The gathering provided an opportunity for overseas Vietnamese to meet, exchange experiences and share their lives and work, creating a distinctly Vietnamese cultural space that helped ease homesickness as spring approaches.

The festive mood was brought to life through lion dance performances and cultural shows choreographed and performed by community members themselves. In addition to entertainment activities, the organisers also held quizzes on traditional Tet customs, aiming to preserve and pass on cultural values to younger generations.

Nguyen Nhu Hao, head of the Johor Vietnamese Community Liaison Board, said the event offered a moment for the community to look back on the year gone by and share the joy of reunion with friends, colleagues and fellow compatriots. He noted that over the past year, the liaison board had carried out a range of practical activities, actively contributing to community affairs in a spirit of openness and solidarity.

Representing the Vietnamese Embassy in Malaysia, Nguyen Ba Tan, First Secretary in charge of community affairs, praised the Vietnamese community in Johor for maintaining unity and organising initiatives to support compatriots in the locality. He expressed the hope that the community would continue to strengthen internal bonds and organise more activities that bring overseas Vietnamese in Johor closer together.

The sense of unity was also reflected in activities directed toward the homeland. Guided by the spirit of mutual support, the community has assisted members facing hardship or illness and responded to calls to support people in Vietnam affected by natural disasters and flooding over the past year, underscoring enduring ties to their roots despite living abroad.

At the gathering, Nguyen Nhu Hao also shared his pride in recent progress in Vietnam-Malaysia relations, demonstrated by high-level visits by Party and State leaders.

During meetings at the embassy, Vietnamese leaders applauded the unity of the Vietnamese community in Malaysia and introduced new policies offering greater support for overseas Vietnamese. The event also served as an occasion to honour individuals and businesses that have made notable contributions to the community, with commemorative medals and gifts presented in recognition of their efforts.

Truong Thuy Duong, a Vietnamese expatriate in Johor, said she was moved to see familiar Tet symbols such as peach and apricot blossoms, banh chung and banh tet. (traditional Vietnamese glutinous rice cakes for the Lunar New Year).She noted that the traditional setting and conversations about everyday topics such as Ao dai (traditional long dress) and Tet shopping created a warm and familiar atmosphere for the community.

Hoang Anh Thai, deputy head of the Johor Vietnamese Community Liaison Board, said the strong support from community members had encouraged the organisers to continue arranging activities of practical value. Despite living far from home, he said, overseas Vietnamese in Johor remain united in their attachment to the homeland.

Smiles and warm handshakes throughout the gathering conveyed a shared sentiment: even far from the homeland, Tet remains present through kinship and solidarity.

Vietnamese community actively joins International Migrants Day in Singapore

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