Sacred responsibility of bringing fallen soldiers home

PANO - Once an extremely fierce battlefield where thousands of the country’s finest sons laid down their lives for the country’s independence and freedom, Dong Nai City is now mobilizing the entire political system, armed forces and localities with the highest determination to effectively carry out the 500-Day Campaign to step up the search for, recovery, and identification of fallen soldiers’ remains (the 500-day campaign).

Deputy PM orders completion of database of fallen soldiers by year-end

Ho Chi Minh City plans August burial for fallen soldiers' recovered remains

Over 1,560 fallen soldiers' remains recovered in 500-day campaign

Bringing fallen soldiers back to hometown

In mid-August, a memorial and burial ceremony for the remains of 29 fallen soldiers of the Viet Nam People’s Army who sacrificed their lives during the war took place at Binh Phuoc Martyrs’ Cemetery (Dong Tam Commune, Dong Nai City). Of the 29 sets of remains, 19 biological samples were eligible for DNA testing. From these samples, the authorities hope to identify the martyrs’ relatives, helping ease, even if only partly, the loss and grief suffered by their families.

The memorial and burial ceremony for the remains of 29 fallen soldiers at Binh Phuoc Martyrs’ Cemetery

The 29 sets of remains are also the result of an arduous journey of officers and soldiers of Teams K72 and K76, who are directly tasked with searching for and bringing fallen soldiers home. From July to August 2026, Teams K72 and K76 under the Dong Nai City Military Command found and collected 26 sets of remains in Minh Duc commune, two sets in Loc Ninh ward and one set in Loc Tan Commune. In addition, the relevant forces found many artifacts, including AK rifles, canteens, pairs of rubber sandals, hammocks; relatively well-preserved portrait, family and group photographs; pens engraved with the names “Tien Quy,” “Van Chin” and “Hien”; watches, combs and other items. These are valuable sources of information for research, comparison and verification to identify the remains in the coming period.

According to Colonel Vu Van Tho, Head of Team K72, every set of remains and every artifact of a fallen soldier they have found is not merely a number, but also a responsibility to bring the fallen home.

Leadership of Military Region 7 inspects the search for and recovery of martyrs’ remains in Minh Duc Commune.

As planned, at the end of August, Col. Tho and his comrades will travel to Cambodia to continue searching for and recovering the remains of Vietnamese soldiers and advisors who died there. Together with Team K76, Team K72 will continue the search for fallen soldiers until there is no more information to pursue.

Keeping up humanitarian and grateful journey

Over the past years, the Party Committee and authorities of Dong Nai City have consistently identified the search and collection of martyrs’ remains, as well as the care and maintenance of memorial works, as a key political task and a sacred responsibility of today’s generation toward those who sacrificed their lives. The work has become a broad-based effort, spreading responsibility throughout society. It is no longer the task of a single sector or field, but a mission involving the whole political system and people.

Leaders and people in Dong Nai city pay tribute to fallen soldiers at the memorial and burial ceremony.

The spirit of the 500-day campaign in the city has extended beyond military units to villages and hamlets. Residents in areas where Teams K72 and K76 carry out their missions have become effective “collaborators,” providing fragments of information and memories of battles in the past. Close coordination among authorities at all levels, agencies and sectors, together with enthusiastic support from local people, has generated combined strength, enabling the search and recovery of martyrs’ remains to achieve high efficiency and progress ahead of schedule.

At the ceremony

Together with the search and collection of martyrs’ remains, collecting DNA samples for identification has also been actively carried out by the relevant forces and local authorities. The Dong Nai City Steering Committee for the Search, Collection and Identification of Martyrs’ Remains has established inter-agency working groups, sample collection teams and a team responsible for digitizing information on the remains; coordinated with relevant departments and agencies to survey and review all graves, standardize data, assign identification codes and synchronize information on the management system. All samples of the remains have been managed and preserved, with documentation completed and data updated and digitized in accordance with regulations, ensuring safety.

Translated by Quynh Oanh