VIETNAM: 35th anniversary of the fall of Saigon which led to the reunification of the country celebrated with military parade

Record ID: 743665

  • Title: VIETNAM: 35th anniversary of the fall of Saigon which led to the reunification of the country celebrated with military parade
  • Date: 1st May 2010
  • Summary: FOUR SOLDIERS FROM TANK NUMBER 390 WHICH SMASHED THROUGH THE GATES THIRTY FIVE YEARS AGO (SOUNDBITE) (Vietnamese) VU DANG TOAN, FORMER SOLDIER IN TANK 390, SAYING "The moment our tank 390 smashed through the gate is coming soon. At 10:45 am thirty-five years ago it smashed the presidential palace and drove straight to the palace. We are here today, very emotional, and th
  • Embargoed: 16th May 2010 13:00
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  • Topics: History,Domestic Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA7YCIU23IVXRVPXKXLQXF6O42O
  • Story Text: Tens of thousands of troops, grizzled veterans and children hailed the communist victory over U.S.-backed South Vietnam 35 years ago on Friday (April 30) in front of former Presidential Place in Ho Chi Minh city, formerly known as Saigon.
    Revolutionary music and folk songs boomed through loudspeakers as scores of trucks bearing floats of a smiling Ho Chi Minh, the country's late leader, followed soon after.
    At the celebration, Communist Party chief Le Thanh Hai made a speech in which he focused on Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh City's economic achievements.
    The city generated more than 20 percent of the nation's gross domestic product last year and 30 percent of its tax revenues.
    Indeed, the anniversary allowed some Vietnamese time to reflect on the past.
    For them, the fall of Saigon and scenes of a communist tank crashing through the gates of this palace were not just images beamed across televisions around the world, they saw it all unfold.
    Vu Dang Toan, a lieutenant and political commissar of the tank unit, who was invited by Ho Chi Minh City's people committee to attend the celebration with his comrades, remembered the moment that the war ended.
    "The moment our tank 390 smashed through the gate is coming soon. At 10:45 am thirty-five years ago it smashed the presidential palace and drove straight to the palace. We are here today, very emotional, and thinking of what happened 35 years ago as it was a great victory, it was very quick to liberate Saigon and the country is reunited," he said.
    The fall of Saigon marked the official end of the Vietnam War and government officials paid glowing tribute to the three million Vietnamese soldiers and civilians who died during the war.
    More than 58,000 American troops were also killed in the conflict.
    Most local veterans who are getting older appreciated the chance to celebrate liberation day.
    "I could not describe my happiness. I was crying as I'm so emotional, so happy but at this moment I think of my comrades who sacrificed their lives for the country. We feel happy but we always want to remember them," said Vu Thi Nham, a veteran from Hanoi, who took part in the resistance war again the French in Hanoi.
    For most of the Vietnamese, April 30 also marked the day that the Southern part was liberated and the country was united.
    Police kept ordinary Vietnamese away from the palace during the three hours of celebration by barricading all roads from a few blocks away.
    Authorities were concerned about security while President Nguyen Minh Triet led the delegation of dignitaries that attended the event.
    Also in the crowd were leaders and dignitaries from Cuba, Russia, Cambodia and Laos.
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