Pol pot

According to Pha, after the joint victory of the Vietnamese and Cambodian revolutionary armed forces over the Pol Pot genocidal regime on January 7, 1979, the Vietnamese Party Central Committee’s delegation of advisors (Committee B68 in short) and Mission 478 of the military advisors had many busy days helping Cambodia build its armed forces and political system and recover its economy. His B68 Committee was assigned to help Cambodia transfer its People’s Party Central Committee to Phnom Penh and the Party Civil Affairs Committee to its provinces.

Pha recalled that a fortnight after the victory, members of B68 Committee arrived in Phnom Penh. Knowing the urgency and importance of the mission, all members of the committee exerted all-out efforts to effectively complete the task. Everyone worked so hard that they did not realize the Lunar New Year was coming.

Two weeks before the Lunar New Year Festival (Tet), Pha returned to Vietnam for a business trip and took a visit to Chief of the General Staff of the Kampuchean Revolutionary People’s Armed Forces Soi Keo who was under treatment at a hospital in Ho Chi Minh City. After learning that his friend was worried that his Vietnamese wife and children would not have enough traditional Vietnamese food for Tet in Cambodia, Pha rushed to a local market to buy sticky rice, mung bean, dried bamboo shoots, wood ear mushrooms, mushrooms, pepper, onion, garlic, B’lao tea, and sugar-coated fruits as gifts for Soi Keo’s family.

According to the committee’s regulations at the time, on the Lunar New Year, each expert and serving staff were provided with half of a chung cake (traditional Vietnamese rice cake), three packets of Vam Co cigarettes, and some candies and sugar-coated fruit. Due to the difficult conditions, all members of the committee had sorghum seeds and fish paste for all three days of the Lunar New Year Festival instead of traditional food.

Vice President of the Central Committee of the Vietnam-Cambodia Friendship Association Trinh Vinh Pha recalled that learning about the difficult situation of the committee, his old unit’s leaders decided to present two bags of rice and 10kg of canned meat to help the team have a happier New Year’s holiday.

On the Lunar New Year’s holiday, Deputy Defense Minister and Head of Committee 68 Major General Hoang The Thien led a mission of advisors to visit and extend New Year’s greetings to volunteer troops and advisors in Siem Riep, Battambang, and Kampong Speu provinces. During the trip, the mission had a chance to learn more about the hardships and sacrifices of Vietnamese volunteer troops and advisors in Cambodia’s localities as well as their determination to fulfil their assigned missions.

After having a New Year’s Eve party with advisors in Siem Reap, the mission left the province to encourage volunteer troops in Battambang. At dusk and due to a dangerous road, the mission decided to stay overnight at a unit of Vietnamese troops. In spite of facing difficulties and inadequate food and facilities, the unit treated the mission well. Everyone was impressed by the hospitality of the unit’s troops.

On the occasion, the mission also visited and extended New Year’s greetings to Vietnamese volunteer troops and military advisors along the Cambodia-Thailand borderline. Even though they were carrying out missions in a strange country, all Vietnamese troops showed their firm stance and determination to fulfil their assigned missions.

After one year of working in Cambodia, Committee B68’s members figured out measures to help Cambodia strengthen its political system and raise its capabilities to safeguard the nation and revive the economy. “We had a sound policy that helped the Cambodian people recover their country,” said Vice President of the Central Committee of the Vietnam-Cambodia Friendship Association Trinh Vinh Pha.

Translated by Tran Hoai

The visits aimed to promote solidarity, friendship and cooperation between the Vietnamese military region and Cambodian military partners within the framework of the signed agreements.

The visits, seen as a hallmark in Military Region 7’s implementation of the foreign policy in 2019, contributed to bolstering the bilateral relations between the two peoples and militaries, and strengthening the whole people defense posture of the military region.

Cambodians feel happier Chol Chnam Thmay with visits of Vietnamese friends

The delegation of the Military Region 7 Command, led by its Commander, Lieutenant General Vo Minh Luong, started visiting Cambodian military units and localities from the beginning of April.

At this time of the year, Cambodia looks beautiful and youthful. Buds and blossoms appear on trees, which makes people feel happy and healthy, particularly when the traditional New Year festival of the Cambodian people – Chol Chnam Thmay, is coming.

In both formal meetings and informal talks with the visiting Vietnamese military delegation, Cambodian troops and people all repeated the sacrifices of Vietnamese volunteer soldiers, who laid down their lives for the revival of the Cambodian people.

As years have passed since the Cambodian people with the support of the Vietnam People Army completely defeated the Pol Pot clique, the sacrifices of Vietnamese volunteer soldiers and pains of the Cambodian people caused by the Pol Pot genocidal regime have gradually eased; but for all Cambodians, Vietnam has still remained a loyal and helpful friend.

Under the schedule, the Vietnamese military delegation visited Military Regions 1, 2 and 4 of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces. At every stop, the visiting delegation was warmly welcomed by all Cambodian military units and civilian authorities. All hosts said that their Chol Chnam Thmay was happier, and that they would have more success and property in the new year when Vietnamese friends came to them on the occasion of their New Year festival. The Vietnamese military delegation also had a number of sport and cultural exchange activities with local military units and people.

During the meetings with local military and civilian leaders, General Luong, Commander of Military Region 7, expressed thanks for the sincere sentiment of the hosts for the visiting delegation as well as for effective supports of the Cambodian people and military in collecting and repatriating remains of fallen Vietnamese volunteer soldiers and experts in the past. He also hoped that the two sides would continuously cement the solidarity and friendship, promote peace and stability, and expand cooperation between the two nations and militaries.

Earlier another delegation of Military Region 7 led by its Political Commissar, Lieutenant General Tran Hoai Trung, also visited Cambodia on the Cambodian people’s Chol Chnam Thmay 2019. The delegation paid a courtesy calls on President of the Cambodian National Assembly Heng Samrin, Deputy Prime Minister Men Som On and Secretary of State of the Cambodian Ministry of Defense General Neang Phat, as well as visited a number of Cambodian military and police units.

The two delegations of Military Region 7 of Vietnam also visited and laid flowery wreaths at the Vietnam-Cambodia Friendship Monument in Phnom Penh, and Memorial of Vietnamese Volunteer Soldiers and Experts in Ba Chong village, Preak Bat ward, Stung Treng city, Cambodia.

According to General Trung, Military Region 7 and other Vietnamese military units usually pay visits and hold meetings and exchange activities with Cambodian partners on major Cambodian anniversaries with the aim of promoting mutual understanding and trust as well as boosting relations and cooperation between the two sides, following the motto for development of the Vietnam-Cambodia relations: “Good neighbor, traditional friendship, comprehensive and sustainable cooperation.”

Translated by Thu Nguyen

The Hanoitimes – A bonsai kumquat pot in the shape of a typical communal house in the Central Highlands or an ancient house of Hanoi’s Old Quarters is selling well this Tet (Lunar New Year Festival).

Together with peach and ochna, a kumquat is seen as one of the indispensable ornament plants of many Vietnamese families during the festive holiday. A fruit-laden kumquat tree makes a house brighter and warmer, especially in the cold weather in the North.

Kumquat is one among essential home decoration items for Tet. Photo: Phong Dao

The tree is a popular decoration for the living room during Tet. Its many fruit symbolize the fertility and abundance that the family hopes will come in the coming year. The more fruit on the tree, the luckier your family. Greeting cards and good luck symbols are hung from the Tet tree.

This year, the kumquat pots in the shape of a house is a new unique product that is soon favored by many people, thanks to the creativity of planters at Tu Lien kumquat planting village (Tu Lien ward, Tay Ho district, Hanoi).

Ms. Ngo Thu Trang, owner of Xuan Loc kumquat garden in Tu Lien village, the creator of this unique bonsai, said that each of them conveys a message, such as a house is the most peaceful place of everyone which nurtures the affection of family members, motivate them to overcome difficulties and achieve success in society and connects all generations together.

In order to make the kumquat bonsai planted by a house figurine more diverse and livelier, Ms. Trang chooses typical tiled-roof houses in the Northern Delta, cultural communal houses of the Central Highlands and ancient houses of Hanoi.

A Kumquat tree is plant inside an ‘ancient house’ jar. Photo: Phong Dao

According to Ms. Trang, the unique and most important thing is the design of the house models to grow the tree. From the front, each pot of kumquat is a complete house model, but in the back, some holes are skillfully dug to put the kumquat tree inside.

These house models are all handmade by the famous craftsmen of Phu Lang pottery (Bac Ninh province) with a lot of sophisticated details. Then the gardeners follow each model to shape a kumquat tree in it and each comes with different looks. It takes about two years to grow a bonsai kumquat tree. “This year is the first we pilot selling this model with 50 pots and they soon catch a lot of attention. The price of each ranges VND3-10 million ($130-435) and all the trees have been sold out,” said Ms. Trang.

Together with kumquat tree in house models, other new kinds of kumquat pot have been created in recent years, providing a new and interesting selection for the traditional customs as well as bonsai hobby of the local people.

The garden of Kymquat bonsai in Tu Lien kumquat planting village (Tu Lien ward, Tay Ho district, Hanoi).

Accordingly, bonsai kumquat in well-known Bat Trang ceramic pots with different sizes become more and more popular. The body of the pot is printed with beautiful traditional folk patterns or words of tai (wealth) and loc (fortune) as the wishes for the New Year.

With the same wishes, pots with the figurines of characters and symbols of good luck and prosperity are also favored such as three gods representing Happiness, Luck and Longevity or Maitreya Buddha.

In addition, kumquat bonsai grown on pots in the shape of the zodiac animals are well received thanks to their impressive and unique styles. These pots are also made of Bat Trang and Phu Lang pottery.

The Kumquat is plant in a Phu Lang terracotta jar.

In the year of buffalo of 2021, a golden buffalo carrying kumquat tree on its back is an attractive product for many people. More interesting, each buffalo features different shapes and postures.

According to some garden owners, the golden buffalo-shaped kumquat bonsai brings special meaning of good health and strength (like a buffalo) and wealth (golden) for the new year.

With a beautiful and meaningful kumquat pot displayed during Tet, everyone is happy to be ready to welcome the New Year with good expectations.