete her duty well."
Nguyễn Trang Hương Trúc, 22, of Xuân Thoi Dông Commune, Hóc Môn District, finally got to wear the blue shirt of the soldier after 20 years of waiting.
Nguyễn Văn Cước, Truc's father, has indicated that he wanted to have a son and that Truc would join the army after he got married and left the service in 1989. In contrast, he is a father of three female offspring only.
After graduating with a degree in economics, Truc honoured her father's request by enlisting in the army.
"Teachers often told the whole class about the hometown's stories with glorious historical victories," she said.
"The desire to join the army, wearing the blue shirt of Uncle Hồ's army has come true. The days in the army will be difficult and hard, but I'm confident I can do it."
Xuân Thio Dông Commune's military chief, Phạm Hữu Nghĩa, reported that Truc was the only female resident of Hóc Môn District to enlist.
"Not only her family, but the people in Xuân Thới Đông Commune are so proud of her," Nghĩa said.
HCM City, like other cities across the country, is obligated to turn over its new recruits to the military on February 8.
The city successfully enlisted 4,079 citizens this year, including 3 women who voluntarily applied to join the armed forces.