Around 10 households in the Dong Van Ancient Quarter in Ha Giang’s Dong Van District have asked the government to remove the village’s national relic title due to the problems it has caused.

“Their houses are seriously damaged but they cannot repair them because of the title. Now they want to return it so that they can rebuild their houses,” Sung Dai Hung, secretary of the district, said.

Eighteen houses are seriously degraded, and many houses that are over 100 years old need to be fixed immediately. However, their owners cannot repair them since the ancient area’s restoration is under the authority of government.

Located in the center of Dong Van town, the area was established at the beginning of the 20th century. It is now home to numerous ethnic minority groups including Tay, Hoa, Dao, Nung and Mong. In 2008, Dong Van was recognized as a national relic. Since then, a restoration plan for the ancient area has been created, but it has not been carried on.

For his part, Hoang Van Kien, director of the Ha Giang Department of Culture, Sport and Tourism, said that local authorities have considered the issue and decided that the problem is not that serious. He also said that the restoration has been delayed due to a lack of funding. According to Kien, in the fourth quarter of this year, Ha Giang will restore the 10 most seriously damaged houses with funds raised from the local budget and enterprises. Other houses will be restored in the next few years.

In May, around 250 locals in Duong Lam ancient village in Hanoi’s Son Tay town also signed a petition proposing that the government remove the village’s national relic title. Since 2005, the village has been recognized as a national relic since it has many houses dating back to hundreds of years ago. However, after the recognition, the Son Tay town People’s Committee issued a strict regulation on local construction which does not allow houses in the area to be expanded or renovated into structures taller than one story in order to retain the ancient look of the place. This has caused stress for locals as the population has increased.