Vice State President Nguyen Thi Doan presented the noble reward to the Most Venerable, in recognition of his great contributions to the religion, the nation and the cause of national great unity, at a ceremony in Hanoi on October 23. 

Most Venerable Thich Thanh Tu (real name Tran Van Long) was born in 1927 in a poor farmer family in Song Mai commune, Kim Dong district, the Red river province of Hung Yen. 

While congratulating the Most Venerable, Vice President and Secretary General of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Vu Trong Kim said, with his capacity and prestige, Tu, together with other VBS leaders, has actively mobilised Buddhist monks, nuns and followers nationwide to practice their religious belief in line with the Party’s policies and the State’s law, while enthusiastically participating in patriotic emulation movements and social activities for the benefit of national great unity. 

Showing his gratitude to the Party and State, Most Venerable Thich Thanh Tu said that the noble reward first belongs to all Buddhist monks, nuns and followers nationwide. 

The Most Venerable also expressed his wish that Buddhist monks, nuns and followers would make more contributions to the country’s common development cause.