New vitality at the Chia Khom Base Area

This place is not only a historical destination, but also a red address for traditional educational activities, a place for union members and students.

Once a land that suffered from “bombs and bullets”, Hoa Luu village today has taken on a new look, asserting its strong vitality right on the former revolutionary base. The landscape and the lives of the people here are changing every day, carrying the breath of the new era.

Historical mark on heroic land

From the center of Can Tho city, go along National Highway 61 towards An Giang , to the headquarters of the People's Committee of Hoa Luu commune, then turn left about 8km to reach the relic site. Local people often call this place "Chia Khom relic", and the officially recognized name is the Can Tho Provincial Party Committee Base Cultural and Historical Relic (1965-1968).

During the anti-American period, Can Tho Provincial Party Committee had its offices in many places, but there were two locations that left the deepest impression: Ba Bai Provincial Party Committee Base (Phuong Binh Commune, Phung Hiep District (old), now Phuong Binh Commune, Can Tho City from 1972-1975) and Can Tho Provincial Party Committee Base in Thanh Thang Hamlet, Hoa Luu Commune (1965-1968).

In 1965, when the enemy launched large-scale sweeps, using helicopters and planes to bombard the liberated areas of Phung Hiep and Vi Thanh, the Regional Party Committee directed the Provincial Party Committee to choose a new location to lead the revolutionary movement. Thanks to the complex swampy terrain and convenient communication, Hoa Luu was chosen as a base. Although it was only about 15km from the US-puppet provincial capital of Chuong Thien, located on the waterway where enemy warships frequently passed, for three years (1965-1968), the base remained absolutely safe.

Farmers in Hoa Luu commune take care of their family's pineapple garden.

That was thanks to the "base in the hearts of the people", being protected and sheltered by the people, helping the Provincial Party Committee complete its historical mission, contributing to the victory of the General Offensive and Uprising in the Spring of Mau Than 1968.

Coming to the Chia Khom relic site, visitors not only hear historical stories but also feel the steadfast spirit of the local people. Many families have silently contributed to protecting the base throughout the years of resistance, including Mrs. Nguyen Thi Anh and her son Vo Van Sang (commonly known as Bay San).

At that time, Mr. Sang was only 12 years old, and every day he rowed a boat with his mother to Hoa Luu market to buy food and medicine to supply the cadres in the base located right on his family's land. Once, when the enemy searched him, he quickly hid a pack of cigarettes under Xa No canal, narrowly escaping.

Mr. Bay San recounted that, during the preparation for the Mau Than General Offensive and Uprising, he and his mother traveled to Vi Thanh to get western medicine, and had to sink the medicine into the river to avoid the enemy, waiting until it was safe to salvage it and transport it back. Thanks to that courage and intelligence, the base was held strong throughout the fierce period.

The Can Tho Provincial Party Committee base is therefore considered a "base in the hearts of the people", demonstrating the great solidarity of the army and people of the western region during the resistance war.

From the base to the fertile pineapple fields

Along the canals that used to be forests of leaves to protect soldiers, they have now become dikes and asphalt roads serving production and trade. Previously, the land here was contaminated with alum and salt, and people could only grow one pineapple crop with low productivity. Now, thanks to the government's investment in irrigation, dredging canals, building dikes and applying science and technology, people have increased crops, increased productivity and increased income.

Hoa Luu Commune is currently the largest Cau Duc pineapple growing area in Can Tho City, with vast green pineapple fields. This plant, which is considered difficult to grow on saline soil, has become an economic "savior" for farmers here.

Tourists from Ho Chi Minh City experience pineapple harvesting by farmers.

Mr. Vo Van Sang happily shared: "Now the village roads and bridges are spacious, transporting agricultural products is convenient, children can go to school easily, and people's lives are much more stable than before."

Ms. Nguyen Thi Lien in Thanh Thang hamlet has 8 hectares of land growing pineapples, earning more than 100 million VND per year. Thanks to growing pineapples, she was able to build a solid house worth 350 million VND. “Now that pineapples have a good price and can be sold, my family and many other households have changed their lives. Pineapple plants help our people get rich right on the land of the old resistance war,” Ms. Lien shared.

Traders purchase and transport pineapples for consumption.

During harvest season, visitors to Hoa Luu will encounter a bustling scene of labor: young men chopping fruit, women pruning tops, and gathering pineapples to load onto trucks. On land that was once saline, pineapples have become a “poverty-reducing tree”, helping many families send their children to school and become rich legitimately.

According to Mr. Vo Thanh Ken, a long-time pineapple grower in Hoa Luu: “Pineapple is easy to grow, low cost, requires little effort and has a stable income. Although prices are sometimes unstable, people still stick with it because it is the traditional profession of their ancestors.”

Currently, the entire Hoa Luu commune has more than 2,100 hectares of pineapple cultivation, the products are available in all provinces, even exported to many countries. The Cau Duc pineapple area has also been chosen by the culture and tourism sector to develop into a community tourism area, attracting visitors to experience garden life and learn about revolutionary traditions.

In 2000, the government invested in renovating the Can Tho Provincial Party Committee Base Relic Site, with an area of nearly 3,000 square meters including a traditional house, a memorial stele, a library and a yard for organizing activities. This is not only a historical destination, but also a red address for traditional education activities, where union members, students and pupils learn about the years of steadfast fighting of their fathers and brothers.

Many students heard heroic historical stories at the Chia Khom Relic Site.

Mr. Vo Tu Phuong, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Hoa Luu Commune, said: "We identify this as an important address to organize activities to return to the source, helping cadres, party members and people better understand the traditional revolutionary values, thereby making efforts to study, work, and contribute to the development of their homeland."

Coming to the Chia Khom Base today, visitors not only get to hear heroic historical stories, but also admire the green pineapple fields, enjoy pineapple specialties, and learn about the lives of the people in the garden.

The new vitality in the old base area is a testament to the change of Can Tho homeland, where the past and present blend together, creating a vivid symbol of the resilient spirit, creativity and aspiration to rise of the people of the Mekong Delta in general and Hoa Luu commune in particular.

VAN UT

Source: https://nhandan.vn/suc-song-moi-o-khu-can-cu-chia-khom-post917146.html