On March 16, at Son My Relic Site (Tinh Khe commune), the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Quang Ngai province organized a ceremony to offer incense and flowers to commemorate the 58th anniversary of the 504th day of Son My people being massacred (March 16, 1968 - March 16, 2026). Mr. Ho Van Nien - Secretary of Quang Ngai Provincial Party Committee and leaders of the Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee, People's Council, People's Committee, Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee, Tinh Khe commune... attended the ceremony.
At the ceremony, Ms. Pham Thi Trung - Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Quang Ngai province recalled the tragic event in Son My, and affirmed the determination of the government and people in building an increasingly prosperous homeland.
58 years ago, in the early morning of March 16, 1968, the US military poured troops and raided My Lai village, Son My commune (now Tinh Khe commune), killing 504 innocent civilians, mainly women, the elderly and children. Many pregnant women and babies who had not yet been named had permanently passed away.
The Son My massacre became an endless pain for the Vietnamese people and conscientious people around the world. This event shocked world public opinion about war crimes, creating a wave of protest against Vietnam's war of aggression right on American soil.
The Son My massacre is not the only case, but it is a typical case of the barbaric and brutal crimes that aggressive forces caused to the people of Quang Ngai and the people of Vietnam in the righteous struggle for national independence and reunification.
Today, the location where the massacre occurred has become a National Historical Relic, a place that preserves evidence of war crimes. This is also a destination that domestic and international tourists are particularly interested in when coming to Quang Ngai.
More than half a century has passed, Son My has revived, harmonizing with the development of Quang Ngai province and the country in the aspiration to build a prosperous, civilized, and happy life. Son My people, those who carry the pain and wounds of war, have chosen to do extraordinary things: Forgive without forgetting; Close without removing to move forward.
That is the compassionate and kind heart - a symbol of the Vietnamese soul, knowing pain but not nurturing hatred, closing the past in tolerance. That is not weakness but the strength of a nation that has gone through the fire of bullets and still chooses to turn to the light" - Ms. Pham Thi Trung shared.
At the memorial ceremony, delegates observed a minute of silence and respectfully offered incense and flowers in front of Son My Monument.
