A festival for young people to donate their blood, launched by the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union (HCYU), on January 9 received an enthusiastic response from young people from all over the country.
The event celebrates the Student Day (on January 9) and the Youth Year 2011.
In Thong Nhat (Reunification) Park, the festival attracted over 12,000 young people in Hanoi, together with the representatives of ministries, departments, many famous artists and a delegation from Beijing, China.
According to Nguyen Dac Vinh, President of the Vietnam Students Association, the blood donation festival aims to encourage people in the capital to participate in humanitarian activities. This year’s the event takes place in 67 youth unions in the cities and provinces all over the country, he informed.
During the festival, many meaningful events were organised. Ten motorbike delegations encouraged blood donation and 500 young people joined the parade on main streets. A photo exhibition of volunteers donating blood was held as well as meeting with singers, artists and famous figures, and a ceremony to honour 60 outstanding students from the Blood Donation Movement.
On the morning of January 9, 21,000 young people registered in the capital to donate blood. It is scheduled that about 2,000 units of blood will be received during the festival. Meanwhile, in Tao Dan Park in Ho Chi Minh City, the festival drew the participation of 2,000 young people. They held friendly meetings, played traditional games with symbolical meanings connected closely to blood donation to save people, and created slogans about blood donation.
Also, on that occasion, the HCYU’s branch in HCM City commended and rewarded 15 individuals for their positive contribution to blood donation and the movement campaign. Throughout the festival, the youth union in the city mobilised at least 5,000 youths to join the blood donation during Lunar New Year 2011.
They had received registrations for over 68,800 units of blood to be donated by the end of this year. In Nha Trang City, Khanh Hoa province’s youth union in coordination with the province’s Red Cross launched a blood donation movement and registered to establish a bank of blood.
The event attracted crowds of young people from local universities, colleges and from government agencies. Ngo Trong Binh, President of Khanh Hoa province’s Red Cross, said that 200 units of blood were estimated to be received and 400 people had registered to become donors of a bank of blood.