War exhibition delivers messages of peace in Ho Chi Minh City

By Phan Anh   March 19, 2018 | 11:03 pm PT
War exhibition delivers messages of peace in Ho Chi Minh City
Visitors watch pictures, posters and articles about the Americans' anti-war movement at Ho Chi Minh City's War Remnants Museum. Photo by Vietnam News Agency
The U.S. anti-war movement comes alive in a series of pictures, posters and news articles.

A Vietnam War exhibition opened on Monday in Ho Chi Minh City featuring documents about U.S. war protests and messages of reconciliation between the former adversaries.

The "Waging Peace – American Veterans and Soldiers’ Protest against the War in Vietnam" exhibition, on display at the city's War Remnants Museum, showcases over 80 pictures, posters and news articles about  U.S. veterans’ opposition and protests against the war, media reports said.

The organizers, including the HCMC Union of Friendship Organization (HUFO), the city’s Peace and Development Foundation and Veterans for Peace (VFP), said the event is a demonstration of pacifism and goodwill while also facilitating cooperation and exchanges between activists, veterans and people to mend the wounds of war and to deepen ties between the two countries.

Nguyen Van Manh, HUFO’s vice chairman and general secretary, said many U.S. veterans have returned to Vietnam and become ambassadors to help fellow Americans understand more about Vietnam, her people and her culture.

“Ever since the normalization of Vietnam-U.S. relations 20 years ago, the two nations have made leaps and bounds in the reconciliation process. Our efforts are shown through the many exchange programs held between our politicians, scholars, veterans and students,” he said, as cited by Vietnam News Agency. 

Susan Schnall, a representative of the VFP and other groups of American activists, said the war is a lesser-known part of American history, and that they are educating the youth to voice their dissent against the U.S. government's interference in other countries’ internal affairs.

She said they had protested against their government’s invasion and they support the Vietnamese cause for independence. The American veterans want forgiveness, she said in the report.

The exhibition will be open to the public until April 15.

This is not the only exhibition on in Ho Chi Minh City at the moment featuring the Vietnam War. Just two weeks ago, the city opened a show on the history of Vietnam’s Independence Palace, focusing on the 1868-1966 period. The historic landmark has witnessed countless events unfold that have shaped the course of Vietnamese history.

Vietnam and the U.S. normalized relations in 1995 and the relations have improved in recent years. On March 5, U.S. aircraft carrier the USS Carl Vinson made history when it arrived in Vietnam's central city of Da Nang for a five-day visit, marking the biggest U.S. military presence in Vietnam since the war ended in 1975. The visit attracted global media attention and was billed as an important milestone in the bilateral relationship.

 
 
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