Special trip of overseas Vietnamese to visit Truong Sa

In May 2022, the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese (SOCV) coordinated with the Navy Command to organize a 7-day visit for more than 40 overseas Vietnamese to Truong Sa archipelago and DK1 platform, from May 17 to 25, 2022.

This is the first trip to resume after 2 years of the country being affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. 2022 is also the 10th anniversary of the overseas Vietnamese program to visit Truong Sa.

Mr. Nguyen Trong Duc and Ms. Vu Thi Van Anh are 2 of more than 40 overseas Vietnamese who have the opportunity to participate in this special visit.

Overseas Vietnamese delegation visited Truong Sa island.

A Visit from an "Old"

Mr. Nguyen Trong Duc (born in 1958) immigrated to the US more than 50 years ago. He is currently a freelance journalist. This is his second visit to Truong Sa. The first time he visited Truong Sa was in 2014.

“Oh my god, so many trees” - Mr. Duc could not hide his surprise when he set foot in Truong Sa after nearly 10 years of waiting.

“In November 2021, I knew that a very big storm would sweep through the Truong Sa archipelago, so in my mind, the island would not be like before, and would not retain many trees. But in reality, the opposite was true, just like the name Sinh Ton” - he expressed.

Looking at the row of trees in front of him, Mr. Duc remembered the small row of banyan trees from years ago. At that time, Truong Sa only had a few small banyan trees, and very few fruits. Anyone who wanted to bring fruit back to the mainland as a souvenir had to… fight over it! Now those banyan trees have grown much larger, and you can have as many fruits as you want.

Mr. Nguyen Trong Duc and the flag signed by officers, soldiers and people on Truong Sa island.

Mr. Duc's father was a high-ranking official of the Republic of Vietnam regime. He had a comfortable life since childhood. But in the late 1960s, Mr. Duc participated in protests against the Ngo Dinh Diem government.

In 1968, his family tried to get him out of Vietnam by studying abroad: “At that time, my mother was very happy, because she said: If he stays in Vietnam, he will only be able to protest!”

During his 50 years living abroad, Mr. Duc has never worn a red flag with a yellow star, but on this special visit, for the first time he wore a shirt with the Vietnamese national flag printed on it: "I feel very proud."

He was proud and happy to wear a shirt with the national flag on his trip back to his homeland, the train of national unity, the trip to Truong Sa.

Life on the island through the lens of a member of the overseas Vietnamese delegation.

A Visit from a "New" Person

Ms. Vu Thi Van Anh (born in 1976) is currently residing in the Netherlands. She is a lecturer of Vietnamese language and Oriental culture at the Royal Netherlands Tropical Institute. Unlike Mr. Duc, this is the first time Ms. Van Anh has had the opportunity to set foot on the Truong Sa archipelago.

“It can be said that it was an overwhelming feeling, after 36 hours drifting in the ocean” - Ms. Van Anh said about her first feeling when she saw Sinh Ton Island.

The memories are still fresh in her mind: “I remember on Monday we started to get over the seasickness and were looking forward to the mainland. But there was absolutely nothing to see. Until we saw the first island: Survival Island, I really felt alive and a very clear connection.”

Ms. Vu Thi Van Anh wore a purple ao dai, she came from the Netherlands to visit Truong Sa.

Before this trip, she still read newspapers, still listened to the radio, still watched pictures of Truong Sa and Hoang Sa. As a Vietnamese, for her, Truong Sa and Hoang Sa belong to Vietnam, are an inseparable part of the country: "But that's just what I heard."

So she was completely surprised and overwhelmed when she set foot on Truong Sa archipelago, when she saw the green color of trees in the middle of a vast ocean.

To get this trip, Ms. Van Anh had to register many times. But not every time she was chosen, or if she was chosen, her schedule was too busy. So this year, she left her entire May calendar blank: "So that she can go at any time, any day when she is called to go."

The trip that has been anticipated for many years finally took place in May 2022: “As someone who has traveled to many places in the world, visiting Truong Sa is a very special trip.”

Tears in Truong Sa

- Have you ever shed tears on Truong Sa?

- Yes!

- Frequent!

Whether it was the first or second time setting foot on the beloved archipelago of the Fatherland, the emotions in the hearts of overseas Vietnamese were always full. No one in the group had not shed a tear during this special trip.

“There were so many moments, I don’t know if I can tell them all?” – Ms. Van Anh recalls.

Image of soldiers on Truong Sa island.

During the days at sea, the group organized cultural exchanges in the evenings. At that time, she saw Vietnamese fishing boats moored near the big ship to join in the atmosphere on her ship.

Before, she had heard many times the words "stick to the island, stick to the sea" but it seemed she never really understood the meaning of these phrases.

“It was not until I saw small boats anchored close to the Navy ship just to listen to a song that I understood what the words “stick to the islands, stick to the sea” meant. That special peace made me cry.”

When asked about his special feelings during the trip, Mr. Duc thought about the young soldiers: “You are only 18 or 20 years old. You are young, very naive but ready to sacrifice your whole life ahead to protect the independence and sovereignty of the country.

"When the sun rises, then we know it's a new day.

When the sun sets, then you know the sun has passed.

They told me that they never looked at the calendar, and didn't even know the date.

Those emotions touched the heart of the old man who had gone through many storms in life: "I couldn't hold back my tears."

Visit Truong Sa to see and understand

Before his trip to Truong Sa in 2004, as an extremist himself, Mr. Duc received a lot of conflicting information about Truong Sa and the East Sea. Many documents such as books, movies, etc. propagated that Vietnam's seas and islands belonged to foreign countries.

“I was very curious, was it true? So I registered and wanted to go to Truong Sa even more,” he recalled the reason why he wanted to go to this archipelago.

The field trip left him very surprised: “Truong Sa is not a military base. On this archipelago, there are people living, there are pagodas and places of worship,… Now I can stand up and oppose one-sided opinions with my own real experience.”

Telling her story, Ms. Van Anh said that she had a similar experience: “In the Vietnamese community abroad, there are also many extremists. They always say that Truong Sa no longer belongs to Vietnam. I really want to say that the truth is not like that. But I cannot confirm it until I can see it with my own eyes. That is one of the reasons why I have registered to go to Truong Sa many times.”

This trip is not just a regular island visit but also a trip to clear up misunderstandings, a trip to clarify doubts.

East Sea seen from Truong Sa archipelago.

Patriotism can no longer be expressed in words alone.

The first thing Ms. Van Anh did when she returned to Vietnam was to discuss with the Vietnamese Executive Committee as well as the Vietnamese Embassy in the Netherlands to establish the Truong Sa Club in the Netherlands. She wanted to connect with all Truong Sa Clubs in the world to form the Truong Sa Association to make more specific, systematic, and strategic contributions.

Specifically, she wants to connect to develop solar energy and clean water projects on the Truong Sa archipelago. These are all practical projects that will help make life less difficult for the people and soldiers on the island.

“My patriotism has probably changed a lot. I can no longer just say that I love Vietnam, but perhaps I have to show it through concrete actions. I love Vietnam and I will prepare to do the following work for Vietnam"./.