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RNZ News
30-04-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Vietnamese celebrate 50 years since end of Vietnam War
By Minh Nguyen and Francesco Guarascio for Reuters Participants wave flags as they march during a parade marking the 50th anniversary of the fall of Saigon. Photo: NHAC NGUYEN Thousands of Vietnamese have celebrated the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War, with the country's communist leader saying it was a "victory of justice over tyranny". Celebrations culminated in a grand parade in Ho Chi Minh City with thousands of marching troops and an air show featuring Russian-made fighter jets and helicopters, as Vietnamese waved red flags and sang patriotic songs. The historic anniversary commemorates the first act of the country's reunification on 30 April 1975, when Communist-run North Vietnam seized Saigon, the capital of the US-backed South, renamed Ho Chi Minh City shortly after the war in honour of the North's founding leader. "It was a victory of justice over tyranny," To Lam, Vietnam's Communist party chief and the country's top leader, said on Wednesday, citing one of Ho Chi Minh's mottos: "Vietnam is one, the Vietnamese people are one. Rivers may dry up, mountains may erode, but that truth will never change." Spectators watch an airshow during celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of the fall of Saigon. Photo: MANAN VATSYAYANA The fall of Saigon, about two years after Washington withdrew its last combat troops from the country, marked the end of a 20-year conflict that killed some 3 million Vietnamese and nearly 60,000 Americans, many of them young soldiers conscripted into the military. "Communist troops rolled into the South Vietnamese capital virtually unopposed, to the great relief of the population which had feared a bloody last-minute battle," said a cable from one of the Reuters reporters in the city on the day it fell. The cable described the victorious army as made up of "formidably armed" troops in jungle green fatigues but also of barefoot teenagers. Those events were seared into many memories by the images of US helicopters evacuating some 7000 people, many of them Vietnamese, as North Vietnamese tanks closed in. The final flight took off from the roof of the US embassy at 7:53am on 30 April, carrying the last US Marines out of Saigon. The formal reunification of Vietnam was completed a year later, 22 years after the country had been split in two following the end of French colonial rule. Spectators watch an airshow during celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of the fall of Saigon. Photo: MANAN VATSYAYANA Vietnam and the United States normalised diplomatic relations in 1995 and deepened ties in 2023 during a visit to Hanoi by former US President Joe Biden. "The United States and Vietnam have a robust bilateral relationship that we are committed to deepening and broadening," a spokesperson for the US Mission in Vietnam said on Wednesday. That bond is however now being tested by the threat of crippling 46 percent tariffs on Vietnamese goods that Biden's successor, Donald Trump, announced in April. The tariffs have been largely paused until July and talks are underway. But if confirmed, they could undermine Vietnam's export-led growth that has attracted large foreign investments. Washington sent Susan Burns, its consul general in Ho Chi Minh City, to represent the country at the parade. At the celebrations for the 40th anniversary no US official was present. Spectators watch an airshow during celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of the fall of Saigon. Photo: MANAN VATSYAYANA France, which also lost a war in Vietnam, sent a minister to last year's celebrations of the 70th anniversary of the end of the battle of Dien Bien Phu, when French colonial rule collapsed. While Hanoi has re-established relations with the United States, it has maintained close ties with Russia, which is its top supplier of weapons. Vietnam has also nurtured closer relations with northern neighbour China despite a complex history involving several conflicts and a rivalry in the disputed South China Sea. China is now a major investor in its economy and the source of many of the components that are used in products that are then exported to the US. Underlining the warming ties, a contingent of 118 Chinese troops was expected to march alongside Vietnamese soldiers and policemen "to honour the international support Vietnam received during its struggle for independence," according to state media. - Reuters
National Geographic
27-01-2025
- National Geographic
Top 10 things to know about Lunar New Year
We've all heard about the Year of the Snake—but what does this celebration really represent? Chinese New Year is a festival beyond compare. Technically it's a week—determined by the lunar calendar but always late January to mid-February—but for many, Chunjie (Spring Festival) is more like 40 days of celebrations. The travel involved has been called the largest annual human migration in the entire world. China holds 1.4 billion people (18.4 percent of the world's total population, but who's counting?) and every year, nearly three billion people fan across the country, returning to their hometowns. Here are 10 essential things to know about this massive, annual event. Name that holiday The holiday is not celebrated just in mainland China and Hong Kong. For Chinese people, Lunar New Year is the Spring Festival, and it's celebrated widely in Taiwan and across Southeast Asia in countries with large Chinese populations, like Singapore and Malaysia. In Korea, the Lunar New Year is called Seollal; in Vietnam, Tet; and in Tibet, Losar. (Related: See Hong Kong like a Nat Geo Explorer.) A reveler burns joss sticks for incense at Thean Hou Temple in Kuala Lumpur on the eve of the Lunar New Year. Photograph by MANAN VATSYAYANA, AFP/Getty Images Say 'Happy New Year!' In Mandarin, they'll say gong xi fa cai (恭喜发财), wishing you a prosperous New Year. In Cantonese, it's gong hey fat choi. Still, if you wish someone xin nian kuai le (新年快乐), literally "Happy New Year," that's perfectly welcome, too. Hear firecrackers popping Leading up to and during the Spring Festival, the streets of Chinese cities used to sound like war zones, with firecrackers exploding all night. Following a big clampdown on people setting off their fireworks in urban areas, you'll most likely only hear these sounds in smaller towns and the countryside. The firecrackers serve two purposes: One, they're fun and celebratory; two, they were traditionally set off to scare away dragon-lion monster Nian—who, as legend has it, would attack villagers and sometimes eat children but could be frightened off by loud noises. (Related: Learn about other top New Year's celebrations around the world.) 3:45 Read the Chinese Zodiac signs This year is the Year of the Snake. There are twelve Chinese Zodiac signs, and these are taken far more seriously than a back-of-tabloid horoscope. Some signs, like the dragon, are coveted because dragons are considered to be authoritative, strong, and successful. Couples will aim to have babies in dragon years. Certain signs are said to match well with others: Dog (sincere, loyal, independent) and Rabbit (sensitive, modest, warm) are believed to be a good pairing. Your sign is determined by birth year—using the lunar calendar—so if you were born between February 17, 1988, and February 5, 1989, you're a dragon. You would think your Zodiac year (benming nian, 本命年) would be lucky, but it's the opposite. You'll need to watch out for and ward off bad luck. Festive pig-themed decorations cover Yuyuan Garden ahead of the Lunar New Year in Shanghai, China. The Lunar New Year begins on February 5, 2019, marking the beginning of the Year of the Pig. Photograph by Qilai Shen, Bloomberg via Getty Images See red everywhere In traditional and contemporary Chinese culture, red represents prosperity and happiness. It's considered a lucky color, and people will wear it in celebration to usher in an auspicious new year and to keep away bad vibes. Jumpsuits, sweaters, trousers, scarves, socks, hats, anything is game. If it's your Zodiac year you should wear more red than others, to buffer yourself from misfortune. In addition to being scared of loud noise, monster Nian is fearful of red. So, maybe red's not your favorite color, or perhaps you want to be protected closely every single day. That's where red underwear becomes useful. Go into any department store from December through February, or stop at one of the many street stalls selling socks and underwear, and you'll see pair after pair of red. Decorate for good fortune Walk around older neighborhoods in any Chinese city (or the countryside) and see peoples' windows, walls, and doors adorned. Squares of red paper with white characters like 福 (fú, good fortune) are pasted up diagonally. Red paper cuttings get taped onto windows so that passersby can admire them, and red banners (two vertical, with an optional third hanging horizontally) showcase Spring Festival couplets in gold. Likewise, in older neighborhoods, it's not uncommon to see huge salt-cured fish hanging from power lines, drying next to the laundry. Symbolizing prosperity, fish is a must for Chinese New Year. Fish (鱼, yu) is a homonym of 余 (yu), meaning surplus or extra. In public buildings like offices, hotels, and malls, visitors will notice tasseled, red-paper lanterns strung up, and kumquat trees positioned for good luck and wealth. In Mandarin, a kumquat is called jinju (金橘), and jin (金) is the word for gold. Children help to change lanterns for the upcoming year in an old building of Yangjia village in Lin'an, China. Exchange envelopes Hongbao (红包), literally "red packet," is a key element of Chinese New Year. The cash inside is considered lucky money for the upcoming year. Hongbao is generally given by elders to the younger generations, especially children, but if you earn well, it's polite to share with your parents and grandparents this time of year. If you're married, you must give hongbao; if you're single, you usually receive it. If invited to someone's house for Chinese New Year and you know they have kids, it's nice to put some cash into a hongbao. If you're traveling in the north, go for a round number; in the south, use lucky numbers (anything with six or eight). Don't give a multiple of four; the number is a homonym for death. Cut hair early It's nice to go into a new year without split ends, but for many people celebrating Spring Festival, it's more than that. Before midnight on New Year's Day, hair salons are abuzz with revelers, wishing to cut away last year's bad luck and walk out with a clean, shiny slate. Then it's no washing for 24 hours, to avoid scrubbing away the good luck. Lion dancers perform during the opening ceremony of the Ditan Park temple fair on the eve of the Lunar New Year in Beijing. Photograph by Feature China, Barcroft Media via Getty Images Rent a date China's generation of only children is now in their late 30s or early 40s. Many are being nagged by two parents and four grandparents to settle down and have kids. Taobao—tech titan Alibaba's Amazon competitor, considered the world's biggest e-commerce website—offers a solution: You can rent a boyfriend or girlfriend. Prices vary, but expect to pay around $10 per hour, and more per day if your faux-beau has to travel a long distance to your hometown. (Related: Read about the young and lonely hearts of China's shrinking cities.) Join the fun Spring Festival is mostly celebrated at home, with family. Restaurants are closed, but leading up to the New Year, tuck into heaping plates of dumplings (饺子, jiao zi)—which sounds like 交子 (jiāo zi); the second symbol, 交 (jiao) means "exchange', 子(zi) is an abbreviation for 11 p.m to 1 a.m. So put together, you're exchanging the old year for the new with pillowy pockets of dough. With the ban on fireworks in cities, you won't be shooting off pop rockets (your ears will thank you). Short of inviting yourself to someone's house for dinner, the best bet for participating is at fairs inside temples in Beijing. The largest takes place at Ditan Park, where a canopy of red lanterns is strung overhead and performances are held daily: Tibetan folk dancing, a reenactment of the imperial family's traditional harvest prayers, and magic shows entertain all ages. Handicrafts are for sale, including snacks like niangao (the holiday glutinous rice square) and jiaoquan (a savory cruller best dipped in doujiang, or fresh soy milk). Writer Sophie Friedman is based in Shanghai. Follow her travels on Twitter @friedmansophie This article was originally published on February 4, 2019, and updated on January 24, 2025. Related: 25 Unique Traditions Around the World 1 of 25 Spain Each summer, thousands of people on horseback and foot flock to southern Spain, a celebration of Pentecost called the Pilgrimage of Rocío. Photograph by José Antonio Zamora, National Geographic YourShot Save $5 on a Nat Geo Digital Subscription Your interests, backed by facts and science—now only $19 SAVE NOW
