On the afternoon of November 23rd, to commemorate the 79th anniversary of Vietnam's Cultural Heritage Day (November 23, 1945 - November 23, 2024), a series of events were held in Hue City, Thua Thien Hue province: the inauguration of Thai Hoa Palace, the reception of the UNESCO Documentary Heritage Certificate, and the groundbreaking ceremony for the restoration of Can Chanh Palace, all aimed at honoring the timeless beauty of the nation's cultural heritage.
Thua Thien Hue province has received the UNESCO Documentary Heritage Certificate for "The relief castings on nine bronze cauldrons in the Hue Imperial Palace," inscribed on the Memory of the World list for the Asia- Pacific region.
Attending the ceremony were: Mr. Le Thanh Long, Member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam and Deputy Prime Minister; Mr. Jonathan Wallace Baker, Member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam and Secretary of the Thua Thien Hue Provincial Party Committee; Mr. Hoang Dao Cuong, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism ; and Mr. Nguyen Van Phuong, Chairman of the People's Committee of Thua Thien Hue Province. Vietnam's Cultural Heritage Day is not only an opportunity to recall glorious history but also a reminder of the responsibility to preserve and promote traditional values, enriching the national cultural identity. The event strongly affirms the role of heritage in connecting the past, present, and future, while spreading Vietnamese cultural values ​​to the world.
The delegates visited the Thai Hoa Palace.
This occasion not only honors the "Relief Castings on the Nine Bronze Peaks of the Hue Imperial Palace" with its UNESCO recognition, but also marks a significant turning point in the journey of restoring and preserving iconic architectural works such as the Thai Hoa Palace and the Can Chanh Palace. This is clear evidence of the commitment to protecting cultural heritage and conveying national pride to future generations.
Comrade Nguyen Van Phuong, Chairman of the People's Committee of Thua Thien Hue province, delivered a speech at the ceremony.
At the ceremony, the Chairman of the People's Committee of Thua Thien Hue province, Nguyen Van Phuong, announced the completion of the "Comprehensive Conservation and Restoration of Thai Hoa Palace" project, opening it to the public for tourism, and the groundbreaking ceremony for the "Restoration and Restoration of Can Chanh Palace" project. These are two large-scale projects of paramount importance within the Imperial Citadel and Forbidden City of Hue. To carry out the procedures for the restoration and restoration of Thai Hoa Palace and Can Chanh Palace, Thua Thien Hue province conducted thorough and systematic research and received immense assistance from international organizations, central ministries and agencies, and researchers and scientists in collecting documents, images, and legal basis for implementation.
The artistic program recreates the royal court ceremony through theatrical performance.
According to Mr. Nguyen Van Phuong, the conservation and promotion of Hue's cultural heritage has entered a stable and sustainable development phase. Hue is gradually being recognized by individuals and organizations both domestically and internationally, especially UNESCO, as a leading locality in the conservation and promotion of heritage values, with the potential to become a model center for technology transfer in conservation in the Asia-Pacific region. At the ceremony, on behalf of the leaders of Thua Thien Hue province, Mr. Nguyen Van Phuong respectfully thanked the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO); the guidance and support of the Government, central ministries and agencies, especially the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs , and the National Heritage Council; International organizations, the business community, philanthropists, and others have shown great interest and provided active support to Thua Thien Hue province in the conservation and promotion of heritage over the past time. We hope to continue receiving even more attention and support so that the conservation and promotion of heritage values ​​in Thua Thien Hue province will become increasingly effective, leading to Hue's rapid and sustainable development, befitting its status as a centrally-governed city built on the foundation of preserving and promoting the cultural heritage values ​​of the ancient capital and the cultural identity of Hue. "Thua Thien Hue province is committed to continuing to implement comprehensively and effectively the programs and action plans of the International and Vietnamese Government on the conservation and promotion of cultural heritage values; with specific solutions, both short-term and long-term, to create new vitality for the heritage; so that the heritage will forever endure and increasingly spread to serve the socio-economic development of the locality," affirmed the Chairman of the People's Committee of Thua Thien Hue province.
Mr. Jonathan Wallace Baker, Head of the UNESCO Office in Vietnam, delivered a speech at the ceremony.
At the ceremony, Mr. Jonathan Wallace Baker, Head of the UNESCO Office in Vietnam, highly appreciated the long-standing partnership with Thua Thien Hue – where the conservation of Hue's historical sites has been carried out with great dedication and has yielded remarkable results. Thirty years ago, UNESCO and the international community recognized the urgent need to cooperate with Vietnam to preserve and protect these precious heritage sites. “The challenges we face, both for UNESCO and Vietnam – an important UNESCO member state – are the conservation, restoration, and preservation of our world heritage sites. An equally important task is addressing the issues of the modern world, which require us to be more proactive, such as strengthening preparedness to respond to the impacts of climate change, making our world heritage sites more resilient to man-made or natural disasters, and optimizing the well-being of the people. To achieve these goals, active community participation is needed, including youth and women living in and around these heritage sites.” – Jonathan Wallace Baker shared. / Source: https://dangcongsan.vn/tu-tuong-van-hoa/co-do-hue-noi-di-san-thang-hoa-684145.html