President HCM memorial area a place to nurture traditional Vietnam - Laos friendship

The President Ho Chi Minh memorial area located in Xiengvang village of Noongbok district in Khammuane province is a co-operative project between the two Parties, States, and people of Vietnam and Laos to mark the activities of President Ho Chi Minh.

President Ho Chi Minh memorial area is located at Xiengvang village, Noongbok district, Khammuane province.

Today, the memorial area serves not only as a symbol, but also a place to educate the tradition of solidarity and friendship that exists between both nations for future generations.

Located next to the poetic and peaceful Mekong River, the President Ho Chi Minh memorial area is known as the place where Uncle Ho became involved in revolutionary activities more than 90 years ago.

According to the elders here, during the time President Ho Chi Minh was in Thailand in 1928, he took a boat across the Mekong River to Khammuane province of Laos many times to meet and talk with Vietnamese and Laotian people residing in Xiengvang village.

As a generation of Vietnamese people born and raised in Xiengvang village, Le Thi Ha said, grandparents and parents often remind the children and grandchildren in the family to preserve the cultural beauty, voice, and Vietnamese national identity.

On occasions such as President Ho Chi Minh's birthday and Vietnam's National Day, people from both nations come together to the memorial area to offer incense in memory of President Ho Chi Minh.

Xiengvang village has 157 households with a population exceeding 900 people, including many generations of Lao-Vietnamese blood. Vietnamese people here live in harmony, solidarity, and have made many contributions to local development, ranging from building offices to schools and roads.

Outhon Thavinolachak, vice chairman of Noongbok district said, the memorial area has become a familiar place for Vietnamese and Laotians to regularly visit and express their gratitude towards Uncle Ho - a great friend of the country and people of Laos.

In order to express gratitude and acknowledge President Ho Chi Minh's great contributions, the Party, Government, and people of Vietnam and Laos have invested in building a memorial area for President Ho Chi Minh on an area covering over 1.5 hectares, including many items such as a house displaying documents and images of Uncle Ho, an ornamental garden, and a fish pond.

Phaymany Phommasan, deputy chief of Office of Khammuane province and head of the Management Board of President Ho Chi Minh memorial area, said that the area also displays plenty of images showcasing documents, books and, newspapers written about President Ho Chi Minh, with these being alongside pictures of visits and working sessions of senior leaders of the two countries.

"The Management Board always tries to promote the role and value of the memorial area to become a widely known place. We regularly organize fact-finding tours for officials and students and domestic and foreign tourists to help them get a better understanding about the ideology, ethics and style of President Ho Chi Minh," Phommasan said.

Phaymany Phommasan, deputy chief of Office of Khammuane province and head of the Management Board of President Ho Chi Minh memorial area

Today, the memorial area is not only a vivid symbol of joint solidarity, but is also a way to propagate and educate descendants about the relationship, great friendship, special solidarity, and unwavering loyalty between the two peoples and two countries which were nurtured President Ho Chi Minh, President Kaysone Phomvihane, President Souphanouvong, and generations of leaders and people of the two countries.

VOV