Representing the leadership of Ho Chi Minh City were Vice Secretary of the City Party Committee and Chairman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of Ho Chi Minh City, Nguyen Phuoc Loc; Vice Chairwoman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of Ho Chi Minh City and Chairwoman of the Ho Chi Minh City Women’s Union, Vo Ngoc Thanh Truc; and Secretary of the Party Committee of Con Dao Special Zone, Le Hoang Hai.
Also attending the ceremony were former leaders, including former Deputy Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee, Nguyen Thi Thu Ha; former Chairwoman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Council, Pham Phuong Thao; former Deputy Secretary of the City Party Committee Vo Thi Dung; and former Chairwoman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Council, Nguyen Thi Quyet Tam.
At Hang Duong Cemetery, the delegation observed a moment of silence and sincerely commemorated and expressed deep gratitude to the heroes and fallen soldiers who sacrificed themselves for the independence and freedom of the nation on the island that is also known as the holy land.
The delegation also visited the tombs of General Secretary Le Hong Phong; Hero of the People’s Armed Forces Vu Van Hieu; patriot Nguyen An Ninh; heroic martyrs; and Heroes of the People’s Armed Forces Vo Thi Sau, Luu Chi Hieu and Le Van Viet; and other martyrs.
The delegation also visited Hang Keo Cemetery, observing a moment of silence, laying fresh wreaths, and respectfully lighting incense to honor and express gratitude to forebears, martyrs, and patriotic citizens who fought and courageously sacrificed their lives for national liberation and the communist cause.
On the same day, the delegation visited Con Dao Museum and other historical sites in Con Dao Special Zone.
The incense-offering ceremony to honor the martyrs in Con Dao Special Zone was part of a series of “Returning to Roots” program organized by the Standing Committee of the Ho Chi Minh City Women’s Union.
As part of the program, female officials from Ho Chi Minh City participated in various activities, including the “For a Green, Clean, and Beautiful Con Dao” initiative and distributing gifts to residents and children in difficult circumstances.
The delegation participated in the “For a Green, Clean, and Beautiful Con Dao” walking program and planted trees as part of the “Great Unity Green Tree Route” initiative. In addition, the Standing Committee of the Ho Chi Minh City Women’s Union organized a thematic meeting on the “Opportunities and Challenges for Women in Leadership and Management Roles.”
The 16-island archipelago of Con Dao, now Con Dao Special Zone, is located around 180 km off the former coastal city of Vung Tau in the former Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, about 230 kilometers southeast of Ho Chi Minh City. It is well known for nice wild beaches with white sand, deep blue sea, and colorful coral reefs. French colonialists and the Americans turned the islands into a prison to jail Vietnamese revolutionary soldiers during wartime. The offshore relic has attracted many local and foreign visitors in recent years.
