When sacrifices for national independence do not fall into oblivion

VGP – If a foreigner wants to understand the Vietnamese patriotism, they can come to visit the two biggest cemeteries, namely Duong Chin and Truong Son in the central province of Quang Tri where over 20,000 Vietnamese soldiers rest in peace.

July 17, 2014 1:54 PM GMT+7

Deputy PM, FM Pham Binh Minh visits Truong Son cemetery on June 24, 2014 - Photo: VGP

Duong Chin cemetery or Lane No.9 is the resting place of over 10,000 soldiers who were killed in at the Duong Chin battlefield and on Lao soil during the anti-US war while the Truong Son Cemetery buried 10,333 sets of remains collected from the battlefields along the Truong Son mountain range, commonly known as Ho Chi Minh lane.

There are also many cemeteries in almost all communes across Viet Nam where local soldiers rest for eternity.

Many of the soldiers had their baptism of fire at battlefields at young ages to drive away foreign invaders in order to protect the country’s national sacred sovereignty.

Fallen soldiers left their native villages, parents, wives and children to join the army in pursuance of independence, freedom and happiness for the next generations. They never returned.

Part of the Truong Son cemetery - Photo: VGP

Throughout her thousands of years of history, Viet Nam has suffered numerous pains and losses due to wars. That is why, for all of us, each inch of land contains blood and tears of Vietnamese people.

Nowadays, the Vietnamese people are busy with earning their living but they still spend time on visiting and laying wreath to pay tribute to the death, especially the soldiers, who fell down for national independence.

Our ancestors have made great sacrifices that generations of the Vietnamese people have treasured and continued preserving. It is one of the fine traditions that help us stand firm amid stormy circumstances.

People across the country flock to Truong Son cemetery to offer incense to commemorate soldiers - Photo: VGP

For the painful past, Viet Nam now is striving to contribute to peace and development in the region and the world by pursuing the foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, multilateralism and diversification of relations, being a friend and reliable partner of all nations, and a responsible member of the international community.

Meanwhile, the Vietnamese people are always determined to struggle for nation’s sacred sovereignty via collective strength and appropriate measures in accordance with international law as a way to treasure our ancestors’ great sacrifices./.

By VGP