Hanoi (VNA) - Many people organisebuffalo fighting festivals to gamble illegally, Deputy Minister of Culture,Sports and Tourism Trinh Thi Thuy said at a conference held in Hanoi this week.

The conference was designed to review theoperation of festivals nationwide in the first quarter of the year - the mostpopular time for festivals, as the coming of spring is celebrated - and set upplans to organise festivals which will be held in the rest of the year.

Thuy said the ministry gave permission toorganise the buffalo fighting festival in Do Son, Hai Phong city only becauseit was recognised as the national intangible heritage. Other such festivals areorganised without permission and will be eliminated.

The ministry and departments of culture atlocalities will ban festival practices which are violent and cause chaos, shesaid, adding that the Do Son buffalo fighting festival will lose its status ifcases of gambling are reported.

Currently the festival is opened for free forthe public and the number of buffaloes has been decreased to restrain theamount of violence, she said.  

Vice Director of the Hanoi Department of Cultureand Sports Truong Minh Tien reported that the management of festivals iscontrolled tightly and strictly.

Hanoi is a locality with the largest number offestivals in the whole country; that’s the reason why managing festivals hereis complicated and difficult, he said.

“There are 1,200 festivals organised annually. Thereare many festivals that last a number of days and attract a huge number ofvisitors. Huong Pagoda Festival in My Duc district is a prime example with 1.3million of pilgrims flocking to the festival this year,” Tien said.

“However, I realise that the local authoritiesthis year fulfiled their tasks and the bahaviour of festival goers has beenraised,” he said.

Tien also pointed out that people still wastemoney in buying and burning too much joss paper or ghost money at religiousfestivals held at temples and pagodas.

“Festivals should be organised at the lowestcost possible, and aim to develop the country’s fine cultural tradition andeducate younger generations about the customs,” he added.

Last year, the Hai Phong City People’s Committeesuspended Do Son Buffalo Fighting Festival when a local man was gored to deathby his fighting buffalo. Since then, the ministry tightened the management andorganisation of such festivals.

The buffalo fighting festival is a traditionalfestival that is attached to a Water God worshipping ceremony and the custom of“sacrifice”. The most typical reason for the ceremony is to express the martialspirit of the local people.-VNA