Generation Equality: Vietnamese people create modern fairy tales for equal future

The competition, called “Generation Equality’’, starts from 17 October 2019 and will run until 27 November 2019. The winner will have a chance to work with a professional team to develop their stories into a comic book or a video animation. The competition is part of activities to commemorate the Vietnamese Women’s Day, the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence campaign 2019 and the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action 2020.

In many fairy tales and bedtime stories for example: the story of Tấm and Cám, Thach Sanh, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty etc., girls have been portrayed as beautiful, weak, dependent and focused on developing skills which reinforce their socialized roles in the private domain, such as cooking, child care and hygiene. As for boys, they have been prepared for dominant and high-command roles that determine societal dynamics in the public sphere. These include, among others, responsibilities in the army and other leadership roles – activities often requiring intelligence, wisdom, and strength. Therefore, oral literature has served as a means to reinforce gender stereotypes.

It is now time to create modern fairy tales and bedtime stories that help realize women’s rights and promote equality between men and women, boys and girls and other gender minorities. The competition aims to highlight women and girls' value and talent and raise awareness among individuals, especially youth, in Viet Nam, on the role that they can play in breaking down gender stereotypes and promoting gender equality. The competition aims not only to empower women and girls and reduce gender inequalities in literature, but also to be a platform for future generations to access to literary texts with gender equality messages and break down the systemic barriers and social norms that hinder women’s and men’s, boys’ and girls’ enjoyment of their full potential and capabilities.

FORMAT

• Stories: no more than 2000 words; OR
• Drawing(s) with storyline: One drawing or a series of drawings/comic with storyline.

PRIZES

• One First Place Prize: worth 15 million VND
• One Second Place Prize: worth 10 million VND
• Once Third Place Prize: worth 7 million VND
• Two Consolation Prizes: worth 5 million VND

All entries must be submitted before 27 November 2019 to UN Women Viet Nam, 304 Kim Ma Street, Ba Dinh District, Ha Noi or to e-mail: unwomen2010@gmail.com with the title “Submission for Fairy Tales Competition”.

RULES FOR PARTICIPATION

• Each participant can submit up to 05 entries;
• Entries can be stories (no more than 2000 words) or one/a series of drawings with storyline. If entries are in the form of drawings with storyline, please present the stories in A4 (or larger format);
• Submitted entries must use child-friendly writing as the book’s audience is children;
• Submitted entries must not include abbreviations or words that do not exist in the Vietnamese dictionary;
• Submitted entries must not carry superstitious elements, promote social evils, incite wars or oppose the government, etc.
• Each participant who submits her or his entries should be a single author and should develop and prepare the entries by herself or himself. Entrants represent and warrant that their submission is their original work, it has not been copied from others, and it does not violate the rights of any other person or entity;

For any further information, please contact via e-mail: unwomen2010@gmail.com

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Media Contact:

Hoang Bich Thao, Communications Officer, UN Women Viet Nam, Tel: +84 4 3850 0376 ; Mob: 012 0514 3996, Email: hoang.thao@unwomen.org

Nguyen Thi Kieu Trang, Commuications Officer, ChildFund Việt Nam, Email: trangnk@childfund.org.vn

Note to editors:

About ChildFund Vietnam

ChildFund Vietnam is the representative office of ChildFund Australia – an independent and non‐religious international development organisation that works to reduce poverty for children in developing communities.

ChildFund began working in Vietnam in 1995 and works in partnership with children, their communities and local institutions to create lasting change, respond to humanitarian emergencies and promote children’s rights. Projects are implemented across the northern provinces of Bac Kan, Cao Bang and Hoa Binh, where the majority of people are from ethnic minority groups, often the most vulnerable or marginalised sections of the population.

With a focus on education, water and sanitation, sustainable livelihoods, child rights and child protection, food security, and maternal and child health, including HIV prevention, ChildFund Vietnam also prioritises building the resilience of young people, by giving children and youth the opportunity to take part in sports, vocational education and life skills training, and supporting their participation in local decision‐making processes.

About UN Women

UN Women is the United Nations entity dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women. A global champion for women and girls, UN Women was established to accelerate progress on meeting their needs worldwide.

Website: https://www.unwomen.org/en

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About Irish Aid is the Government of Ireland’s official aid program administered by the Development Cooperation Division of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, working globally on behalf of the Irish people to address vulnerability and reduce poverty and inequality in some of the poorest and most marginalized communities in the world. The Irish Aid program is an integral part of Ireland’s foreign policy. Ireland’s development cooperation with Vietnam is set out in the Mission Strategy for Vietnam and the Mekong Sub-region (2017-2020) and provides annual funding of over €7 million, focusing on reducing poverty and inequality, supporting equality and diversity, and promoting respect for human rights.

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