At the end of 2024, the People's Committee of Thua Thien Hue province, now Hue city, issued Decision No. 3323 approving the investment project "Preservation, restoration and embellishment of the Hue Citadel system (phase 2)" with a total cost of more than 367 billion VND, from the central budget, local budget and other legally mobilized sources.
Dismantling these structures is necessary.
In addition to relocating residents from Area I of 16 relics outside the Hue Citadel, the project will also dismantle 31 combat structures in the Hue Citadel area, including 26 bunkers, 2 shelters, 2 watchtowers and 1 air defense position along with 9 combat structures in the Tran Hai Thanh relic area (Thuan An ward) and Van Mieu - Vo Mieu (Kim Long ward). Many people and researchers are interested in dismantling the structures inside the Hue Citadel, especially the plan to dismantle the bunkers in the Upper Citadel area.
According to the representative of the Hue Monuments Conservation Center, when building the relic profile for the Hue Monuments Complex, more specifically the Hue Citadel relic, there was no information and content about these bunkers. Because these structures were mainly built during the anti-American war (from 1957 to before 1975), they are not related to the Hue Monuments Complex.
The dismantling of these structures is necessary to preserve, protect and restore the original landscape space of Hue Citadel; at the same time, improve the landscape towards promoting the value of the relics, creating tourism products in Hue heritage site.
Mr. Phan Van Tuan, Deputy Director of the Hue Monuments Conservation Center, informed: In 2024 and 2025, Military Region 4 and the City Military Command have conducted many field surveys to develop a plan to dismantle bunkers in the Hue Citadel area. Currently, the procedures are being submitted to Military Region 4 and the Ministry of National Defense for approval because these works are national defense works, have their own characteristics, so not everyone can do it.
“The bunkers are managed by the military, so everything like dismantling, renovating or whatever is under their authority. The center also participated in the survey, reporting and asking for consensus. However, there is no specific information on how to do it, we have to wait for their approval,” Mr. Phan Van Tuan informed.
Previously, Mang Ca station was an important military project through historical periods, most recently it was the headquarters of the Military Command of Thua Thien Hue province, now Hue city. When Hue city implemented the project "Relocation of residents, site clearance of area 1 of Hue citadel relic", the Ministry of National Defense also decided to approve the investment, relocation of units in Mang Ca area and hand over the land to local management to restore and embellish area I of Hue citadel relic.
Many people and experts believe that moving military agencies out of Hue Citadel is appropriate, returning space to the relics for preservation and development. This time, dismantling combat and defense structures such as bunkers and shelters in the Hue Citadel area is also appropriate and necessary.
Need to be carefully calculated
Although there is consensus on dismantling bunkers and underground tunnels in the Hue Citadel area to restore space and landscape to the relics, many opinions from experts and researchers also expressed concerns. The bunkers and underground tunnels were built very solidly; the concrete walls are thick and deep, while the structure of the citadel walls and relics have been around for a long time and do not have a long lifespan.
Most of the bunkers are located in the citadel, many of which are located close to the citadel walls and architectural relics. If the demolition plan is not carefully calculated by the relevant parties to ensure absolute safety for the relics, it will have very serious consequences. Some opinions also suggest that the demolition plan needs to be independently assessed, and the relevant ministries and branches should consider and approve it.
Researcher Nguyen Xuan Hoa, former Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Hue City, said that the bunkers and shelters in the Hue Citadel area were structures built during the war against the US and are no longer suitable for the techniques and functions of defense structures.
The Ministry of Defense agreed with Hue that dismantling these structures was appropriate and should have been done sooner. Of course, when dismantling, the technical aspects of the construction must be considered, because if not done well, it will easily affect the relics. "I believe that with today's modern technology, there is nothing complicated about dismantling these bunkers," said Mr. Nguyen Xuan Hoa.
According to Mr. Nguyen Xuan Hoa, during the dismantling process, war artifacts will certainly be revealed, and even under the foundations of these bunkers, there may be traces related to the Hue Citadel. Therefore, when carrying out this work, there needs to be coordination between the military, the Museum of History, and the Hue Monuments Conservation Center so that when discovered, they can be handled promptly.
Researcher Nguyen Xuan Hoa also suggested that among these 31 defense projects, it is possible to consider selecting a few projects in suitable locations that do not affect the historical space and general landscape of the relic to preserve. Consider it as preserving a vestige of the war in this area.
A representative of the Hue Monuments Conservation Center said that the demolition plan minimizes the impact on the monument and of course will not affect the overall structure of the Hue Citadel wall system. However, the unit will monitor the level of impact at each location with bunkers after demolition to restore and return the site to the monument.
Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/van-hoa/can-thiet-nhung-phai-het-suc-than-trong-158161.html
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