Preserving the spirit of relics, spreading the heroic revolutionary fire

1. During the 1968 Tet Mau Than general offensive and uprising, many cadres and soldiers of our units heroically sacrificed their lives. Afterwards, the enemy gathered about 200 bodies of our soldiers and buried them in many holes to form a common grave in Hoi Phu ward. To commemorate and contribute to educating revolutionary historical traditions, in 1993, the Party Committee, government and people of all ethnic groups in Pleiku City established a common grave to commemorate martyrs here. In 2004, the common grave was expanded to become the Hoi Phu Martyrs Memorial Temple. In 2007, the Memorial Temple was recognized as a provincial historical relic.

Mr. Vo Pham Xuan Nam is explaining the list of martyrs engraved at the Hoi Phu Martyrs Memorial Temple. Photo: Dong Lai

Since the age of 14, Vo Pham Xuan Nam (born in 1992, group 3, Hoi Phu ward) has followed his father, Vo Phuoc Sanh (born in 1957), to Hoi Phu Martyrs Memorial Temple to help clean, take care of trees, burn incense, open the door to welcome guests, and look after the temple...

Nam’s maternal grandfather was martyr Pham Cuong (died in 1961). His father was also a witness to the Tet Mau Than battle in 1968 in Pleiku. From that “source”, his family always respects the revolutionary tradition and is willing to contribute to honoring the martyrs. His family has donated land twice (in 1993 and 2004) with a total area of 600 m² to build the tomb and then the Hoi Phu Martyrs Memorial Temple.

“Land is a big asset, but when the local government had a policy, my father did not hesitate to donate part of the family’s land to contribute to this very meaningful cause. Moreover, my grandfather was also a martyr, so the family sees this as a way to show gratitude and bond with the fallen martyrs,” Nam shared.

After nearly 20 years of being familiar with this place, in 2024, Mr. Nam officially took over all the work his father had given him at the Memorial Temple. “The job requires me to work day and night, so I have little time for my family. But the pride and responsibility towards my ancestors makes me never think of giving up,” Mr. Nam confided.

2. Ms. Dinh Thi Lan, an official of the Dak Doa Commune Culture, Sports and Tourism Center (former official of the Dak Doa District Culture, Sports and Tourism Center) spent many years contributing to the construction of the Wuu Hero Memorial Site (Dak Somei Commune, formerly Dak Doa District).

Ms. Dinh Thi Lan introduces the life and indomitable fighting spirit of Hero Wuu to the youth union members at the Memorial Area. Photo: NVCC

Heroic martyr of the Bana ethnic group Bok Wuu (born 1905) had many contributions in the resistance war against the French. He died in 1952. In 1956, he was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces.

To commemorate and preserve the historical marks associated with him, Ms. Lan and her colleagues set out to research and compile a profile of Hero Wuu to request recognition as a historical relic for the memorial site in his hometown.

“At that time, there was very little information about Hero Wuu, and much information could only be found through the stories of the elderly. From 2015 to 2018, we traveled extensively throughout the village, met witnesses, and searched for each photo and each item. There were times when we seemed stuck, but in the end we were still able to collect more than 300 artifacts and 51 folk wooden statues to display at the memorial site,” Lan recalled.

In 2018, the Wuu Hero Memorial Site was recognized as a provincial historical site. After being invested in construction and renovation, the new Memorial Site was officially completed and opened to visitors in 2020.

Since then, although her house is more than 26 km from the Memorial Site, the road is bumpy, and slippery in the rainy season, Ms. Lan has never been afraid of difficulties, traveling a long distance to prepare, taking care of every step of reception and explanation. With groups of students and young people, she often spends more time, choosing a close and vivid way of telling stories so that the children can easily feel them.

Ms. Lan shared: “The time I met a veteran who fought alongside Hero Wuu, I was deeply moved. His simple story gave me more motivation to stay with the Memorial Site. Because a relic only truly lives when there are people preserving and telling its story. I want every young person who comes here to feel proud, grateful and responsible for the country.”

Currently, Ms. Lan is no longer directly responsible for managing the Wuu Hero Memorial Site, but she still considers this place a part of her flesh and blood. “Whenever the locality needs me, I am always ready to come back to support, from providing guidance and explanations, taking care of artifacts to organizing propaganda activities,” Ms. Lan affirmed.

3. Pleiku prison was built by the French colonialists in 1925 , and later continued to be used by the American imperialists as a place to detain and torture thousands of revolutionary soldiers and patriots... This place was ranked as a national historical site since December 1994.

Mr. Rmah Kawen (right) introduces visitors to historical documents and artifacts at Pleiku Prison. Photo: Dong Lai

Mr. Rmah Kawen (born in 1994, Ia Tul commune) started working at the Pleiku City Culture, Information and Tourism Center in 2017. Since 2018, he has been assigned to work at night at Pleiku Prison. In mid-July 2025, he officially took on the task of looking after and guiding visitors at the relic.

“In the early days, I encountered many difficulties such as: not having a solid grasp of historical knowledge and being afraid of being alone in a quiet space. Thanks to the enthusiastic guidance of my colleagues, I read documents on my own, listened to stories from knowledgeable people, and gradually the fear disappeared, replaced by a passion for telling history to everyone,” Mr. Kawen recalled.

Kawen also has the advantage of having studied vocal music and being a singer performing on stage, so he communicates well and conveys emotions into each narration, recreating the resilient fighting atmosphere of the revolutionary soldiers who were imprisoned and tortured here.

Visiting Pleiku Prison, tourist Nguyen Van Nhanh ( Ho Chi Minh City) was moved: “I have read many documents about this place, but only when listening to the live explanation did I fully understand the sacrifice and resilience of our ancestors. Thanks to the tour guide, we understood more deeply and appreciated the value of the relic.”

Source: https://baogialai.com.vn/giu-hon-di-tich-truyen-lua-cach-mang-hao-hung-post565151.html