Deputy Prime Minister Pham Thi Thanh Tra, Head of the National Steering Committee for the Search, Collection, and Identification of Martyrs' Remains (Steering Committee 515), has signed Official Dispatch No. 69/CV-BCDQG on the implementation of the search and recovery of fallen soldiers' remains at Le Thi Rieng Park and across Ho Chi Minh City.
To accelerate progress and enhance the effectiveness of the search and recovery of fallen soldiers' remains at Le Thi Rieng Park and across Ho Chi Minh City, the National Steering Committee has instructed the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, the city's Steering Committee, the High Command of Military Region 7, and relevant agencies to strictly implement Prime Minister Le Minh Hung's directive that "the search must never stop until all fallen soldiers' remains have been fully recovered." The committee called on all participating agencies to strive to meet, and where possible, exceed the targets set under the 500-Day Campaign.
The search and recovery efforts must be carried out with the highest level of political commitment while ensuring that all operations are conducted expeditiously, methodically, scientifically, prudently, meticulously, and with absolute safety.
The National Steering Committee has directed the establishment of a coordinating body to provide daily, on-site leadership and oversight of the search and recovery operations, as well as related tasks in the field. The body is tasked with developing a detailed and scientifically structured search and recovery plan, assigning clear responsibilities to each team and individual with specific implementation timelines, and submitting daily rapid reports and weekly progress reports before 5:00 p.m. every Friday to the Head of the National Steering Committee and the National Steering Committee on the results of the search and recovery efforts.
The committee also requested the coordinating body to work closely with the Ministry of National Defence to urgently decode and analyze archival records and data while consolidating and systematizing information on collective graves associated with major battles and military campaigns in the area, particularly those that took place in 1968 and 1972.
The National Steering Committee also called for intensified analysis, verification, and cross-checking of archival records, alongside greater efforts to gather information from historical witnesses to expand the scope of delineation, survey, and search activities. Priority will be given to the area north of Tan Son Nhat International Airport and other locations believed to contain collective graves of fallen soldiers.
In addition, the committee instructed relevant agencies to work closely with the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of National Defence to mobilize all available resources and step up the application of advanced technologies, particularly DNA analysis, to accelerate the identification of fallen soldiers' remains.
The High Command of Military Region 7 has been tasked with taking the lead, in coordination with the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee and the Ho Chi Minh City High Command, in deploying experienced personnel to carry out the search and recovery of martyrs’ remains at Le Thi Rieng Park, in line with the Prime Minister's directive. Based on the workload, additional professional and experienced personnel will continue to be assigned to excavation and recovery operations to ensure timely implementation and maximum effectiveness.
Where necessary, the High Command of Military Region 7 is required to proactively and promptly report to and recommend that the Ministry of National Defence deploy additional personnel, equipment, and specialized machinery suited to the unique challenges of excavation and search operations in an urban environment.
