Published on Cuba Si (http://www.cubasi.cu)
Vietnamese Province Leads National Red Cross Campaign in Support of Cuba
Fifty-two years after the historic visit of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, the central Vietnamese province of Quang Tri today stands out for its remarkable contribution to the Red Cross campaign in support of Cuba.
Within just one month, the province raised more than 9.134 billion dong (approximately 360,000 U.S. dollars)—the highest amount collected nationwide through the humanitarian organization’s local aid reception channels.
According to provincial Red Cross president Mai Thi Kim Nhung, the swift fundraising success is “clear evidence of the deep feelings of the people of Quang Tri, and of Vietnam as a whole, toward Cuba, a loyal and affectionate friend.”
She also highlighted that many residents from remote areas and ethnic minorities traveled long distances to their communes to make donations—“a gesture that demonstrates the loyalty and solidarity of Quang Tri residents with the Cuban people in a moment of difficulty.”
During his first trip to a Vietnam still at war, Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro insisted on defying all dangers to reach the liberated zone, where he met with fighters of the National Liberation Front and the Provisional Revolutionary Government of South Vietnam.
In a speech delivered on September 15, 1973, at Hill 241, Castro declared: “We have traveled more than 20,000 kilometers to arrive here as a symbol of the enormous friendship and sympathy that our people feel toward the heroic people of Vietnam.”
In his acclaimed 40-minute address, the Cuban leader reviewed the Vietnamese struggle since President Ho Chi Minh proclaimed independence on September 2, 1945.
He highlighted the glorious victories achieved in the liberated territories of South Vietnam, “in what had been a powerful and seemingly invincible imperialist stronghold,” and predicted that full liberation and peaceful reunification of the homeland would be “simply a matter of time.”
Castro recalled that at dawn, on the way to Hill 241, “we saw a clear and beautiful day, a bright sun rising on the horizon, and we told ourselves: the future of Vietnam is as beautiful as this day that welcomed us upon arriving in this land.”
Echoing Ho Chi Minh, he added: “Once the Yankee aggressor is defeated, we will build a Vietnam ten times more beautiful.” He then paid tribute to the thousands of heroic fighters who had fallen for their country’s freedom, “upon whose spilled blood rises a victorious and invincible nation.”
Fidel Castro’s historic and transcendent visit to Quang Tri marked the first and only time a head of state visited the liberated territories of South Vietnam following the signing of the Paris Agreement.