Ha Tinh, 17^th December 2014

Today, Hà Tĩnh Women's Union held their first two community outreach events in Cương Gián commune and Xuân An town (Hà Tĩnh province) with the help of Ms. Do Thi Thanh Mai - IOM Programme Officer and Ms. Duong Thi Xuan - IOM consultant. These events are activities under the "Strategic Communications Campaign to Deter Irregular Migration from Vietnam to Australia by Boat", funded by the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service (ACBPS).

Recognising that the number of migrant deaths at sea has been too overwhelming in recent years, Australian Government had developed the toughest border protection policy ever, which specifies that all illegal migrants who attempt to travel to Australia by boat will be intercepted and safely removed from Australian waters before they can set foot on Australian soil. This campaign was developed with an intention to spread awareness on the issues and inform Vietnamese potential migrants of the new policy.

Targeting audience at the grassroots level, these community events aim to get ACBPS's messages across through distribution of leaflets and brochures, art performances of local artists and storytelling by returnees themselves. A 2015 New Year calendar with incorporated messages is also handed out to all local people who participate in the events as a gift. Within the next two days, there will be three more outreach events at Cổ Đạm commune, a secondary school and a vocational training centre.

Within December and January, community outreach events will also take place in Nghệ An and Bà Rịa – Vũng Tàu. Together with Hà Tĩnh, the three provinces have been identified as hot spots for irregular migration activities.