VietNamNet Bridge – You may know her on the stage in the position of a queen of dance songs and sexy moves but recently people have paid much attention to her activities to protect the rhino as a Goodwill Ambassador for the African Wildlife Foundation in Vietnam. She is singer Thu Minh, owner of numerous hits on local music charts, a judge of the first season of The Voice contest in 2012 and also winner of Dancing with the Stars reality show in 2011.

Singer Thu Minh, Goodwill Ambassador of the African Wildlife Foundation in Vietnam, embraces a rhino at a preservation center in South Africa during her trip earlier this year - PHOTO: COURTESY OF CHANGE

“Hundreds of people have fallen down fighting against some armed and organized criminals who are trying to kill innocent rhinos for horns. This is a crime and a severe moral issue that has been accused in the world. We have to stop our selfishness and focus on helpful actions for future generations,” Minh starts her talk with the Daily by email.

The unpopular trafficking and the illegal use of rhino horns in large volume has turned Vietnam into the second largest consumer of rhino horns after China since 2008. However, the local community has not nurtured a proper awareness on this big problem until earlier this year when Minh was named the first Vietnamese celebrity to stand up for rhino protection and has represented Vietnam at forums and events in South Africa and the U.K. Her images embracing a mother rhino and attaching a chip to the animal in South Africa in March and the meeting with Prince William - Duke of Cambridge, and sports icon David Beckham at the launching ceremony for United for Wildlife foundation in England in June were covered by most of local newspapers and TV channels.

Minh says she appreciates the contribution of people to wildlife and environment protection, which is the motive behind her decision to become a goodwill ambassador. Furthermore, she feels hurt when hearing many criticisms from foreign friends about the unawareness on environment protection of Vietnamese people, especially the use of rhino horns among local well-to-do people.

“The trip to South Africa and the meeting with Prince William and Prince Harry are unforgettable experiences to me. I was amazed at South Africa as this is where we can see miraculous things given to the earth. These beautiful things help build a solid foundation for human being’s evolution and the civilization of the society. This is also where people and animal learn to undertstand and to respect each other. Unfortunately, people sometimes easily forget this basic foundation and unconsciously damage everything,” says Minh.

The singer believes she is not alone in such a long-term war to protect the rhino after meeting Prince William, Prince Harry and David Beckham as they respect her actions and behaviors towards the rhino protection during the South African trip.

“I’m the first among Vietnamese celebs to care for rhinos that are known to them so far. They need supports from people with influence around the world to help change the community’s awareness on environment protection as much as possible,” she says.

After these two trips, Minh has showed up in local TV channels with an aim to deliver the message of saving the rhino to the public and share what she has learned from real experience. Firstly, 90% of rhino horns sold in Vietnam are from buffalos and other animals. Secondly, there has been no scientific material proving the magical use of rhino horn to cure all kinds of diseases. Finally, people are spending their money on buying a product that the whole world is trying to preserve from extinction.

Minh shows her determination to start from small things to change locals’ mindset and choose to educate students first. Her recent activity was a trip to eight schools with the support from people of Wilderness Foundation as well as Vietnamese Australian singer/composer Thanh Bui in mid October. The duo also unveiled a theme song called Love which will be used in their rhino protection campaigns in the future.

Lately, the duo have joined hands with local actress Hong Anh in making the “Rhino to school” program known to 5,000 students from elementary to high-school levels in HCMC initiated by WildAid, African Wildlife Foundation and CHANGE Center from now until November 30. The event is among activities of the campaign “Stop the use of rhino horns” which was launched in March in HCMC. The organizers will use two soap operas “Ta cung xu an” (we hear a case together) and “Dung hay sai” (right or wrong) directed by popular artists Nguyen Thi Minh Ngoc and Xuan Hong as a new way to approach students. The students will see a drama in 15 minutes and then play their roles to give the endings.

Minh also shares her upcoming activity is a painting contest themed rhino for students with a grand prize being a trip to South Africa for the winner.

According to a report by CHANGE, there were 1,004 rhinos killed for horns in South Africa in 2013. The latest report by South Africa’s Department of Environmental Affairs shows that there were at least 787 rhinos killed by September 22, 2014. The number is an alert compared to only 13 ones massacred in 2007.

According to WildAid’s official website at www.wildaid.org/rhinos, 95% of the world’s rhinos have been lost in the past 40 years. Last year the world witnessed record levels of rhino poaching in South Africa and Zimbabwe with the main markets identified as Vietnam and China. Legal trophy hunting of rhinos in South Africa was infiltrated by Vietnamese organized criminals. A large number of rhino horn “trophies” have been exported from South Africa to Vietnam.

SGT/VNN