The event took place at the Higashihiroshima City General Welfare Center in Hiroshima Prefecture and was jointly organized by the Consulate General of Vietnam in Fukuoka, the Vietnamese Association in Central and Southern Japan, the Hiroshima-Vietnam Peace and Friendship Association and the Vietnamese Youth and Student Association in Hiroshima.

The program honors President Ho Chi Minh’s revolutionary life and career while continuing to promote the study and following of his thought, moral example and leadership style in national development and defense.

Activities included a photo exhibition, documentary screenings on President Ho Chi Minh’s diplomatic career and a seminar on his diplomatic thought and moral example. The event drew around 150 participants, including representatives of local authorities, universities, Japanese friendship organizations, overseas Vietnamese, students and young Vietnamese living, studying and working in Central and Southern Japan and the Kyushu region.

In her address at the event, Consul General Trinh Thi Mai Phuong said the commemoration was an opportunity for Vietnamese people at home and abroad to express deep respect and gratitude toward President Ho Chi Minh, describing him as a great leader of the Vietnamese nation, a national liberation hero and a world cultural figure.

She said President Ho Chi Minh’s life and career stand as a powerful symbol of national independence, aspirations for peace, compassion, international solidarity and lifelong dedication to the happiness of the people.

According to the Consul General, holding the program in Hiroshima, widely known as a symbol of peace, carried special significance and further underscored the enduring value of Ho Chi Minh’s thought on peace, dialogue, tolerance, friendship and cooperation among nations.

Amid continued global instability, those values continue to hold significance today in promoting mutual understanding, people-to-people exchanges and cooperation for peace and sustainable development, Phuong added.

The Vietnamese diplomat also praised the increasingly important role of the Vietnamese community in Japan, particularly in Kyushu and Central and Southern Japan, in integrating into local society, preserving Vietnamese cultural identity, promoting the image of Vietnam and contributing to the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between Vietnam and Japan.

She called on overseas Vietnamese, especially younger generations, to continue studying and following Ho Chi Minh’s thought, moral example and leadership style through practical actions, while serving as bridges of friendship and helping promote an image of Vietnam as responsible, humane, dynamic and trustworthy in the eyes of the international community.

At the ceremony, Masahara Koji, representing the Hiroshima-Vietnam Peace and Friendship Association, read a letter from association chairman Akagi Tatsuo, who expressed deep respect for President Ho Chi Minh and described him as the leader who guided Vietnam to independence and national liberation, as well as a symbol of peace, friendship and resilience in national development.

Akagi Tatsuo said the values of peace and friendship pursued by President Ho Chi Minh are also values that the Hiroshima-Vietnam Peace and Friendship Association continues to uphold and enhance through exchanges with Vietnam.

As part of the program, a panel discussion titled “Ho Chi Minh: Diplomatic Thought and Contemporary Values” brought together Vietnamese and Japanese speakers to share perspectives on Ho Chi Minh’s diplomatic thought and style, the importance of peace and friendship, and practical directions for cooperation between Vietnam and Japan in science and technology, artificial intelligence (AI), semiconductors, space technology, digital transformation, clean energy, high-quality human resource training and people-to-people exchanges.

Organizers said the program concluded in a solemn and meaningful atmosphere, helping strengthen people-to-people exchanges and further deepen solidarity and friendship between Vietnam and Japan.

Through the event, the image of President Ho Chi Minh as a symbol of independence, peace, compassion and international friendship continued to reach overseas Vietnamese in Japan, Japanese friends and the broader international community, thereby contributing to the cultural and humanistic foundations of Vietnam-Japan relations in a new stage of development.

President Ho Chi Minh’s values of peace, friendship honoured in Canada

A hybrid international seminar marking President Ho Chi Minh’s 136th birth anniversary (May 19) spread his values of peace, friendship, and international solidarity to Canadian audiences and international friends.