The wellspring of gratitude flows on forever.

The country is at peace and unified, but the journey of searching for, gathering, and burying the remains of fallen soldiers has not stopped. It is a sacred act, a source of gratitude that flows forever in the hearts of the Vietnamese people. In Dak Lak, that journey continues to be written with utmost reverence.

During the 2024-2025 dry season, continuing their sacred mission, the soldiers of Team K51 (Provincial Military Command) once again set out on a mission in Cambodia. Although accustomed to the sun, wind, and jungle mist, each trip presented a new challenge. Undeterred by difficulties and hardships, they upheld a high sense of responsibility, verifying over 405 pieces of information – a huge number containing countless vague clues from witnesses.

Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Van Tu, Team Leader of Team K51, shared that the team's main source of information is still primarily gathered from local people in villages and hamlets who specialize in going into the forest to find work, laboring for foreign companies, or cultivating fields. The information they currently obtain mainly comes from young people who only hear stories, so guiding them to search takes a lot of time. Even when they have directly discovered burial sites of fallen soldiers, returning to search in the vast, wild mountains and forests is a long journey.

Major General Hua Van Tuong, Deputy Commander of Military Region 5, and Huynh Thi Chien Hoa, Standing Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Chairwoman of the Provincial People's Council, along with other delegates, bid farewell to the fallen soldiers as they were laid to rest.

For example, during this dry season, Team K51 received information from residents of Betchanda district that two months earlier, while in the forest, they had seen the grave of a Vietnamese soldier buried in the Nam Nia mountain range. Enthusiastically and proactively, they led Team K51 on their way, but once in the middle of the vast forest, the residents could only imagine the burial site was about 200-300 meters from the location they were searching for. It took a whole week of trekking through the forest and wading through streams for the officers and soldiers of Team K51 to discover the grave surrounded by stacked stones. Upon excavation, they found a decayed bundle of canvas along with many fragments of bones and other relics of the fallen soldier.

Over the past 25 years, 769 remains of Vietnamese volunteer soldiers and experts who died in wars across various periods in Mondulkiri province, Cambodia, have been collected and reburied at the Dak Lak Provincial Martyrs' Cemetery.

Throughout the 2024-2025 dry season, officers and soldiers remained united, undeterred by difficulties and hardships, upholding a high sense of responsibility, surveying and excavating over 107 concentrated sites and many smaller locations, removing hundreds of cubic meters of soil and rock. Through this process, they recovered 23 sets of remains of fallen soldiers. The remains mainly consisted of military artifacts such as tanks, hammocks, penicillin vials, rubber sandals, and buttons. The recovered remains were brought to a central location by Team K51 for safekeeping and daily worship.

On the afternoon of May 28th, the Provincial Party Committee, the Provincial People's Council, the Provincial People's Committee, and the Provincial Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front solemnly organized a memorial and burial ceremony for 23 Vietnamese volunteer soldiers and experts who sacrificed their lives during various periods of war in the Cambodian battlefield, at the Provincial Martyrs' Cemetery. Major General Hua Van Tuong, Deputy Commander of Military Region 5; Standing Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Chairwoman of the Provincial People's Council Huynh Thi Chien Hoa; Ms. Win Si Thuon, Deputy Governor and Head of the Special Task Force of Mondulkiri Province (Cambodia); Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Council Tran Phu Hung; Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Truong Cong Thai, along with local Party and government leaders and a large number of people, were present to bid farewell to the fallen heroes as they were laid to rest.

Participating for the first time in a memorial and burial ceremony for fallen soldiers, Sergeant Duong Quang Trung (Battalion 303, Regiment 584) and his comrades practiced each movement meticulously. Everything was performed with the utmost care and solemnity, showing absolute respect for those who have fallen. Sergeant Duong Quang Trung expressed: “The ceremony of sending the fallen soldiers to their final resting place reminds us to always remember the great things that our forefathers went through to protect and preserve peace, happiness, and harmony .”

A solemn farewell ceremony is held to send the heroic martyrs to their final resting place.

Attending the memorial service, Nguyen Tran Trung (a member of the Youth Union of the Department of Internal Affairs) shared: "When we saw the remaining relics of the martyrs with our own eyes, we felt to some extent the brutality of war, the passage of time, the noble sacrifice of the heroic martyrs, and we also felt more deeply our patriotism and national pride."

In his eulogy for the fallen heroes, Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Truong Cong Thai proudly affirmed: Fulfilling the sacred duty of the Fatherland, millions of young people from all over the country bid farewell to their dearest loved ones to go to war to defend the Fatherland and carry out noble international duties in Cambodia. The blood of these heroic martyrs was shed on the battlefield in Cambodia, so that the brotherly nation of Cambodia could have peace, and so that the friendship between the two nations could last forever. Our Fatherland and people will forever remember the immense contributions of these martyrs.

Source: https://baodaklak.vn/chinh-polit/202505/mach-nguon-tri-an-chay-mai-7da152a/