War massacre commemorated in Quang Nam
In 1968, troops from the Republic of Korea (RoK) committed the Ha My Village Massacre on the morning of the first lunar month’s 24th day. One hundred and thirty five village residents were killed—the majority elderly, women, and children.
The 45th anniversary of the horrific event united representatives from the RoK’s Peace Museum, the provincial union of friendship organisations, and relevant ministries and agencies in central Quang Tri province to share memories with witnesses and family members of victims.
“I was barely ten years old at that time. I was peeling pumpkin with my grandfather in our house. I escaped death because my grandfather helped me hide in a dug-out under the altar,” said Nguyen Thanh Nam. Nam’s mother and two younger brothers were killed in the massacre.
Korean Peace Museum Director Han Hong Koo said that he had remained oblivious of the day’s terrible crimes for dozens of years.
"Feeling repentant and ashamed, we can only bow our heads and apologise to Viet Nam," he said.
While the pain left by the massacre lingers on for witnesses unable to forget, commemorating the anniversary moved Ha My village residents one step closer to extending forgiveness in the spirit of peace.