Peace Day of Saigon Female Commandos

Saigon commando - Photo 1.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Bich Nga and Ms. Nguyen Thi Phuong when they were young - Photo: NVCC

At a very young age, they were female soldiers who accepted to leave their families to participate in revolutionary activities, working in the Saigon special forces. In peacetime, they returned to become grandmothers and mothers of their children and grandchildren and often participated in conversations with young people about a time of fiery war.

Those female soldiers were Ms. Nguyen Thi Bich Nga, acting head of the traditional resistance club of the Saigon - Gia Dinh Military Region's special forces armed forces, and Ms. Nguyen Thi Phuong - secretary and typist of commander Tran Hai Phung.

Looking forward to the 50th anniversary of national reunification, Ms. Nga and Ms. Phuong told Tuoi Tre about their remaining memories of the day of peace, full of nostalgia and emotion.

Hearing the news from the mainland, we hugged each other and cried.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Bich Nga was born in 1951, an orphan living in Duc Pho, Quang Ngai . Her adoptive father was also a revolutionary and witnessed many brutal repressions by the enemy, which made her always have the intention of joining the fighting force.

At the age of 12, she went to Saigon to work as a maid for a family on Tan Hoa Street. Three years later, she was brought to the base through her employer's connections. At that time, the staff sent Ms. Nga to a military course and assigned her to work at B8 Special Forces in Saigon from the end of 1966.

The most memorable mission in Ms. Nga's life was being attached to the reserve artillery unit that attacked the Independence Palace on Vuon Chuoi Street, District 3 with an 82mm mortar. In it, she carried out an artillery attack on the headquarters of the US Commander in Chief in Vietnam - General Westmoreland in Saigon on February 13, 1967, causing many losses to the enemy.

During the Tet Offensive of 1968, she was assigned to fire 60mm mortars at the Independence Palace, but unfortunately, while transporting the mortars, Ms. Nga was arrested in Binh Chanh, then suffered imprisonment and brutal torture for seven long years, from Binh Chanh, Gia Dinh, Thu Duc prisons to Chi Hoa prison, Tan Hiep prison and finally the "hell on earth" Con Dao.

Saigon commando - Photo 2.

Ms. Phuong re-performed her secret letter decoding work at the Saigon Special Forces Museum in early 2024 - Photo: HO LAM

"I remember when we were in the cell, there were three of us, including me, Ms. Vo Thi Thang and another Chinese woman. We only got one can of water a day for daily activities. Ms. Thang was the one who often poured water into a towel to wipe my face, then saved the water to wash my hair," Ms. Nga emotionally recalled.

The moment we heard the news of the country's reunification, Ms. Nga and her comrades were still imprisoned in Con Dao: "Inside, we heard the news that the Independence Palace had announced the surrender and the South was liberated from the radio, and we were overjoyed, but to be honest, we couldn't believe our ears until the whole island rose up. After being released from prison, we were so happy that we cried, we could only hug each other and cry."

Up to now, Ms. Bich Nga still has a desire to find out the origin of her biological parents' graves because during the war, she did not have the opportunity to know clearly.

Two children returned intact

If Ms. Bich Nga directly held weapons to fight, Ms. Nguyen Thi Phuong was the one who performed tasks that acted as the "blood vessels" for the army's activities: loading ammunition, writing secret letters about battle plans...

Ms. Phuong was born in 1952 in Cambodia in a family with a revolutionary tradition. Her maternal grandmother was Ms. Tran Thi Cong - a heroic Vietnamese mother whose three children sacrificed for the revolution, one of whom was a war invalid.

Responding to the call of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam, Ms. Phuong and her sister joined the army when they were only 15 years old. She was assigned to the Saigon - Gia Dinh Military Region to transport weapons and ammunition, preparing for the 1968 Mau Than campaign. After 1968, she was transferred to the office of the Saigon - Gia Dinh Military Region Command.

During the war, Ms. Phuong experienced many tasks: transporting weapons by double-bottomed boat, typing secretary, writing white papers (writing secret letters)...

Saigon commando - Photo 3.

The secret message decoding kit that Ms. Phuong used and kept until now - Photo: HO LAM

Ms. Phuong's memories of wartime are full of fierce fighting: "When transporting ammunition and the wounded from the border to the Long An battlefield, we often had to step on the bodies of our comrades. Some fell down because of the continuous bombs and bullets, while others continued to move forward because of their mission," she said.

On April 30, 1975, traveling with her comrades from Cu Chi to Saigon, witnessing many areas being liberated one after another until entering the inner city, Mrs. Phuong felt happy and somewhat relieved.

She thought to herself about her family: "I have completed my mission, kept my promise to my family to fight steadfastly and preserve my life."

Saigon commando - Photo 4.

Mrs. Phuong wears a parachute cloth that she carried with her during her time as an ammunition and medical transporter. She used this cloth to cover and shield herself when transporting weapons along roads and forests - Photo: HO LAM

A few months after the reunification, she decided to look for her family and was lucky to meet them. "At that time, my sister and I met our parents and siblings, both happy and sad. My parents introduced us to their relatives, because when my sister and I joined the war, we had to keep all information confidential, as if we were not in the family," Ms. Phuong emotionally recounted.

There are many valuable war relics that Ms. Phuong has kept until now such as parachute cloth, secret message decoding kit, typewriter... As for the typewriter, Ms. Phuong has sent it to the Saigon - Gia Dinh Special Forces Museum for storage and introduction to those who are interested and want to learn more.

Trust the youth to build peace

As people who fought and continued to witness the country change over the 50 years since reunification, most Saigon commandos like Ms. Nga and Ms. Phuong always have faith in the younger generation coming after them.

Ms. Nga said that recently she talked to many students at universities and was "glad that young people are very passionate about historical and traditional values."

"Many young people also carry out projects and drama programs about Saigon commandos, honoring historical values. With dynamism, creativity, and advantages in acquiring knowledge, I believe that my children and grandchildren will build a more peaceful and stable country in the new era," said Ms. Nga.