Photo exhibition "Vietnamese People in World War I"

"The Vietnamese in World War I (1914-1918)" is the name of a photo exhibition organized by the Association of Vietnamese in France (UGVF) at the Association's headquarters in Paris from November 19 to December 30.

French friends and overseas Vietnamese attentively look at the documentary photos. Photo: Vietnam+

More than 100 documentary photos exploited from the military archive kept at the French International Contemporary Document Library have shown the living and working conditions of the first Vietnamese people sent to the "mother country" by the French Protectorate Government in the early 20th century to serve in the war.

Speaking at the exhibition opening ceremony, a representative of the UGVF leadership said that the Vietnamese community living in France is a community with the longest tradition. This year, France commemorates the 100th anniversary of World War I. This is an opportunity for the UGVF to organize activities to commemorate the Vietnamese who were brought to France by the colonial government to serve in the war, but are often forgotten in the celebrations in France.

On this occasion, historian Pierre Brocheux introduced the historical context when nearly 100,000 Vietnamese were recruited and brought to France during World War I.

According to him, these people were both "workers" and "soldiers", working mainly in areas such as logistics, manufacturing weapons and military equipment, clearing battlefields, transporting wounded soldiers and directly participating in combat.

Specifically, four Indochinese colonial combat battalions were established, of which two battalions fought against the Germans on the battlefields in Northeastern France, and the remaining two battalions fought on the Eastern front including Greece and Macedonia against armies from Austria, Bulgaria and Albania.

Fifteen other battalions were also formed to provide logistical support to the army. They were workers sent to work in arsenals, gunpowder factories and other military workshops to replace the French who had to go to the front.

According to archival documents, nearly 100,000 people, mainly from poor rural areas of Vietnam, were mobilized for the French wars out of a total of 340,000 colonial soldiers from Africa and Indochina, a fairly large proportion.

In addition, the Indochina Treasury also contributed 541 million French francs to the French war expenses. Besides, dozens of tons of weapons and goods of all kinds were also transferred from colonial Indochina to supply the battlefield in France.

For the Vietnamese workers, the arduous journey resulted in some dying of disease before they even set foot on French soil. Once in France, they were forced to do hard and hazardous work. Many of them soon realized the injustice of France forcing the people of the colonies to shed blood and pay for their war.

Talking to a VNA reporter in France, researcher François Trieu, who spent four months researching and collecting documentary photos, said that for him, a Vietnamese born and raised in France, this exhibition is a "spiritual obligation" to show respect and gratitude for the sacrifices of previous generations. At the same time, it also allows the French and Vietnamese people in France to see a part of past history, to understand and appreciate what they have today.

According to Vietnam+