Overcrowded
The Vietnam Military History Museum officially opened its doors to visitors free of charge on November 1. On the first day, there were about 8,000 visitors. The number of visitors continued to increase in the following days.
Responding to Lao Dong, Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Tien Dung - Deputy Director of the Vietnam Military History Museum said that as of November 14, the museum had been open for 9 days, welcoming more than 128,500 visitors, an average of more than 14,000 visitors per day.
Last weekend, the museum recorded 90,000 visitors, with 60,000 on Sunday (November 17) alone - a record number for the number of visitors in a day at museums in Vietnam.
Not only on weekends, the museum is also crowded on weekdays. On Thursday (November 14) alone, the museum welcomed more than 40,000 visitors, leading to an overload situation.
The Deputy Director of the Museum said: "We have arranged to increase the force, divide shifts to look after the artifacts, and remind visitors. However, the number of visitors is too large, museum staff have to constantly move to observe and remind visitors, there is no time to rest, so fatigue is inevitable."
The large number of visitors continuously pouring in has made management and security at the museum difficult. After a few days of opening, the museum has become the focus of public opinion due to unsightly images such as visitors climbing on tanks, touching exhibits, and leaning on glass...
Most recently, a video recording a girl climbing onto the roof of the museum to take photos and film caused a stir in the online community, raising doubts about the security and protection work at the museum.
Regarding this issue, Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Tien Dung commented that this was an unfortunate incident. "Although we had barricades and signs warning visitors not to enter construction areas, these young people did not comply with the regulations and warnings, following the construction workers to the rooftop of the museum to take photos," he said.
Mr. Dung informed that after the incident, the museum worked with the construction contractors to strictly manage the workers and not allow strangers to enter the construction site. The entrances were barricaded, and some entrances were locked to ensure safety. At the same time, the museum increased patrols to control all entrances to the upper floors, determined not to let similar incidents happen again.
Increase support staff at the museum
Faced with the increasing number of visitors, the museum has sent a document requesting the Nam Tu Liem District Police, the People's Committee and the Tay Mo Ward Police to support traffic regulation on the Thang Long Avenue service road; patrol and remind vehicles to stop and park illegally; strengthen hard fences to prevent visitors from parking motorbikes on the sidewalk and prevent street vendors; and increase security forces to patrol the Thang Long Avenue area to ensure safety for visitors.
"In the museum, we have increased the number of specialized departments for customer service and traffic control, added soft fences to protect large-scale exhibits displayed indoors, posted signs prohibiting visitors from climbing on exhibits and display platforms, and added information equipment to ensure quick handling of situations when opening to welcome visitors," said Mr. Dung.
Last weekend, the Head of the General Department of Politics chaired a meeting with the functional agencies of the General Department of Politics and the General Staff to find solutions to ensure safety for welcoming guests at the Vietnam Military History Museum.
Accordingly, 15 youth union members will support the museum on Saturdays and Sundays and 10 youth union members on weekdays to protect the exhibits; closely coordinate with the local authorities and police where the troops are stationed to regulate traffic and patrol to ensure security and safety in the museum area.
At the same time, the General Department of Politics directed the Military Training Department to report to the Chief of the General Staff to assign the Hanoi Capital Command to increase a platoon to patrol, control, and guard the Museum until the end of the first quarter of 2025. The Department of Military Security Protection and the Cyber Warfare Command are ready to handle information about the Vietnam Military History Museum on social networks if it violates media regulations.
