Overseas Vietnamese pay tribute to heroic martyrs
A requiem has been held at Thien Phuc Pagoda in the Polish capital of Warsaw to commemorate soldiers who laid down their lives to defend Vietnam’s sovereignty.
The Vietnam Buddhist Association in Poland and expatriates expressed their gratitude to the martyrs through Buddhist rituals such as offering incense and flowers and lighting lanterns.
On July 25, the Vietnamese Embassy in Ukraine organised a ceremony to receive donations to the construction of a memorial site to the 64 soldiers killed while protecting Gac Ma (Johnson South) Reef in Vietnam’s Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago on March 14, 1988.
Addressing the embassy staff and representatives of Vietnamese associations in Ukraine, Ambassador Nguyen Minh Tri said the site, located in the central province of Khanh Hoa, aims to serve as a venue for the martyrs’ relatives and people nationwide to pay homage to the deceased. It will also help instill patriotism in younger generations.
The embassy raised US$7,350 at the event, and the sum will be sent to Vietnam’s authorised agencies as soon as possible.
Vietnam has nearly 1.2 million soldiers who fell in the wars defending the country and in international missions, according to the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs.