HÀ NỘI — A photo exhibition featuring the past and present Côn Đảo Islands opened on June 11 in Long Hồ District in southern Vĩnh Long Province.

Some 500 students and delegates attended the inauguration.

The exhibition is co-organised by Côn Đảo Museum and Vĩnh Long Province to introduce the Côn Đảo Islands and help local people better understand the islands.

Themed Côn Đảo -- Then and Now, the exhibition displays some 300 photographs that the museum has presented to the province.

Côn Đảo comprises 16 islands and is some 180km from the southern province of Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu.

The exhibition offers visitors a chance to learn more about the islands during different periods.

A selection of photographs, under the theme "Côn Đảo Prison -- From 1862 to 1975", focuses on the island’s prison that was described as “Hell on Earth”. Built in 1861 by French colonists, the prison was used to hold political prisoners and others considered especially dangerous by the colonial government. During the American War, the prison was turned over to the Sài Gòn regime, which continued to use it for the same purpose.

Another selection of photographs, themed Côn Đảo Islands during the Building and Development Process will offer visitors a panoramic view of the islands, which have emerged as a popular tourist destination with beautiful beaches. Đất Thắm Beach on the island has been listed among the top 10 eco-friendly beaches in Southeast Asia by the United Kingdom’s The Independent newspaper in March, 2018.

Two former inmates of Côn Đảo prison, Trịnh Văn Lâu and Nguyễn Thị Hà, attended the exhibition’s opening ceremony to talk about their time in the prison.

The exhibition also celebrates the 106th birthday of Phạm Hùng, late Chairman of the Council of Ministers. He was born in Vĩnh Long Province and was one of the high-ranking Vietnamese leaders imprisoned in Côn Đảo from 1939 to 1945. — VNS