National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyễn Thi Kim Ngân meets with ex-soldiers and former young volunteers from the southern region in the Mekong Delta province of Bến Tre. VNA/VNS Photo Trọng Đức

HÀ NỘI — National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyễn Thi Kim Ngân has urged the Party Committee, administration and people of Bến Tre to uphold their glorious traditions and solidarity to develop into a more prosperous and beautiful province.

She made the statement at a meeting held in the southern province on Thursday night to mark the 60th anniversary of the Đồng Khởi (General Uprising) of Bến Tre and the 100th birthday of heroine of the People’s Armed Forces Nguyễn Thị Định (March 15).

Speaking at the meeting, Ngân said that 60 years ago, Ben Tre was the birthplace of the “Long-Haired Army”, an all-female armed force during the resistance war against the US, with Nguyễn Thị Định as its leading lady. In 1974, Nguyễn Thị Định was promoted to the rank of Major General to become the first female general in the Việt Nam People’s Army.

The “Long-Haired Army” played an important role in the south’s revolution and national reunification in 1975, she said.

The victory of Đồng Khởi, launched on January 17, 1960, in the province and other places, led to the establishment of the National Front for the Liberation of South Việt Nam on December 20, 1960.

The province had many important achievements in socio-economic development since then, but more needed to be done to put it on a par with the rest of the region and the whole country, she said.

“The Party Committee and the people of Bến Tre Province should promote the spirit of Đồng Khởi and utilise all resources to develop rapidly and sustainably to match other provinces in the Mekong Delta region by 2025 and the whole country by 2030,” Ngân said.

On Friday morning, NA chairwoman Ngân led a delegation of officials to offer flowers and incense to war martyrs who sacrificed their lives for national liberation at Ben Tre Province Martyrs’ Cemetery. — VNS