Present at the Opening Ceremony, on the Vietnam side, were Mr. Vu Xuan Hong, President of the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organizations; Mr. Nguyen Lam, Vice Chairman of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front; Mr. Tran Dac Loi, Vice Chairman of the CPV Central Committee’s Commission for External Relations; Mr. Nguyen Dy Nien, former Minister of Foreign Affairs; Mr. Ha Minh Hue, Vice Chairman of the Vietnam – India Friendship Association (VIFA); representatives of ministries, governmental agencies, and businesses having cooperative ties with India.
The Ceremony also saw the presence of Mrs. Preeti Saran, Ambassador Extraodinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of India to Vietnam; Mr. Devi Prasad Tripathi, Senator, General Secretary of the Nationalist Congress Party, Vice President of the All India Peace and Solidarity Organization (AIPSO), Head of the Indian delegation; Mr. Pallab Sengupta, member of the Politburo of the Communist Party of India, General Secretary of AIPSO, Deputy Head of the Indian delegation; diplomats and staff from Indian Embassy and 28 members of the Indian delegation.
At the Ceremony, Mr. Ha Minh Hue, VIFA Vice Chairman and Mr. Devi Prasad Tripathi, AIPSO Vice President together looked back upon the heroic victories of the two nations and good memories of President Ho Chi Minh and General Vo Nguyen Giap.
Mr. Tripathi said: “India and Vietnam are the two friendliest nations, having traditional relations for nearly two millennia. President Ho Chi Minh is always remembered as one of the greatest leaders of the toiling masses all over the world. Vietnam is a country which inspires and motivates the Indians to fight for independence, sovereignty, equality and social justice.
“The delegation consists of representatives from the State of Tamilnadu and Puducherry region, who are working in the fields of politics, culture, education, literature…, and representing all social classes. Our aim is to further strengthen and expand people-to-people relations between our two countries. Aware of the importance of people-to-people relations, the Indian government has decided to open a Cultural Centre in Hanoi, which will popularize Indian culture to Vietnamese people; and hoped that the Vietnamese Government will also open a Cultural and Trade Centre in India”, he added.
In response, Mr. Ha Minh Hue stressed: “The traditional friendship and comprehensive cooperation relations are the common treasure of two nations. It is the order of the heart and the noble responsibility of all Vietnamese and Indians to cherish, preserve and enrich this precious asset”.
“The 6th Vietnam – India People’s Friendship Festival is one of important activities to strengthen people-to-people relations between the two countries. In the framework of the Festival, the delegates of the two countries will jointly review the traditional solidarity relations and mutual support between Vietnam and India, discuss and make recommendations for further enhancement of the people-to-people relations in general and cooperation between people’s organizations of the two countries in particular, contributing to the realization of agreements concluded by leaders of the two countries”, he said.
At the end of the Ceremony, the Indian delegation and VIFA announced the “Message of the 6th Vietnam – India People’s Friendship Festival”
| MESSAGE OF THE 6TH VIETNAM – INDIA PEOPLE’S FESTIVAL Today, October 21st, 2013, delegates representing people of Vietnam and India assemble in Hanoi – the Capital of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to attend the 6th Vietnam – India People’s Festival, which is held in the context that Vietnam and India have just successfully concluded “The Vietnam – India Friendship Year 2012” The delegates of both countries are acutely aware that Vietnam and India have entertained long-lasting traditional bonds of friendship and cooperation which were jointly cultivated by the two great leaders, President Ho Chi Minh and Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, and further developed by the succeeding generations of the two countries’ leaders. Our two countries have strongly supported and assisted each other during our respective past struggles for national independence as well as the present national construction and development. It is assured that the relationship of friendship and cooperation is our two countries’ common treasure. It is the order of the heart and noble responsibility of all Vietnamese and Indian people to value preserve and enrich this precious asset. We are delighted to see that recently, the relationship of friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and India, especially since the establishment of the strategic partnership in July 2007, have witnessed further developments in various fields and have gained significant achievements. Solidarity and friendship organizations of the two countries are particularly proud of their contribution to the development of the relations between Vietnam and India. People-to-people exchange has also seen new breakthrough as the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organizations, the Vietnam – India Friendship Association in coordination with the All India Peace and Solidarity Organization held the 1st Vietnam – India People’s Friendship Festival in India in 2007 and so far five Festivals have been held in rotation. With the good experience and success of the previous festivals, we could entirely be confident that the 6th Vietnam – India People’s Friendship Festival will be of great success, laying a solid foundation of the masses in order to deservedly contribute to the further consolidation and development of the friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and India in the future. Long live Vietnam – Indian friendship and comprehensive cooperation. Hanoi, October 21, 2013 |
Duc Minh AP
