On Thursday, a get-together took place in Da Nang, in recognition of the 43^rd anniversary of the date, 19 January 1974, when China completed their military occupation of Viet Nam’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago. 

The Deputy Head of the local Institute for Socio-Economic Development, Dr Tran Duc Anh Son (centre), presenting a book about the archipelago to a representative from the islands district’s PC

The Republic of Viet Nam’s naval force failed in their battle at sea against Chinese troops on 19 January 1974, and more than 70 Vietnamese soldiers lost their lives.  That day has gone down in Viet Nam’s history as a painful memory, when a part of the country, which the ancestors had spent generations protecting, was separated from the motherland.

The get-together was attended by 12 historical witnesses who used to live and work in the archipelago, former leaders of the Hoang Sa Islands District People’s Committee (PC) over the historical periods, and other representatives from the city authorities.

All the participants affirmed that memories of the islands would remain deep in their minds.

Mr Vo Ngoc Dong, the Director of the municipal Department of Home Affairs cum Chairman of the Hoang Sa Islands District PC, said that the annual get-together aims to remind all Vietnamese people of the date, 19 January 1974, and thereby encourage them to continue Viet Nam’s unceasing righteous struggle for its sovereignty over the archipelago.

Last year, Chairman Dong had interviews with reporters from domestic and foreign media agencies, including Le Monde in France, Suedeutsche Zietung in Germany, and NHK in Japan.  During his interviews, Chairman Dong answered questions about the performance of the Hoang Sa Islands District PC over recent years, and underlined Viet Nam’s consistent stance on the East Sea-related issues.

Most notably, a ceremony took place at the Museum of Da Nang in July 2016 to launch an appeal for domestic and foreign collectors to donate their artifacts and documents about the Hoang Sa archipelago for display at the Hoang Sa Exhibition House, whose construction is now underway.  At the launch ceremony, many valuable items were donated to the exhibition house. 

At the get-together, witness Tran Hoa said that he has often told his descendants about the 1974 event.  He also affirmed, “But whether it be in another 10 or 100 years, Viet Nam will eventually take back its beloved Hoang Sa.  The younger generations must fulfil this goal”.

The Chairman of the city’s Union of Literature and Arts Associations, Mr Bui Van Tieng, underlined the importance of ensuring that future generations always keep in mind that the Hoang Sa archipelago belongs to Viet Nam.  He also proposed that a number of local residents should be allowed to register for permanent residency in the Hoang Sa Islands District, and commune-level administrative units should be established within it.

Fully concurring with Chairman Tieng, the former Chairman of the islands district’s PC, Mr Dang Cong Ngu, suggested that a Hoang Sa Fund should be set up to further promote collections of artifacts and documents about the archipelago.  It was also proposed that the date, 19 January 1974, should be recognised at national level to encourage the younger generations to continue the national struggle for sovereignty over the archipelago.