To live up to the expectations of those who have passed away.

Among the thousands of war cemeteries across the country, there are still nameless graves. Behind each anonymous tombstone is a family patiently waiting, a pain that has lasted for generations. The "500-Day Campaign" is entering its acceleration phase – this is the time when the entire political system is involved with the highest spirit and responsibility.

According to statistics from the National Steering Committee for the Search, Collection, and Identification of Martyrs' Remains, approximately 175,000 remains of martyrs remain undiscovered and uncollected nationwide; more than 300,000 graves in martyrs' cemeteries lack information and require identification. In our province alone, there are currently 3,374 unidentified martyrs' graves, lying silently in 32 martyrs' cemeteries and 3 memorials throughout the province. Behind each unmarked tombstone are wives who do not know where their husbands rest, and children who grew up without knowing their fathers. This pain lingers through the years.

Therefore, the "500-Day Campaign to Intensify the Search, Collection, and Identification of Martyrs' Remains," officially launched by the Party and State on April 2, 2026, is not just an ordinary movement. It represents a major political commitment, a national moral obligation, and a responsibility of the living towards the deceased. In a meeting with the National Steering Committee's working group on the search, collection, and identification of martyrs' remains on the morning of May 8th, the Secretary of the Central Committee of the Party and Deputy Prime Minister Pham Thi Thanh Tra requested that by July 27, 2026, the entire country strive to search for and collect at least 500 martyrs' remains. Towards the 80th anniversary of the Day of War Invalids and Martyrs (July 27, 2027), the country aims to search for and collect approximately 7,000 martyrs' remains and complete the collection of biological samples from all martyrs' remains lacking information in martyrs' cemeteries nationwide. This isn't a promise, but a firm target, with clearly defined responsibilities, tasks, and deadlines.

The long-standing bottlenecks in the financial mechanisms for DNA testing have been definitively resolved by the Government through Resolution No. 26/2026/NQ-CP issued on May 6, 2026, with specific and clear regulations on expenditure levels. The procedures for sample collection, transportation, preservation, and testing have been standardized. The software for managing information on remains of fallen soldiers has been perfected and delivered directly to localities.

With that spirit in mind, Thanh Hoa province promptly issued a plan to implement the "500-Day Campaign" throughout the province, and simultaneously developed an action program for the Provincial Steering Committee on searching for, collecting, and identifying the remains of martyrs for the period 2026-2030. The province's objectives are clearly defined: to search for and collect approximately 45 remains of martyrs both domestically and internationally; and to complete the collection of biological samples from nearly 3,000 martyrs' graves lacking information in 100% of martyrs' cemeteries in the province before July 2027, divided into two phases with specific timelines and targets for each period. Responsibilities are assigned to each department, agency, and unit – from the Provincial Military Command, the Department of Internal Affairs, the Provincial Police, the Veterans Association, to the Provincial Youth Union and the People's Committees of communes and wards.

May and June are the golden months for collecting samples at war cemeteries before the rainy season arrives. Every day of delay narrows the opportunity. Historical witnesses are getting older, memories are fading, and the terrain is changing. The work of searching for, collecting, and identifying the remains of fallen soldiers is considered more difficult than finding a needle in a haystack, but precisely because it is difficult, it requires innovative thinking, creativity in methods, and the concentration of resources and determination on the crucial stages.

The 500-day campaign is entering its acceleration phase, requiring even stronger action to live up to the expectations of those who have fallen.

Thanh Hoa

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/de-khong-phu-long-nbsp-nhung-nguoi-da-nam-xuong-288049.htm